HUD Publishes Certain VAWA Forms for Public Comment and Requests Additional Information Collections

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD or the Department) has published a copy of certain modified model forms required by the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA), along with requests for additional information collections. The Department has implemented these VAWA legislative provisions through a rule published in 2016. The forms listed below comply with the legislative changes from 2013 and the 2016 implementing rule. In the intervening time, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2022 was also enacted. To the extent that the forms need further updating, they will be updated when the newest implementing rule is promulgated.

The VAWA rule, as currently implemented, covers the following HUD programs:

• Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly;
• Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons with Disabilities;
• Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program;
• HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) program;
• Emergency Solutions Grants (ESG) program;
• the Continuum of Care (CoC) program;
• Multifamily rental housing under section 221(d) of the National Housing Act with a below-market interest rate;
• Multifamily rental housing under section 236 of the National Housing Act;
• Public Housing;
• the Housing Choice Voucher program;
• the Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation Single Room Occupancy program; and
• the Housing Trust Fund.

The Department must provide entities participating in the above programs to provide housing (i.e., covered housing providers [CHPs]) with the certain model documents. These model documents have been modified in the following ways:

• Notice of Occupancy Rights Under the Violence Against Women Act (Form HUD-5380) – certain language is streamlined and additional plain language is used. The titles of the sections have been modified and certain sections of the document must be modified according to instructions on the model document among other changes.
• Model Emergency Transfer Plan for Victims of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking (Form HUD-5381) – a note has been added stating that simply using the model plan without program-specific alterations will not meet the requirement for an emergency transfer plan. Certain definitions and sections were added and modified.
• Certification of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking, and Alternate Documentation (Form HUD-5382) – this form is one of four ways that an individual may request VAWA protections. The “Submission of Documentation” section has been updated to include information about reasonable accommodations.
• Emergency Transfer Request for Certain Victims of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking – a model form to accept requests for emergency transfers. The “Confidentiality” section has been updated to include more plain language. Additionally, certain information and optional documentation has been added.

In addition to the changes to the above forms, the notice seeks approval for additional information collection activities:

• Lease addendum – Certain requirements must be incorporated into tenants’ leases.
• Emergency Transfer Reporting – CHPs must keep track of all emergency transfer requests and certain other information. The Department proposes to standardize this collected information through the following fields:
  • Total number of VAWA Emergency Transfer Requests;
  • Number of requests that resulted in Internal Transfers;
  • Number of requests that resulted in External Transfers;
  • Number of requests yet to be placed;
  • Number of approved Emergency Transfer requests that resulted in no transfer;
  • Number of requests that did not qualify for Emergency Transfer and were denied; and
  • Length of time needed to process emergency transfers.
• Adoption of Emergency Transfer Policies – the Department seeks information (collected annually) about the extent to which PHAs, owners, and managers have adopted VAWA emergency transfer policies and the effectiveness of those policies. Collected information will include the following:
  • Type of covered housing;
  • The VAWA emergency transfer plan;
  • Information about whether the emergency transfer plan is publicly available;
  • The number of emergency transfer requests that were received over the last 3 years;
  • The outcome of emergency transfer requests over the last 3 years;
  • Whether a waiting list preference is available for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking;
  • Information about collaborations or coordination with consortiums or other providers for purposes of providing housing and certain services;
  • Whether a VAWA service coordinator exists; and
  • Whether a VAWA lease bifurcation policy exists.

The Department seeks comment on these items and issues. The notice includes several specific requests for comment on the above.

The full notice can be found here.