[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 36 (Wednesday, February 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10055-10062]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-2633]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-5094-N-03]
Changes to the Public Housing Assessment System (PHAS): Physical
Condition Scoring Notice
AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian
Housing, HUD.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice provides additional information to public housing
agencies (PHAs) and members of the public about HUD's process for
issuing scores under the physical condition indicator of the Public
Housing Assessment System (PHAS). This notice amends the current
Physical Condition Scoring Process notice that was published on June
29, 2000, as corrected and updated by the Physical Condition Scoring
Process notice that was published on November 26, 2001.
DATES: Effective Date: March 24, 2011.
Comment Due Date: April 25, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on this
notice to the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel,
Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, SW., Room
10276, Washington, DC 20410-0500. Communications must refer to the
above docket number and title. There are two methods for submitting
public comments. All submissions must refer to the above docket number
and title.
1. Submission of Comments by Mail. Comments may be submitted by
mail to the Regulations Division, Office of General Counsel, Department
of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th Street, SW., Room 10276,
Washington, DC 20410-0500.
2. Electronic Submission of Comments. Interested persons may submit
comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
http://www.regulations.gov. HUD strongly encourages commenters to
submit comments electronically. Electronic submission of comments
allows the commenter maximum time to prepare and submit a comment,
ensures timely receipt by HUD, and enables HUD to make them immediately
available to the public. Comments submitted electronically through the
http://www.regulations.gov website can be viewed by other commenters
and interested members of the public. Commenters should follow the
instructions provided on that site to submit comments electronically.
Note: To receive consideration as public comments, comments must
be submitted through one of the two methods specified above. Again,
all submissions must refer to the docket number and title of the
rule.
No Facsimile Comments. Facsimile (FAX) comments are not acceptable.
Public Inspection of Public Comments. All properly submitted
comments and communications submitted to HUD will be available for
public inspection and copying between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays at the
above address. Due to security measures at the HUD Headquarters
building, an advance appointment to review the public comments must be
scheduled by calling the Regulations Division at 202-402-3055 (this is
not a toll-free number). Individuals with speech or hearing impairments
may access this number via TTY by calling the Federal Information Relay
Service, toll-free, at 800-877-8339. Copies of all comments submitted
are available for inspection and downloading at http://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Claudia Yarus, Department of Housing
and Urban Development, Office of Public and Indian Housing, Real Estate
Assessment Center (REAC), 550 12th Street, SW., Suite 100, Washington,
DC 20410 at 202-475-8830 (this is not a toll-free number). Persons with
hearing or speech impairments may access this number through TTY by
calling the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service at 800-877-
8339. Additional information is available from the REAC Internet site
at http://www.hud.gov/offices/reac/.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Purpose of This Notice
The purpose of this notice is to describe the PHAS physical
condition scoring process and to prescribe the frequency of individual
project inspections.
II. Purpose of the PHAS Physical Condition Assessment
The purpose of the PHAS physical condition assessment is to ensure
that public housing units are decent, safe, sanitary, and in good
repair, as determined by an inspection conducted in accordance with
HUD's Uniform Physical Condition Standards (UPCS) codified at 24 CFR
part 5, subpart G. The physical condition assessment under the PHAS
utilizes uniform physical inspection procedures to determine compliance
with uniform standards and is an important indicator of performance for
a project and a PHA. All projects will be assessed under the physical
condition indicator, even if a PHA has not converted to asset
management.
The physical condition indicator score is based on a maximum of 40
points. In order to receive a passing score under this indicator, a
project must achieve at least 24 points or 60 percent of the points
available under this indicator. Under the PHAS physical condition
indicator, REAC will calculate a score for each project, as well as for
the overall physical condition of a PHA. The physical condition score,
based on a 40-point scale, is included in each PHA's aggregate PHAS
score.
III. Transition to Asset Management and Frequency of Inspections
The number of units in a PHA's Low-Rent program and the PHAS
designation for small PHAs will determine the frequency of physical
inspections during and after the transition to asset management. PHAs
with less than 250 public housing units will receive a PHAS assessment,
based on its PHAS designation, as follows:
(1) A small PHA that is a high performer will receive a PHAS
assessment every 3 years;
(2) A small PHA that is a standard or substandard performer will
receive a PHAS assessment every other year; and
(3) All other small PHAs will receive a PHAS assessment every year,
including a PHA that is designated as troubled or Capital Fund
troubled, in accordance with Sec. 902.75.
For PHAs with 250 or more units of any PHAS designation, the
inspection score of each project (not the overall physical indicator
score) will determine the frequency of inspections for that project.
