AGENDA DATE: 3/14/2018
TITLE:
Title
Biennial inspections for all Housing Choice Voucher units
BODY
SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: Albemarle County Office of Housing shifts frequency of Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) Program unit inspections from annual to biennial, in accordance with HUD policy
ITEM TYPE: Consent Information Item
STAFF CONTACT(S): Richardson, Letteri, Kamptner, Savides, Freeman
PRESENTER (S): John Freeman
LEGAL REVIEW: Yes
REVIEWED BY: Jeffrey B. Richardson
BACKGROUND: As part of the transition of the Housing Choice Voucher Program from the Department of Housing into the Department of Social Services, Housing program supervisor Lyn Witt and DSS Deputy Director John Freeman, supported by DSS Director Phyllis Savides, have concluded that biennial inspections of housing units is in accord with current HUD policy as per Notice PIH 2016-05, will adequately meet the needs of landlords and tenants, and will allow for more efficient distribution of workload among a small Housing unit staff.
STRATEGIC PLAN: Quality Government Operations: Ensure County government's capacity to provide high quality services that achieve community priorities.
DISCUSSION: In April 2016, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development published Notice PIH 2016-05, which provided implementation guidance for provisions included in the regulation titled “Streamlining Administrative Regulations for Public Housing, Housing Choice Voucher, Multifamily Housing, and Community Planning and Development Programs,” also known as the “streamlining rule.” A provision of this document authorizes public housing authorities (PHAs, including the Albemarle County Office of Housing) “to conduct unit inspections every other year instead of annually. Permitting biennial inspections for HCV units will reduce the administrative and financial burden on PHAs and high-performing landlords and enable PHAs to concentrate their inspection resources on the more marginal and higher-risk units.” After continuing its previous practice of annual inspections, the Office of Housing under its new management in the Department of Social Services chooses to accept the HUD standard of biennial inspections for the reasons offered in the Notice. The Office of Housing is still authorized to inspect between biennial inspections at either landlord or tenant request.
BUDGET IMPACT: None
RECOMMENDATION:
Recommendation
Information only
ATTACHMENTS: None