[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 81 (Wednesday, April 29, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19510-19513]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-9828]
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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: This notice informs the public that the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) has 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)), which is being
administered by USDA. This notice informs the public that funding is
now available for the Rural Development voucher program. The notice
also sets forth the general policies and procedures for use of these
vouchers. Rural Development Vouchers are only available to tenants of
Rural Development-financed multifamily properties where the owner pays
off the loan, either through prepayment or a foreclosure action prior
to the loan's maturity date.
DATES: April 29, 2009.
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 TTY by calling
the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service at 800-877-8339.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 106 of the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance and
Continuing Appropriations Act, 2009 (Pub. L. 110-329) (September 30,
2008) (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2009) continued the level of
funding and conditions until the earlier of an applicable appropriation
act for fiscal year 2009 or March 6, 2009. Subsequently, the Omnibus
Appropriations Act, 2009 (Pub. L. 111-8) was enacted on March 11, 2009,
and appropriated $4,965,000 to USDA for the Rural Development Voucher
Program as authorized under Section 542 of the Housing Act of 1949, as
amended, 42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq. (without regard to Section 542(b)).
The Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 provided that the Secretary of
the U.S. Department of Agriculture shall carry out the Rural
Development Voucher Program as follows:
That of the funds made available under this heading, $4,965,000
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) (including the ability to pay administrative costs
related to delivery of the voucher funds).
This notice outlines the process for providing voucher assistance
to the eligible impacted families when an owner prepays a Section 515
loan or Agency 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 of Funds
Availability (NOFA) and further explained in, ``The Rural Development
Voucher Program
[[Page 19511]]
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 will 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 take to any other rental unit
in the United States and its territories.
There are some general limitations on the use of a voucher. For
instance, the rental unit must pass a Rural Development health and
safety inspection, and the owner must be willing to accept a Rural
Development voucher. Also, Rural Development vouchers will not 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. The Rural Development voucher
may not be used for the purchase of 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 42
U.S.C. 1436a the tenant must be a citizen, United States non-citizen
national or qualified alien and will so provide proof of citizenship to
Rural Development using one of the following:
Copy of U.S. Passport (unexpired or expired).
Copy of U.S. Military ID card (unexpired).
Copy of U.S. Military dependent's ID card (unexpired).
Copy of a birth certificate issued by a state, county, municipal
authority, or outlying possession of the United States bearing an
official seal.
Copy of Certificate of U.S. Citizenship (Form N-560 or N-561).
Copy of Certificate of Naturalization (Form N-550 or N-570).
Copy of U.S. Citizen ID card (Form 1-197).
Copy of ID card for use of Resident Citizen in the United States (Form
I-179).
Copy of Permanent Resident Card or Alien Registration Receipt Card with
photograph (Form I-151 or I-1551).
Copy of Certification of Birth Abroad issued by the Department of State
(Form FS-545 or Form DS-1350), 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/datasets/il/FY2008index_mfi.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 prior
to 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. 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 to the local Rural Development office.
If Rural Development makes a determination that the tenant is
ineligible for any reason, 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. During the prepayment request process or
foreclosure process, Rural Development will send all tenants letters
notifying them of the voucher program. 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 of if they are eligible and their voucher calculations by
Rural Development immediately prior to the date of prepayment or
foreclosure. As previously stated, such 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 and Form HUD
52517, ``Request for Tenancy Approval.'' Once the primary tenant
returns the Voucher Obligation Request Form and proof of citizenship to
Rural Development office, 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 proof of citizenship is received.
The family receiving a Rural Development voucher has an initial
search period of 60 calendar days from receipt of the voucher to find a
housing unit. At its discretion, Rural Development may grant one or
more extensions of the initial search period for up to an additional 60
days. The maximum voucher search period for any family participating in
the Rural Development Voucher Program is 120 days. If the family needs
and requests an extension of the initial search period as a reasonable
accommodation to make
[[Page 19512]]
the program accessible to a disabled family member, Rural Development
will extend the voucher search period. 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 1 year.
4. Inspection of Units and Unit Approval
Rural Development will inspect and determine if the housing
standard is acceptable within 30 days of Rural Development receipt of
the HUD Form 52517. 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 of the program 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 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 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 housing assistance payments 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
voucher amount immediately prior to prepayment or foreclosure. The
monthly housing assistance payment 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 tenant can appeal Rural Development's
determination of the voucher amount through USDA's administrative
appeal process, see 7 CFR part 11. 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 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
from the property. 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, where the owner will accept a Rural Development voucher and
execute a Form HUD 52641. HUD Section 8 and Federally-assisted public
housing, however, 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 RA program. Tenants with a Rural Development voucher that
apply for housing in a Rural Development-financed property must choose
between using the voucher or RA. If the tenant relinquishes the Rural
Development voucher in favor of RA, the tenant is not eligible to
receive another Rural Development voucher.
7. Term of Funding 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. If the primary tenant dies during the term
of the voucher, after Rural Development receives notice of the death,
the use of the voucher passes to the co-tenant.
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 is exhausted.
Renewal requests will have no preference and will be processed as a new
application as described in this NOFA.
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,
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, audiotape,
etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and
TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination write to USDA, Director,
Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC
20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA
is an equal
[[Page 19513]]
opportunity provider, employer, and lender.''
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 USC 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: April 22, 2009.
James C. Alsop,
Acting Administrator, Rural Housing Service.
[FR Doc. E9-9828 Filed 4-28-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-XV-P