Projects that score 90 points or higher based on a possible 100-point
project score will be inspected triennially. Projects that score less
than 90 points and at least 80 points based on a possible 100-point
project score will be inspected biennially. Projects that score less
than 80 points based on a possible 100-point scale will be inspected
annually. The performance incentive will change from PHA-based to
project-based. Project inspections for PHAs with 250 or more units will
be based on the project's prior year inspection score.
Projects for any PHA designated as troubled will be inspected
annually
[[Page 10056]]
regardless of any project's individual score. PHAs of 250 units or more
with unit-weighted project scores from 2 or 3 different years will have
all their prior year scores of 90 and above or 80 and above (and
current year scores for each project that was inspected), multiplied by
40 percent, totaled together, and rounded to produce an overall
physical indicator score.
In the baseline year, every PHA will receive an overall PHAS score
and in all four of the PHAS indicators: Physical condition; financial
condition; management operations; and Capital Fund program. This will
allow a baseline for the physical condition inspections and the 3-2-1
inspection schedule, as well as a baseline year for the small
deregulated PHAs.
IV. Item Weights and Criticality Levels, and Dictionary of Deficiency
Definitions
The Item Weights and Criticality Levels tables and the Dictionary
of Deficiency Definitions, currently in use, were published as
Appendices 1 and 2 to the Public Housing Assessment System Physical
Condition Scoring Process Interim Scoring, Corrections, and
Republication notice (66 FR 59102), dated November 26, 2001. The
Federal Register notice along with both appendices is available in
HUD's REAC Physical Inspection Library Internet site at: http://www.hud.gov/offices/reac/library/documents/fr-notice20011126.pdf. A
stand-alone, user friendly Dictionary of Deficiency Definitions is
found at http://www.hud.gov/offices/reac/pdf/pass_dict2.3.pdf.
V. Validity and Reliability of the Physical Inspection Protocols
The Conference Report (H.R. Conf. Rep. 106-988; October 18, 2000)
accompanying HUD's FY 2001 Appropriations Act (Pub. L. 106-377,
approved October 27, 2000) directed HUD to continue to assess the
accuracy and effectiveness of the PHAS system, in particular the
physical condition inspection protocol. HUD was also directed to
perform a statistically valid test of PHAS, conduct a thorough analysis
of the results, and have the methodology and results reviewed by an
independent expert before taking any adverse action against a PHA based
solely on its PHAS score. HUD retained the Louis Berger Group (the
contractor) to conduct the review of the methodology and results of the
statistically valid test.
The findings of the contractor's study concluded that the physical
condition inspection protocol is repeatable and reliable. A report
addressing the issues raised in the Conference Report, entitled the
Review and Assessment of the REAC Study of the Physical Assessment Sub-
System (PASS) Process, was provided to the House and Senate Committees
on Appropriations on March 1, 2001.
VI. The Physical Inspection Scoring Process
The PHAS physical inspection generates comprehensive results,
including physical inspection scores reported at the project level;
area level scores for each of the five physical inspection areas, as
applicable; and observations of deficiencies recorded electronically by
the inspector at the time of the inspection.
1. Definitions
The following are the definitions of the terms used in the physical
condition scoring process:
Criticality means one of five levels that reflect the relative
importance of the deficiencies for an inspectable item. Appendix 1
lists all deficiencies with their designated criticality levels, which
vary from 1 to 5, with 5 being the most critical. Based on the
criticality level, each deficiency has an assigned value that is used
in scoring. Those values are as follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Criticality Level Value
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Critical.......................................... 5 5.00
Very Important.................................... 4 3.00
Important......................................... 3 2.25
Contributes....................................... 2 1.25
Slight Contribution............................... 1 0.50
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Based on the importance of the deficiency as reflected by its
criticality value, points are deducted from the project score. For
example, a clogged drain in the kitchen is more critical than a damaged
surface on a countertop. Therefore, more points will be deducted for a
clogged drain than for a damaged surface.
Deficiencies refer to specific problems that are recorded for
inspectable items, such as a hole in a wall or a damaged refrigerator
in the kitchen.
Inspectable area means any of the five major components of the
project: Site, building exteriors, building systems, common areas, and
dwelling units.
Inspectable items refer to walls, kitchens, bathrooms, and other
features that are inspected in an inspectable area. The number of
inspectable items varies for each inspectable area, from 8 to 17.
Weights are assigned to each item to reflect their relative importance
and are shown in the Item Weights and Criticality Levels tables. The
tables refer to the weight of each item as the nominal item weight,
which is also known as the amenity weight.
