[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 24, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3435-3438]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-1270]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Rural Housing Service
Notice of Funding Availability: Rural Development Voucher Program
AGENCY: Rural Housing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of Rural Development Voucher Program Availability.
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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Fiscal Year 2006
established a demonstration Rural Development Voucher Program, as
authorized under Section 542 of the Housing Act of 1949 as amended,
(without regard to Section 542(b)). This Notice informs the public that
funding
[[Page 3436]]
is available for the Rural Development Voucher Program. The notice also
sets forth the general policies and procedures for use of these
vouchers for Fiscal Year 2012. Pursuant to the requirements in the
Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012, Public
Law 112-55 (November 18, 2011), Rural Development Vouchers are only
available to low income tenants of Rural Development-financed
multifamily properties where the Section 515 loan has been prepaid,
either through prepayment or a foreclosure action, prior to the loan's
maturity date and after September 30, 2005.
DATES: January 24, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephanie B.M. White, Director, Multi-
Family Housing Portfolio Management Division, Rural Development, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., STOP 0782,
Washington, DC 20250-0782, telephone (202) 720-1615. Persons with
hearing or speech impairments may access this number via TDD by calling
the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012
(Pub. L. 112-55, November 18, 2011) provided that the Secretary of the
USDA shall carry out the Rural Development Voucher program as follows:
That of the funds made available under this heading, $11,000,000
shall be available for rural housing vouchers to any low-income
household (including those not receiving Rental Assistance) residing
in a property financed with a Section 515 loan which has been
prepaid after September 30, 2005: Provided further, that the amount
of such voucher shall be the difference between comparable market
rent for the Section 515 unit and the tenant paid rent for such
unit: Provided further, That funds made available for such vouchers
shall be subject to the availability of annual appropriations:
Provided further, that the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent
practicable, administer such vouchers with current regulations and
administrative guidance applicable to section 8 housing vouchers
administered by the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD).
This notice outlines the process for providing voucher assistance
to the eligible impacted families when an owner prepays a Section 515
loan or USDA action results in a foreclosure after September 30, 2005.
Design Features of the Rural Development Voucher Program
This section sets forth the design features of the Rural
Development Voucher Program, including the eligibility of families, the
inspection of the units, and the calculation of the subsidy amount.
Rural Development Vouchers under this part are administered by the
Rural Housing Service; an Agency under the Rural Development mission
area, in accordance with requirements set forth in this Notice and
further explained in, ``The Rural Development Voucher Program Guide,''
which can be obtained by contacting any Rural Development office.
Contact information for Rural Development offices can be found at
http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app. These requirements are
generally based on the housing choice voucher program regulations of
HUD set forth at 24 CFR part 982, unless otherwise noted by this
Notice.
The Rural Development Voucher Program is intended to offer
protection to eligible multifamily housing tenants in properties
financed through Rural Development's Section 515 Rural Rental Housing
Program (515 property) who may be subject to economic hardship through
prepayment of the Rural Development mortgage. When the owner of a 515
property pays off the loan prior to the loan's maturity date (either
through prepayment or foreclosure action), the Rural Development
affordable housing requirements and rental assistance subsidies
generally cease to exist. Rents may increase, thereby making the
housing unaffordable to tenants. When a prepayment occurs, whether or
not the rent increases, the tenant may be responsible for the full
payment of rent. The Rural Development Voucher Program applies to any
515 property where the mortgage is paid off prior to the maturity date
in the promissory note and the payment occurs after September 30, 2005.
This includes foreclosed properties. Tenants in foreclosed properties
are eligible for a Rural Development Voucher under the same conditions
as properties that go through the standard prepayment process.
The Rural Development Voucher will help tenants by providing an
annual rental subsidy, renewable on the terms and conditions set forth
herein and subject to the availability of funds, that will supplement
the tenant's rent payment. This program enables a tenant to make an
informed decision about remaining in the property, moving to a new
property, or obtaining other financial housing assistance. Low-income
tenants in the prepaying property are eligible to receive a voucher to
use at their current rental property, or to take to any other rental
unit in the United States and its territories.
