Report Finds State Agencies Are Not Fully Implementing Protections for Survivors of Domestic Violence in LIHTC Properties

A new report has found that several state housing finance agencies have yet to fully implement the Violence Against Women Act’s (VAWA) protections for survivors of domestic violence currently residing in or applying for apartments developed with Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs), despite being required to do so since 2013. The report provides recommendations for ways state housing finance agencies can independently act to comply with the law and protect survivors.

When Congress reauthorized VAWA in 2013, lawmakers expanded the law to cover most federal housing programs, including the LIHTC program. Even though the law explicitly required that LIHTC providers comply with VAWA, the Department of the Treasury has issued no regulations or implementation guidance for the LIHTC program.

The report was published by the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law, the National Housing Law Project, the American Civil Liberties Union, Regional Housing Legal Services, the National Network to End Domestic Violence, the National Alliance to End Sexual Violence, and Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid.

Read the report at: http://bit.ly/2rJpTdF