Normalized area weight represents weights used with area scores to
calculate project-level scores. The weights are adjusted to reflect the
inspectable items actually present at the time of the inspection. These
weights are proportional, as follows:
For dwelling units, the area score is the weighted average
of sub-area scores for each unit, weighted by the total of item weights
present for inspection in each unit, which is referred to as the
amenity weight.
For common areas, the area score is the weighted average
of sub-area common area scores weighted by the total weights for items
available for inspection (or amenity weight) in each residential
building common area or common building. Common buildings refer to any
inspectable building that contains no dwelling units. All common
buildings are inspected.
For building exteriors or building systems, the area
scores are weighted averages of sub-area scores.
For sites, the area score is calculated as follows: (1)
The amenity weights found on a site, (2) minus deductions for
deficiencies, and (3) normalized to a 100-point scale.
Normalized sub-area weight means the weight used with sub-area
scores to compute an inspectable area score. These weights are
proportional:
For dwelling units, the item weight of amenities available
in the unit at the time of inspection is the amenity weight.
For common areas, the common area amenity weight is
divided by a building's probability of being selected for inspection.
All residential buildings with common areas may not be selected for
inspection; however, all buildings with common areas are selected to
determine the amenity weight.
For building exterior and building systems, the building
exterior or building system amenity weight is multiplied by the
building's size (number of units) and then divided by its probability
of being selected for inspection.
For the site, there is no sub-area score. For each
project, there is a single site.
Note that dividing by a building's probability of being selected
for inspection is the same as multiplying by the probability weight,
since the probability weight is 1 divided by the probability of being
selected for inspection.
Project is used synonymously with the term ``property.''
[[Page 10057]]
Severity means one of three levels that reflect the extent of
damage associated with each deficiency, with values assigned as
follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Severity level Value
------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.......................................................... 1.00
2.......................................................... 0.50
1.......................................................... 0.25
------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Item Weights and Criticality Levels tables show the severity
levels that are possible for each deficiency. Based on the severity of
each deficiency, the score is reduced. Points deducted are calculated
by multiplying the item weight by the values for criticality and
severity, as described below. For specific definitions of each severity
level, see the Dictionary of Deficiency Definitions.
Score means a number between 0 and 100 that reflects the physical
condition of a project, inspectable area, dwelling area, or sub-area. A
property score includes both an alphabetical and a numerical component.
The number represents an overall score for the basic physical condition
of a property, including points deducted for health and safety
deficiencies other than those associated with smoke detectors. The
letter code specifically indicates whether health and safety
deficiencies were detected, as shown in the chart below:
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Health and safety deficiencies
-------------------------------------------------------
No health Life Fire safety
Physical inspection score alphanumeric and safety Non-Life threatening ---------------------------
codes deficiencies threatening (LT)/exigent No smoke Smoke
(NLT) health and detector detector
safety (EHS) problems problems
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a......................................... X ............ ............ X ............
a*........................................ X ............ ............ ............ X
b......................................... ............ X ............ X ............
b*........................................ ............ X ............ ............ X
c......................................... ............ ............ X X ............
c*........................................ ............ ............ X ............ X
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To record a health or safety problem, a letter is added to the
project score (a, b, or c); and to note that one or more smoke
detectors are inoperable or missing, an asterisk (*) is added to the
project score.
Sub-area means an area that will be inspected for all inspectable
areas except the site. For example, the building exterior for building
``2'' is a sub-area of the building exterior area. Likewise, unit ``5''
would be a sub-area of the dwelling units area. Each inspectable area
for each building in a property is treated as a sub-area.
2. Scoring Protocol
To generate accurate scores, the inspection protocol includes a
determination of the appropriate relative weights of the various
components of the inspection; that is, which components are the most
important, the next most important, and so on. For example, in the
building exterior area, a blocked or damaged fire escape is more
important than a cracked window, which is more important than a broken
light fixture. The Item Weights and Criticality Levels tables provide
the nominal weight of observable deficiencies by inspectable item for
each area/sub-area. The Dictionary of Deficiency Definitions provides a
definition for the severity of each deficiency in each area/sub-area.
3. Equity Principles
In addition to determining the appropriate relative weights,
consideration is also given to several issues concerning equity between
properties so that scores fairly assess all types of properties:
Proportionality. The scoring methodology includes an important
control that does not allow any sub-area scores to be negative. If a
sub-area, such as the building exterior for a given building, has so
many deficiencies that the sub-area score would be negative, the score
is set to zero. This control mechanism ensures that no single building
or dwelling unit can affect the overall score more than its
proportionate share of the whole.