There are some general limitations on the use of a voucher:
(1) The rental unit must pass a Rural Development health and safety
inspection, and the owner must be willing to accept a Rural Development
Voucher;
(2) Also, Rural Development Vouchers cannot be used for units in
subsidized housing like Section 8 and public housing where two housing
subsidies would result. The Rural Development Voucher may be used for
rental units in other properties financed by Rural Development, but it
will not be used in combination with the Rural Development Rental
Assistance program.
(3) The Rural Development Voucher may not be used to purchase a
home.
1. Family Eligibility
In order to be eligible for the Rural Development Voucher under
this Notice, a family must:
(a) Be residing in the Section 515 project on the date of the
prepayment of the Section 515 loan or upon foreclosure by Rural
Development;
(b) The date of the prepayment or foreclosure must be after
September 30, 2005;
(c) As required by Section 214 of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1980 [42 U.S.C. 1436a] the primary tenant and co-
tenant, if applicable, must be a United States citizen, United States
non-citizen national or qualified alien.
(1) For each family member who contends that he or she is a U.S.
citizen or a noncitizen with eligible immigration status, the family
must submit to Rural Development a written declaration, signed under
penalty of perjury, by which the family member declares whether he or
she is a U.S. citizen or a noncitizen with eligible immigration status:
(i) For each adult, the declaration must be signed by the adult;
and
(ii) For each child, the declaration must be signed by an adult
residing in the assisted dwelling unit who is responsible for the
child.
(2) Each family member, regardless of age, must submit the
following evidence to the responsible entity:
(i) For citizens, the evidence consists of a signed declaration of
U.S. citizenship. Rural Development may request verification of the
declaration by requiring presentation of a United States
[[Page 3437]]
passport, social security card, or other appropriate documentation;
(ii) For noncitizens who are 62 years of age or older, the evidence
consists of: (A) A signed declaration of eligible immigration status;
and
(B) Proof of age document; and
(iii) For all other noncitizens, the evidence consists of:
(A) A signed declaration of eligible immigration status;
(B) Alien registration documentation or other proof of immigration
registration from the United States Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) that contains the individual's alien admission number
or alien file number; and
(C) A signed verification consent form, which provides that
evidence of eligible immigration status may be released to Rural
Development and USCIS for purposes of verifying the immigration status
of the individual. Rural Development shall provide a reasonable
opportunity, not to exceed 30 days, to submit evidence indicating a
satisfactory immigration status, or to appeal to the Immigration and
Naturalization Service the verification determination of the
Immigration and Naturalization Service; and;
(d) The family must be a low-income family on the date of the
prepayment or foreclosure. A low-income family is a family whose annual
income does not exceed 80 percent of the family median income for the
area as defined by HUD. HUD's definition of median income can be found
at: http://www.huduser.org/portal/datasets/il/il11/index.html
During the prepayment or foreclosure process, Rural Development
will evaluate every tenant family to determine if it is low income. If
Rural Development determines a family is low-income, immediately
following the foreclosure or prepayment Rural Development will send the
primary tenant a letter offering the family a voucher and will enclose
a Voucher Obligation Request Form and a citizenship declaration form.
If the family wants to participate in the Rural Development Voucher
Program, the tenant has 10 months from the date of prepayment or
foreclosure to return the Voucher Obligation Request Form and the
citizenship declaration to the local Rural Development office. If Rural
Development determines that the tenant is ineligible, Rural Development
will provide administrative appeal rights pursuant to 7 CFR part 11.
