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Affordable Housing
Community Development
Public Housing
Rental Assistance/
Section 8
Other Programs
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Implementing QHWRA
On October 21, 1998, President Clinton enacted into law the Quality
Housing and Work Responsibility (QHWRA) Act of 1998. QHWRA is the
first piece of legislation passed by Congress in five years that
enacts substantial revisions to the laws governing the public housing
and Section 8 programs. The Act was attached to the Fiscal Year
(FY) 1999 appropriations bill (H.R. 4194). It amends the United
States Housing Act of 1937. Normally, legislative provisions contained
in an appropriations bill have a one-year life cycle. However, because
the public housing and Section 8 provisions contained with H.R.
4194 amend the 1937 Act, the provisions become a part of permanent
law.
The Act provides the Secretary of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development (HUD) with the ability to implement any provision
in the Act by notice and, where appropriate, provisions can be implemented
immediately, by rule making and by negotiated rule making. Using
a mediator, negotiated rule making is a process through which an
agency must negotiate with interested parties to develop the regulation
that will govern a specific provision. The Act calls for the Capital
Fund, the Operating Fund, and the Section 8 renewal formula to be
developed through negotiated rule making.
To date, implementation of QHWRA has resulted in:
- Created the requirement for the development of the PHA 5-year
Agency Plan and Annual Plan.
- Merger of the Section 8 certificate and voucher programs, using
the voucher program model for the new program.
- Development of a proposed rule to establish an income mix of
residents and deconcentrate poverty in public housing.
- Development of a final rule for Admissions and Occupancy that
establishes targeting, community work requirements for public
and assisted housing.
- Development of proposed rule to address pet ownership in public
housing.
For more information, please contact Tawanna Preston, Policy Analyst
for Housing, at 202-289-3500, ext. 240 or by e-mail at tpreston@nahro.org.
Regulations & PIH Notices
Admission and Occupancy FAQ
http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/phr/about/ao_faq.cfm
Conforming rules, merger of funds, payment standards, certificate
conversions, rent formulas, income targeting, and new requirements.
http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/hcv/about/merger.pdf
Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act of 1998; Notice of
Status of Implementation
http://www.hudclips.org/sub_nonhud/cgi/pdf/8525.pdf
Merger
of Section 8 Certificate and Voucher Programs, Interim rule
The Interim Rule amendments implement the Quality Housing and
Work Responsibility Act of 1998 and related changes to regulations
for the Section 8 tenant-based rental voucher program.. The rule
provides for the complete merger of the Section 8 tenant-based
Certificate and Voucher programs, into a new Housing Choice Voucher
Program. The Interim Rule became effective on October 1, 1999.
The following summarizes major features of the Housing Choice
Voucher Program Interim Rule, which includes: 1. Payment standards;
2. Tenant payment; 3. Maximum initial rent burden; 4. Income limits;
5. Applicant selection; 6. Optional PHA screening of applicants;
7. Optional PHA disapproval of owners; 8. Initial lease term;
9. Lease form and content; 10. HQS; 11. Fifteen calendar day initial
HQS inspection deadline; 12. PHA penalties for late payment of
housing assistance to owners; 13. HQS inspections and rent reasonableness
determinations for PHA-owned units; 14. Subsidy amount for manufactured
homeowners leasing pads.; 15. Income Targeting; 16. Section 8
PHA definition; 17. Section 8 ``endless lease'' and owner termination;
18. Technical and conforming amendments including elimination
of Section 8 SRO approvals; 19. Portability; 20. Elimination of
``take-one, take-all'' provision; and 21. Intellectual property
rights.
24 CFR Part 982
Housing Choice Voucher Program Amendment
Final rule.
(November 3, 1999)
http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/publications/fedreg/28790.pdf
Updates/Additional Information:
M e m b e r s L i n
k s:
- December 10, 2003:
NAHRO DirectNews - Small Agencies
GAO Study of QHWRA's Impact
on LHAs' Mission To Serve
- July 2, 2003:
NAHRO DirectNews - Section 8:
NAHRO Charts Post QHWRA Successes
and Projects Post HANF Declines
- June 26, 2003:
NAHRO DirectNews - Public Housing and Small Agencies:
Legislators Urge HUD to Reconvene
Neg Reg Committee
- June 15, 2001: Summary of Rental Housing
Integrity Improvement Project Consultation Meeting:
On Tuesday, June 12, 2001, HUD in consultation with industry,
public housing authorities, owners and agents (POAs), and tenant
stakeholders, held its first consultation session of the new
administration
on the issue of income integrity in public and assisted housing.
The Department’s new initiative for improving income integrity
is called the Rental Housing Integrity Improvement Project (RHIIP).
RHIIP is characterized by HUD as a “front-end” process
that will accompany the more “back-end” and reactionary
initiative, established last year, known as the Tenant Income
Verification System. Several major issues were identified as
impediments
to improving rent calculations, from complex regulations and
definitions for income exclusions and deductions to the loss
of qualified
and trained HUD staff, and the lack of on-going training and
technical assistance for HUD and local housing agency staff. more...
- September 12, 2000: On September 7, 2000, NAHRO attended
a HUD hosted informational meeting on the status of the Tenant
Income Verification process. HUD officials and key staff present
at this meeting were: Saul Ramirez, William Apgar, Harold Lucas,
DeborahVincent, D.J. LaVoy, Willie Spearman, and Dave Becker,
as well as many tenant representatives from the National Alliance
of HUD Tenants. more...
- August 25, 2000: Housing and Community Development Policy
Update: United States (link to an overview
of QWHRA)
Monitor Issue:
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