Configuration of project. The scoring methodology takes into
account different numbers of units in buildings. To fairly score
projects with different numbers of units in buildings, the area scores
are calculated for building exteriors and systems by using weighted
averages of the sub-area scores, where the weights are based on the
number of units in each building and on the building's probability of
being selected for inspection. In addition, the calculation for common
areas includes the amenities existing in the residential common areas
and common buildings at the time of inspection.
Differences between projects. The scoring methodology also takes
into account that projects have different features and amenities. To
ensure that the overall score reflects only items that are present to
be inspected, weights to calculate area and project scores are adjusted
depending on how many items are actually there to be inspected.
4. Deficiency Definitions
During a physical inspection of a project, the inspector looks for
deficiencies for each inspectable item within the inspectable areas,
such as the walls (the inspectable item) of a dwelling unit (the
inspectable area). Based on the observed condition, the Dictionary of
Deficiency Definitions defines up to the three levels of severity for
each deficiency: Level 1 (minor), Level 2 (major), and Level 3
(severe). The associated values were shown earlier in the first chart
of Section VI. A specific criticality level, with associated values as
shown in that chart, is also assigned to each deficiency. The
criticality level reflects the importance of the deficiency relative to
all other possible observable deficiencies for the inspectable area.
5. Health and Safety Deficiencies
The UPCS physical inspection emphasizes health and safety (H&S)
deficiencies because of their crucial impact on the well-being of
residents. A subset of H&S deficiencies is exigent health and safety
(EHS) deficiencies. These are life threatening (LT) and require
immediate action or remedy. EHS deficiencies can substantially reduce
the overall project score. As noted in the definition for the word
``score'' in the Definitions section, all H&S deficiencies are
highlighted by the addition of a letter to the numeric score.
[[Page 10058]]
The Item Weights and Criticality Levels tables list all H&S
deficiencies with an LT designation for those that are EHS deficiencies
and an NLT designation for those that are non-life threatening. The LT
and NLT designations apply only to severity level 3 deficiencies.
To ensure prompt correction of H&S deficiencies, the inspector
gives the project representative a deficiency report identifying every
observed EHS deficiency before the inspector leaves the site. The
project representative acknowledges receipt of the deficiency report by
signature. The inspector also transmits the deficiency report to HUD no
later than the morning of the first business day after completing the
inspection. HUD makes available to all PHAs an inspection report that
includes information about all of the H&S deficiencies recorded by the
inspector. The report shows:
The number of H&S deficiencies (EHS and NLT) that the
inspector observed;
All observed smoke detector deficiencies; and
A projection of the total number of H&S problems that the
inspector potentially would see in an inspection of all buildings and
all units.
Problems with smoke detectors do not currently affect the overall
score. When there is an asterisk indicating that the project has at
least one smoke detector deficiency, that part of the score may be
identified as ``risk;'' for example, ``93a, risk'' for 93a*, and ``71c,
risk'' for 71c*. There are six distinct letter grade combinations based
on the H&S deficiencies and smoke detector deficiencies observed: a,
a*, b, b*, c, and c*. For example:
A score of 90c* means that the project contains at least
one EHS deficiency to be corrected, including at least one smoke
detector deficiency, but is otherwise in excellent condition.
A score of 40b* means the project is in poor condition,
has at least one non-life threatening deficiency, and has at least one
missing or inoperable smoke detector.
A score of 55a means that the project is in poor
condition, even though there are no H&S deficiencies.
A project in excellent physical condition with no H&S
deficiencies would have a score of 90a to 100a.
6. Scoring Process Elements
The physical condition scoring process is based on three elements
within each project: (1) Five inspectable areas (site, exterior,
systems, common areas, and dwelling units); (2) inspectable items in
each inspectable area; and (3) observed deficiencies. In broad terms,
the score for a property is the weighted average of the five
inspectable area scores, where area weights are adjusted to account for
all of the inspectable items that are actually present to be inspected.
In turn, area scores are calculated by using weighted averages of sub-
area scores (e.g., building area scores for a single building or unit
scores for a single unit) for all sub-areas within an area.
7. Scoring Using Weighted Averages
For all areas except the site, normalized sub-area weights are
determined using the size of sub-areas, the items available for
inspection, and the sub-area's probability of selection for inspection.
Sub-area scores are determined by deducting points for deficiencies
based on the importance (weight) of the item, the criticality of the
deficiency, and the severity of the deficiency. The maximum deduction
for a single deficiency will not calculate a score of less than zero.
Points will be deducted only for one deficiency of the same kind within
a sub-area. For example, if multiple deficiencies for broken windows
are recorded, only the most severe deficiency observed (or one of the
most severe, if there are multiple deficiencies with the same level of
severity) will result in a point deduction.