2. Obtaining a Voucher
Rural Development will monitor the prepayment request process or
foreclosure process, as applicable. As part of prepayment or
foreclosure Rural Development will obtain a rent comparability study
for the property ninety days prior to the date of prepayment or
foreclosure. The rent comparability study will be used to calculate the
amount of voucher each tenant is entitled to receive. All tenants will
be notified if they are eligible and the amount of the voucher within
90 days following the date of prepayment or foreclosure. The tenant
notice will include a description of the Rural Development Voucher
Program, a Voucher Obligation Request Form, and letter from Rural
Development offering the tenant participation in Rural Development
Voucher Program. The tenant has 10 months from the date of prepayment
or foreclosure to return the Voucher Obligation Request Form and the
signed citizenship declaration. Failure to submit the Voucher
Obligation Request Form and the signed citizenship declaration within
the required timeframes will terminate the tenant's the voucher. A
tenant's failure to respond within the required timeframes is not
appealable. Once the primary tenant returns the Voucher Obligation
Request Form and the citizenship declaration to Rural Development, a
voucher will be issued within 30 days. All information necessary for a
housing search, explanations of unit acceptability, and Rural
Development contact information will be provided by Rural Development
to the tenant at the time the Voucher Obligation Form and citizenship
declaration is received.
The family receiving a Rural Development Voucher has an initial
period of 60 calendar days from issuance of the voucher to find a
housing unit. At its discretion, Rural Development may grant one or
more extensions of the initial period for up to an additional 60 days.
Generally the maximum voucher period for any family participating in
the Rural Development Voucher Program is 120 days. Only if the family
needs and requests an extension of the initial period as a reasonable
accommodation to make the program accessible to a disabled family
member, Rural Development will extend the voucher search period beyond
the 120 days. If the Rural Development Voucher remains unused after a
period of 150 days from original issuance, the Rural Development
Voucher will become void, any funding will be cancelled, and the tenant
will no longer be eligible to receive a Rural Development Voucher.
3. Initial Lease Term
The initial lease term for the housing unit where the family wishes
to use the Rural Development Voucher must be for one year.
4. Inspection of Units and Unit Approval
Once the family finds a housing unit, Rural Development will
inspect and determine if the housing standard is acceptable within 30
days of Rural Development's receipt of the HUD Form 52517 ``Request for
Tenancy Approval Housing Choice Voucher Program'' found at http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/forms/files/52517.pdf and the
Disclosure of Information on Lead-Based Paint Hazards. The inspection
standards currently in effect for the Rural Development Section 515
Multi-Family Housing Program apply to the Rural Development Voucher
Program. Rural Development must inspect the unit and ensure that the
unit meets the housing inspection standards set forth at 7 CFR
3560.103. Under no circumstances may Rural Development make voucher
rental payments for any period of time prior to the date that Rural
Development physically inspects the unit and determines the unit meets
the housing inspection standards. In the case of properties financed by
Rural Development under the Section 515 program, Rural Development may
accept the results of physical inspections performed no more than one
year prior to the date of receipt by Rural Development of Form HUD
52517, in order to make determinations on acceptable housing standards.
Before approving a family's assisted tenancy or executing a Housing
Assistance Payments contract, Rural Development must determine that the
following conditions are met: (1) The unit has been inspected by Rural
Development and passes the housing standards inspection or has
otherwise been found acceptable as noted previously; and (2) the lease
includes the HUD Tenancy Addendum. A copy of the HUD Tenancy Addendum
will be provided by Rural Development when the tenant is informed he/
she is eligible for a voucher.
Once the conditions in the above paragraph are met, Rural
Development will approve the unit for leasing. Rural Development will
then execute with the owner a Housing Assistance Payments (HAP)
contract, Form HUD-52641. The HAP contract must be executed before
Rural Development Voucher payments can be made. Rural Development will
use its best efforts to execute the HAP contract on behalf of the
family before
[[Page 3438]]
the beginning of the lease term. In the event that this does not occur,
the HAP contract may be executed up to 60 calendar days after the
beginning of the lease term. If the HAP contract is executed during
this 60-day period, Rural Development will pay retroactive housing
assistance payments to cover the portion of the approved lease term
before execution of the HAP contract. Any HAP contract executed after
the 60-day period is untimely, and Rural Development will not pay any
housing assistance payment to the owner for that period. In
establishing the effective date of the voucher HAP contracts, Rural
Development may not execute a HAP contract that is effective prior to
the Section 515 loan prepayment.
