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Public, Indian, and Assisted Housing Programs

Public Housing Agencies and the PHA Plan
Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program
HOPE VI

Public Housing Agencies and the PHA Plan

Public Housing Authorities (PHAs) were created by the Housing Act of 1937 to develop, own, and manage federal public housing under contract with HUD. PHAs are overseen by a Board of Commissioners or Director who are either elected or appointed by the city or town. PHAs administer federal public housing units as well as Housing Choice (Section 8) tenant-based vouchers.

Federal public housing is developed, owned, and operated by PHAs. HUD provides an operating subsidy to pay for the costs of operating and managing the housing not covered by tenant rents. Public housing tenants typically pay a limited percentage (usually 30 percent) of their income as rent to the PHA.

The 1998 Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act, commonly called the Public Housing Reform, made major changes in federal public housing and Section 8 programs. Highlights of the important changes to HUD’s housing programs include income targeting and “deconcentrating” public housing.

Beginning in 2000, PHAs were required to prepare and submit to HUD a five year Public Housing Agency Plan covering all aspects of a PHA's operations, including PHA income targeting and tenant selection preferences for federal public housing units and Section 8 rent subsidies. The PHA Plan must be developed in consultation with a Resident Advisory Board and be consistent with the housing needs and housing strategies described in the community's HUD mandated Consolidated Plan.

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Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program

Summary
The Section 8 tenant-based certificate and voucher programs were created by Congress as an alternative to public housing and privately owned subsidized housing developments with two goals in mind. These were:

1. to allow low-income households more choice in housing;
2. and to reduce the concentration of low-income households living in particular neighborhoods, especially in urban areas.

The Section 8 program is administered mostly by PHAs and provides tenant-based rental subsidies that can be used in privately owned rental housing chosen by the program participant that meets Section 8 guidelines. The PHAs are responsible for tenant selection, managing the subsidy account, and inspecting apartments before they are rented. Under the Section 8 tenant-based program, PHAs provide a rental subsidy directly to landlords on behalf of eligible tenants who select housing that meets program guidelines. In general, tenants pay 30 percent of their income in rent and the PHA pays the difference between this and the rent charged for the unit. Rents must be “reasonable” and equal to or below a Fair Market Rent established by HUD based on the median rent for the area. Since 1974, this program has become the major form of federal housing assistance available to very low-income households.

Under new public housing reform legislation, the Section 8 certificate and voucher programs were merged into the new Housing Choice Voucher Program. The Housing Choice Voucher program also provides a rent subsidy paid by the PHA on behalf of the program participant directly to the landlord. However, when new Section 8 participants receive a Housing Choice Voucher, they may pay no more than 40 percent of their income in rent. The amount of the Section 8 rent subsidy paid by the PHA is based on HUD Fair Market Rents for the area.

Over the past years, Congress has established separate “set-aside” programs within the Section 8 program. These special set-aside vouchers are administered in the exact manner as the conventional Section 8 vouchers, except that they are targeted to specific populations, such as persons with disabilities (both elderly and non-elderly); veterans; families reunifying with their children; persons using Medicaid service waivers; etc.

Eligible Applicants
Eligibility for a housing voucher is determined by the PHA based on the total annual gross income and family size and is limited to US citizens and specified categories of non-citizens who have eligible immigration status.

AMI Requirements
In general, the family's income may not exceed 50% of the median income for the county or metropolitan area in which the family chooses to live. By law, a PHA must provide 75 percent of its voucher to applicants whose incomes do not exceed 30 percent of the area median income.

Contact Information
HUD http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/hcv/index.cfm

Public Housing Agencies in Idaho are as follows:

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HOPE VI

Summary
Since 1993, HOPE VI has been the engine driving the revitalization of the Nation's most distressed public housing developments by providing grants and unprecedented flexibility to address the housing and social service needs of their residents.

Type of Assistance
HOPE VI funds Revitalization and Demolition-only grants.

Eligible Activities
HOPE VI permits expenditures for the capital costs of demolition, construction, rehabilitation and other physical improvements, development of replacement housing, and community & supportive services. It encourages PHAs to seek new partnerships with private entities to create mixed-finance and mixed-income affordable housing that is radically different from traditional public housing "projects." PHAs administer the program, and can use the grants in conjunction with modernization funds or other HUD funds, as well as municipal and State contributions, public and private loans, and low-income tax credit equity. While most of the funds are to be used for capital costs, a portion of the grant may be used for community and supportive services.

Eligible Applicants
Any public housing authority (PHA) that operates public housing units is eligible to apply for HOPE VI grants. Indian Housing Authorities and Section 8-only Authorities are not eligible to apply for HOPE VI funding. HOPE VI programs benefit current public housing residents, residents of the revitalized public housing units, and communities surrounding the revitalized sites.

Application
Appropriations are distributed through an annual national competition. PHAs respond to a Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) published in the Federal Register by submitting an application to HUD. Each year's NOFA and application kit are automatically mailed to each eligible PHA upon publication. The NOFA can also be found on the HOPE VI website, located below.

Contact Information
For specific questions about this program call (202)401-8812 or visit the program website at http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/ph/hope6/about/description.cfm.
For general questions about HUD and its programs, please contact William Jolley, Boise Field Office Director, at (208) 334-1990.

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