8. Essential Weights and Levels
The process of scoring a project's physical condition depends on
the weights, levels, and associated values of the following quantities:
Weights for the 5 inspectable areas (site, building
exteriors, building systems, common areas, and dwelling units).
Weights for inspectable items within inspectable areas (8
to 17 per area).
Criticality levels (critical, very important, important,
contributes, and slight contribution) plus their associated values for
deficiencies within areas inspected.
Severity levels (3, 2, and 1) and their associated values
for deficiencies.
Health and safety deductions (exigent/fire safety and non-
life threatening for all inspectable areas).
9. Area Weights
Area weights are used to obtain a weighted average of area scores.
A project's overall physical condition score is a weighted average of
all inspectable area scores. The approximate relative weights are:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Inspectable area Weight
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Site........................................................... 15%
Building Exterior.............................................. 15%
Building Systems............................................... 20%
Common Areas................................................... 15%
Dwelling Units................................................. 35%
------------------------------------------------------------------------
These weights are assigned for all inspections when all
inspectable items are present for each area and for each building and
unit. All of the inspectable items may not be present in every
inspectable area. When items are missing in an area, the area weights
are modified to reflect the missing items so that within that area they
will add up to 100 percent. Area weights are recalculated when some
inspectable items are missing in one or more area(s).
Although rare, it is possible that an inspectable area could have
no inspectable items available; for example, there could be no common
areas in the inspected residential buildings and no common buildings.
In this case, the weight of the ``common areas'' would be 0 percent and
its original 15 percent weight would be equitably redistributed to the
other inspectable areas, as shown in the example below:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Missing common Adjusted
Inspectable area Normal weight areas Adjustment weight
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Site.................................. 15% 15% .15/.85 =............... 18%
Building Exterior..................... 15% 15% .15/.85 =............... 18%
Building Systems...................... 20% 20% .20/.85 =............... 23%
Common Areas.......................... 15% 0% ........................ 0%
Dwelling Units........................ 35% 35% .35/.85 =............... 41%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total............................. 100% 85% ........................ 100%
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[[Page 10059]]
The original 15 percent weight for the common areas is
redistributed by totaling the weights of other inspectable areas (100
percent-15 percent = 85 percent) and dividing the weights of each other
area by that amount (0.85). The modified weights would then be 18
percent for site, 18 percent for building exterior, 23 percent for
building systems, 0 percent for common areas, 41 percent for dwelling
units, and again be equal to (be normalized to) 100 percent.
10. Area and Sub-Area Scores
For inspectable areas with sub-areas (all areas except sites), the
inspectable area score is a weighted average of the sub-area scores
within that area. The scoring protocol determines the amenity weight
for the site and each sub-area as noted in Section VI.1 under the
definition for normalized sub-area weight. For example, a property with
no fencing or gates in the inspectable area of the site would have an
amenity weight of 90 percent or 0.9 (100 percent minus 10 percent for
lack of fencing and gates), and a single dwelling unit with all items
available for inspection, except a call-for-aid would have an amenity
weight of 0.98 or 98 percent (100 percent minus 2 percent for lack of
call-for-aid). A call-for-aid is a system designed to provide elderly
residents the opportunity to call for help in the event of an
emergency.
The amenity weight excludes all health and safety items. Each
deficiency as weighted and normalized are subtracted from the sub-area
or site-weighted amenity score. Sub-area and site area scores are
further reduced for any observed health and safety deficiencies. These
deductions are taken at the site, building, or unit level. At this
point, a control is applied to prevent a negative site, building, or
unit score. The control ensures that no single building or unit can
affect an area score more than its weighted share.
11. Overall Project Score
The overall project score is the weighted average of the five
inspectable area scores, with the five areas weighted by their
normalized weights. Normalized area weights reflect both the initial
weights and the relative weights between areas of inspectable items
actually present. For reporting purposes, the number of possible points
is the normalized area weight adjusted by multiplying by 100 so that
the possible points for the five areas add up to 100. In the Physical
Inspection Report for each project that is sent to the PHA, the
following items are listed:
Normalized weights as the ``possible points'' by area;
The area scores, taking into account the points deducted
for observed deficiencies;
The deductions for H&S for each inspectable area; and
The overall project score.
The Physical Inspection Report allows the PHA and the project
manager to see the magnitude of the points lost by inspectable area and
the impact on the score of the H&S deficiencies.
12. Examples of Physical Condition Score Calculations
The physical inspection scoring is deficiency based. All projects
start with 100 points. Each deficiency observed reduces the score by an
amount dependent on the importance and severity of the deficiency, the
number of buildings and units inspected, the inspectable items actually
present to be inspected, and the relative weights between inspectable
items and inspectable areas.