5. Subsidy Calculations for Rural Development Vouchers
As stated earlier, if eligible, the tenant will be notified of the
maximum voucher amount within 90 days following prepayment or
foreclosure. The maximum voucher amount for the Rural Development
Voucher Program is the difference between the comparable market rent
for the family's former Section 515 unit and the tenant's rent
contribution on the date of the prepayment. The voucher amount will be
based on the comparable market rent; the voucher amount will never
exceed the comparable market rent at the time of prepayment for the
tenant's unit if the tenant chooses to stay in-place. Also, in no event
may the Rural Development Voucher payment exceed the actual tenant
lease rent. The amount of the voucher does not change either over time
or if the tenant chooses to move to a more expensive location.
6. Mobility and Portability of Rural Development Vouchers
An eligible family that is issued a Rural Development Voucher may
elect to use the assistance in the same project or may choose to move
to another location. The Rural Development Voucher may be used at the
prepaid property or any other rental unit in the United States and its
territories that passes Rural Development physical inspection
standards, and where the owner will accept a Rural Development Voucher
and execute a Form HUD 52641. Tenants and landlords must inform Rural
Development if the tenant plans to move during the HAP agreement term,
even to a new unit in the same complex. All moves (within a complex or
to another complex) require a new obligation, a new inspection and a
new HAP agreement. In addition, HUD Section 8 and federally assisted
public housing is excluded from the Rural Development Voucher Program
because these units are already federally subsidized. Tenants with a
Rural Development Voucher would have to give up the Rural Development
Voucher to accept the assistance at those properties. The Rural
Development Voucher may be used in other properties financed by Rural
Development, but it cannot be used in combination with the Rural
Development Rental Assistance program. Tenants with a Rural Development
Voucher that apply for housing in a Rural Development-financed property
must choose between using the voucher or Rental Assistance. If the
tenant relinquishes the Rural Development Voucher in favor of Rental
Assistance, the tenant is not eligible to receive another Rural
Development Voucher.
7. Term of Funding and Conditions for Renewal for Rural Development
Vouchers
The Rural Development Voucher Program provides voucher assistance
for 12 monthly payments. The voucher is issued to the household in the
name of the primary tenant, as the voucher holder. The voucher is not
transferable from the voucher holder to any other household member
except in the case of the voucher holder's death or involuntary
household separation such as the incarceration of the voucher holder or
transfer of the voucher holder to an assisted living or nursing home
facility. Upon receiving documentation of such cases, the voucher may
be transferred at the Agency's discretion to another tenant on the
voucher holder's lease.
The voucher is renewable subject to the availability of
appropriations to the USDA. In order to renew a voucher, a tenant must
return a signed Voucher Obligation Form which will be sent to the
tenant within 60-90 days before the current voucher expires. If the
voucher holder fails to return the renewal Voucher Obligation Form
before the current voucher funding expires, the voucher will be
terminated.
In order to ensure continued eligibility to use the Rural
Development Voucher, at the time they apply for renewal of the voucher,
tenants must certify that the current family income does not exceed 80
percent of family median income. Rural Development will advise the
tenant of the maximum income level when the renewal Voucher Obligation
Form is sent.
Renewal requests will have no preference and will be processed as a
new application as described in this Notice.
8. Non-Discrimination Statement
``The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits
discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of
race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable,
sex, (including gender identity and expression) marital status,
familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation,
genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or
a part of an individual's income is derived from any public
assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all
programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means
for communication of program information (Braille), large print,
audio tape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-
2600 (voice and TDD).
To file a complaint of discrimination write to USDA, Assistant
Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistance Secretary for
Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Stop 9410, Washington,
DC 20250-9410 or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800)
877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 733-8642 (English Federal relay) or (800)
845-6136 (Spanish Federal relay). USDA is an equal opportunity
provider, and employer.''
9. Paperwork Reduction Act
The information collection requirements contained in this document
are those of the Housing Choice Voucher Program, which have been
approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520) and assigned OMB
control number 2577-0169. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act, HUD may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to
respond to, a collection of information unless the collection displays
a currently valid OMB control number.
Dated: January 16, 2012.
Tammye Trevi[ntilde]o,
Administrator, Rural Housing Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-1270 Filed 1-23-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-XV-P