The calculation of a physical condition score is illustrated in the
examples below. The examples go through a number of interim stages in
calculating the score, illustrating how sub-area scores are calculated
for a single project, how the sub-area scores are rolled up into area
scores, and how area scores are combined to calculate the overall
project score. One particular deficiency is carried through the
examples showing the end result.
As will be seen, the deduction starts out as a percent of the sub-
area. Then the area score is considerably decreased in the final
overall project score because the deduction is averaged across other
sub-areas and then averaged across the five inspectable areas. Although
interim results in the examples are rounded, only the final results are
rounded for actual calculations.
To illustrate how physical condition scores are calculated, three
examples are provided below. Following this section, another example is
given specifically for public housing projects to show how project
scores are rolled up into the PHAS physical indicator score for the PHA
as a whole.
Example #1 illustrates how the score for a sub-area of building
systems is calculated. Consider a 10-unit residential building in which
the five inspectable areas are present. During the inspection, damaged
vents in the roof are observed. This deficiency reflected a severity
level of 1, which has a severity weight of 0.25; a criticality level of
4, which has a criticality weight of 3; and an item weight of 16.0. The
amount of the points deducted is the item weight, multiplied by the
criticality weight multiplied by the severity value. This is
illustrated in the table below.
Area: Building Exterior
Item: Roof
Deficiency: Damaged Vents
Criticality Level: 4, Severity Level: 1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element Associated value
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Item Weight...................................... 16
Criticality Weight............................... 3.0
Severity Weight.................................. 0.25
Calculation of Points Deducted for Deficiency.... 16 x 3 x 0.25 = 12
------------------------------------------------------------------------
If this building exterior has all inspectable items except for a
fire escape, the amenity weight for the first building exterior adds up
to 84 percent (100 percent starting point minus 16 percent for the lack
of a fire escape, excluding H&S items). If the damaged roof vents were
the only deficiency observed, then the initial proportionate score for
this sub-area (Building Exterior 1) would be the amenity score
minus the deficiency points and then normalized to a 100-point basis,
as shown below. Additional deficiencies or H&S deficiencies (calculated
in the same manner) would further decrease the sub-area score, and if
the score dropped below zero, it would be set to zero.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element Associated value
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amenity Score................................. 84
Deficiency Points............................. 12
Calculation for the Initial Proportionate 84 - 12 = 72
Score........................................
Normalizing Factor............................ 100
Calculation for the Initial Sub-Area Score (72/84) x 100 = 85.7
Building Exterior 1.................
------------------------------------------------------------------------
[[Page 10060]]
Example #2 illustrates how the area score is calculated. Consider a
property with two buildings with the following characteristics:
Building 1 (from Example 1, above):
--10 units
--84 percent amenity weight for items that are present to be inspected
in the building exterior
--Building exterior score is 85.7 points
Building 2:
--20 units
--100 percent amenity weight for items that are present to be inspected
in the building exterior
--Building exterior score is 69.1 points
The building exterior score for the building exterior area is the
weighted average of the individual scores for each building exterior.
Each building exterior score is weighted by the number of units and the
percent of the weight for items present to be inspected in the building
exterior.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sum of the Initial Building
Building Number of x Amenity weight = Unit weighted / building x proportionate = exterior area
units average weights score score
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1..................... 10 ... 0.84 ... 08.4 ... 28.4 ... 85.7 ... 25.3
2..................... 20 ... 1.00 ... 20.0 ... 28.4 ... 69.1 ... 48.7
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................... 30 ... .............. ... 28.4 ... .............. ... .............. ... 74.0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Example #3 illustrates how the overall weighted average for the
building exterior area amenity weight is calculated. The separate
amenity weights for buildings 1 and 2, above, are
used in conjunction with the total units to calculate the building
exterior area amenity weight. Each building amenity weight is
multiplied by the number of units in that building and then divided by
the total number of units for all buildings, as shown below. For
purposes of the next example, the Overall Building Exterior Area
Amenity Weight of 94.7 was rounded to 95.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Overall
building
Number of Unit weighted Normalized to exterior area
Building exterior units x Amenity weight = average / Total units x a 100 point = weighted
basis average
amenity weight
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1..................... 10 ... 0.84 ... 08.4 ... 30 ... 100 ... 28.0
2..................... 20 ... 1.00 ... 20.0 ... 30 ... 100 ... 66.7
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................... 30 ... .............. ... 28.4 ... .............. ... .............. ... 94.7
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Example #4 illustrates how the score for a property is calculated.
Consider a property with the following characteristics:
Site:
--Score: 90 points
--100 percent amenity weight
--Nominal weight: 15 percent
Building Exteriors (from example 2 and
3, above):
--Score: 74 points
--95 percent weighted average amenity weight
--Nominal weight: 15 percent
Building Systems:
--Score: 70 points
--80 percent weighted average amenity weight
--Nominal weight: 20 percent
Common Areas:
--Score: 60 points
--30 percent weighted average amenity weight
--Nominal weight: 15 percent
Dwelling Units:
--Score: 80 points
--90 weighted average amenity weight
--Nominal weight: 35 percent
To continue the scoring protocol, the adjusted area weights for all
five inspectable areas are determined. For purposes of this example,
the adjusted weights and maximum possible points for each of the five
inspectable areas are shown in the table below. All of the values in
this table, except for the values for building exteriors, are presumed.
The values for building exteriors were calculated as part of this
ongoing example.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Amenity Normalized to Maximum
Inspectable area Area weight x Amenity weight = weighted / Total adjusted x 100 point = possible
average weight scale points
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Site........................... 15 ... 1.00 ... 15.0 ... 81.2 ... 100 ... 18.5
Building Exterior.............. 15 ... 0.95 ... 14.2 ... 81.2 ... 100 ... 17.5
Building Systems............... 20 ... 0.80 ... 16.0 ... 81.2 ... 100 ... 19.7
Common Areas................... 15 ... 0.30 ... 04.5 ... 81.2 ... 100 ... 05.5
Dwelling Units................. 35 ... 0.90 ... 31.5 ... 81.2 ... 100 ... 38.8
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total...................... .............. ... .............. ... 81.2 ... .............. ... .............. ... 100.0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The nominal possible points for each inspectable area is multiplied
by the amenity weight, divided by the total adjusted amenity weight,
and normalized to a 100-point basis, in order to produce the possible
points for the inspectable area. The property score is the sum of all
weighted area scores for that property. The sample shown below reflects
how the deficiency from example 1 in the building exterior
area impacts the overall property score. The property score of 77.8 is
rounded to 78 for the final example.
[[Page 10061]]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Project 1 weighted
Inspectable area Area points x Area score / a 100 point = area scores
scale
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Site............................. 18.5 ... 90 ... 100 ... 16.7
Building Exterior................ 17.5 ... 74 ... 100 ... 13.0
Building Systems................. 19.7 ... 70 ... 100 ... 13.8
Common Areas..................... 05.5 ... 60 ... 100 ... 03.3
Dwelling Units................... 38.8 ... 80 ... 100 ... 31.0
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total........................ 100.0 ... .............. ... .............. ... 77.8
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
13. Computing the PHAS Physical Inspection Score
The overall physical inspection score for the PHAS for a PHA is the
weighted average of the PHA's individual project physical inspection
scores, where the weights are the number of units in each project
divided by the total number of units in all projects for the PHA. For
example, the project described in Example 1 from above has a
score of 78 with 30 units. Using another project with a score of 92 and
650 units with project from Example 1 would calculate to an
overall physical inspection score of 91. Note the impact on the overall
physical inspection of a single property with a large number of units.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Weighted Rescaling to Number of Project
Project average x the 40-point = x units in the / Total PHA = weighted area
property score basis property units score
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.................................. 78 ... .4 31.2 ... 30 ... 680 ... 1.4
2.................................. 92 ... .4 36.8 ... 650 ... 680 ... 35.2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total................................... 100 ... .............. ...... ... .............. ... .............. ... 36.6
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The physical subsystem indicator score for this PHA provided to
HUD's centralized scoring system would be 36.6, rounded to a score of
37. Weighted-average property scores are scaled to a 40-point basis by
multiplying by 0.4. The total is then multiplied by the number of units
within the property and divided by the total number of PHA units, to
produce a unit-weighted average. All of the project's weighted area
scores are totaled and rounded using a rounding policy of rounding up
to the nearest whole number a score ending in 0.5 and above, and
rounding down a score ending in 0.4 and below.
14. Examples of Sampling Weights for Buildings
As shown above, buildings with the most dwelling units have the
greatest impact on the project's overall physical score. Buildings with
the most dwelling units also have the greatest likelihood of being
selected for inspection. The determination of which buildings will be
inspected is a two-phase process. In Phase 1 of the process, all
buildings that contain dwelling units are sorted by size and then the
units are randomly sorted within each building. A computer program
selects a random sample of units to be inspected.
All buildings in a project may not be selected in the building
sample during Phase 1 sampling, because a building may have so few
units, such as a sole scattered-site single-family unit. A Phase 2
sampling is used to increase the size of the number of buildings
selected. In Phase 2, the additional buildings that are included in the
sample are selected with equal probability so that the residential
building sample size is the lesser of either the dwelling unit sample
size or the number of all residential buildings. All common buildings
are selected for inspection. To illustrate the process for sampling
buildings, 2 examples are provided below:
Example #1. This first example uses a project with 2 buildings
where both buildings are selected for inspection. Building A has 10
dwelling units and building B has 20 dwelling units, for a total of 30
dwelling units. The target dwelling unit sample size for a project with
30 dwelling units is 15 units. The sampling ratio for this project is
two and is calculated by dividing the 15 target units by the total
number of units (30/15=2). In this illustration, every second dwelling
unit will be selected from the random sort of the units within each
building. Since both buildings have at least 2 dwelling units, both
buildings are certain to be selected for inspection in Phase 1. Since
all buildings were selected in Phase 1 of sampling, Phase 2 is not
required. Both buildings in this example have a selection probability
of 1.00 and a sampling weight of 1.00.
Example #2. This example uses a project where only some of the
buildings within the project are selected for inspection in Phase 1, so
a Phase 2 sampling is required. For this example, a project is
comprised of 22 residential buildings. Two buildings each have 10
dwelling units and 20 buildings are scattered-site single-family
dwelling units. The project has 40 total dwelling units (two buildings
with 10 units each added to 20 single units (20+20)). The target sample
size for a project with 40 dwelling units is 16 units, and the sampling
ratio would be 2.5 (40 total dwelling units divided by 16 target
dwelling units). Since the target sample size is the lesser of either
the dwelling unit sample size (16) or the number of all residential
buildings (22), 16 residential buildings would be inspected for this
project.
In Phase 1 of sampling, the 2 buildings with 10 dwelling units are
selected with certainty since they both have more than 2.5 dwelling
units. Each of the scattered-site single family buildings then have a
40 percent probability of selection (100 percent or 1 divided by the
2.5 sampling ratio equals 0.40). Assume that both large buildings and 8
of the single-family buildings (10 buildings in all) were selected in
Phase 1. This leaves 12 single-family buildings available for selection
during Phase 2. Since 16 residential buildings need to be inspected,
the sample of 10 buildings selected in Phase 1 falls 6 buildings short
of a full sample. Therefore, the system will select 6 of the 12
previously unselected buildings during Phase 2 sampling. The chance of
any single building, of the 12 remaining buildings, being selected
during Phase 2 is 0.50 or
[[Page 10062]]
50 percent (6 target buildings divided by 12 previously unselected
buildings). The overall probability of any one of the 20 single-family
units being selected during either Phase 1 or Phase 2 is calculated as
follows:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Element Protocol Calculation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Phase 1 Single-family Unit 8 of 20 buildings..... 8/20 = .40.
Building Selection.
Phase 2 Single-family Unit 6 of 12 buildings..... 6/12 = .50.
Building Selection.
Overall Possibility of Single- 100% minus the 40% (1.00 - .40) x
family Unit Building already selected .50 = .30.
Selection During Phase 2. during Phase 1 and
multiplied by the 50%
chance of being
selected during Phase
2.
Overall Probability of a Probability from Phase .40 + .30 = .70.
Single-family Unit Building 1 added to
Selection. probability from
Phase 2.
Verification--Overall Single- 14 of 20 buildings.... 14/20 = .70.
family Unit Building
Selection.
Probability Weight* of 1 divided by the 1.00/.70 = 1.43.
Selection for Single-family overall probability
Unit Building Selection. of Single-family Unit
Building Selection.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
See the note in the definitions section under ``VI. The Physical
Inspection Scoring Process'' in this Appendix A for ``normalized sub-
area weight.''
15. Accessibility Questions
HUD reviews particular elements during the physical inspection to
determine possible indications of noncompliance with the Fair Housing
Act (42 U.S.C. 3601-3619) and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973 (29 U.S.C. 794). More specifically, during the physical
inspection, the inspector will record if: (1) There is a wheelchair-
accessible route to and from the main ground floor entrance of the
buildings inspected; (2) the main entrance for every building inspected
is at least 32 inches wide, measured between the door and the opposite
door jamb; (3) there is an accessible route to all exterior common
areas; and (4) for multi-story buildings that are inspected, the
interior hallways to all inspected units and common areas are at least
36 inches wide. These items are recorded, but do not affect the score.
Dated: February 1, 2011.
Sandra B. Henriquez,
Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing.
[FR Doc. 2011-2633 Filed 2-18-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P