Item Coversheet

Agenda Item - 2.a.


City of Garden Grove


INTER-DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM

To:Scott C. Stiles

From:Maria Stipe
Dept.:Director 

Dept.: City Manager 
Subject:

Receive and file the Housing Authority Status Report for April 2020. (Action Item)

Date:5/26/2020

OBJECTIVE

To provide Housing Authority Commissioners the April 2020 Housing Authority Status Report. 

BACKGROUND

The Housing Choice Voucher Program assists low-income families, senior citizens, and handicapped persons in the payment of their monthly rent.  Under this program, a qualified participant pays a portion of his/her adjusted household income for rent.  The remainder of the rent is paid by the City's Housing Authority utilizing funds received from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).  The units rented under the program are inspected on a biennial basis to ensure that they are decent, safe, sanitary, and have no code violations.  Approximately 2,337 senior citizens, disabled persons, and families are funded by the Section 8 Rental Assistance Program. 

DISCUSSION

The following is a status report for the month of April 2020:

 

Program Eligibility:  All participants of the Housing Choice Voucher Program must be income eligible.  Applicants are ranked on the Waiting List by local preferences.  When an applicant is next on the Waiting List, they have an Initial Qualifying (IQ) interview where their eligibility is verified.  If they are eligible, they receive a program briefing and their voucher.  The Authority replaces those families who terminate from the program as a part of normal turnover.  Once on the program, they are re-certified for eligibility at least annually and their portion of the rent adjusted according to their income.

 

INITIAL QUALIFICATION (IQ) INTERVIEWS:   Staff conducted no Initial Qualification interviews (IQ) from the Waiting List and the following:      

 

     (a)         Emergency Situations  - 0

     (b)         Referred by a Garden Grove Homeless Shelter - 0

     (c)         Incoming Portability – 0

 

Briefings: No  briefings were conducted this month, and no vouchers were issued.            

 

Re-certifications:  Staff conducted 232 re-examination interviews with participants to determine continued eligibility. Two hundred and sixty-nine were interviewed who had interim changes in income, which necessitated an adjustment in their portion of the rent.

    

Moves:  Staff met with 15 tenants currently on the program that were moving and were briefed on move procedures.

 

Terminations:  There were five families who terminated from the program during the month.

 

FAMILY SELF-SUFFICIENCY PROGRAM (FSS):  Assists families to become employed and no longer dependent on public assistance.  The Family Self-Sufficiency Program enters into contracts with Voucher participants to provide support services such as education, training, and career development.

 

Status of FSS participants this month: There was one prospective FSS participant interviewed for the month of April.  There were no contracts signed and one contract was terminated.  There are a total of 391  families who have signed contracts for the FSS program. Forty-two contracts are active. Fourteen update meetings were held with FSS participants. 

 

One hundred and thirty-three families have completed their FSS goals and 65 of these are self-sufficient and no longer need housing assistance.  Eight families have purchased houses. There are 34 escrow accounts.  Twenty-five escrow accounts are active with monthly deposits.

 

The Authority has paid out a total of $1,112,090 in escrow funds to tenants who have completed their contract obligations. Each graduate that successfully completes his or her family obligations on the contract after October 21, 1998, reduces the minimum program size.  The original program size of 140 is now reduced to 12.

 

UNIT INSPECTIONS:  All units that are leased under the Housing Choice Voucher program must pass an initial Housing Quality Standards (HQS) inspection before the Housing Assistance Payments contract is signed, and must pass a biennial HQS inspection to continue to receive rental assistance payments.  HQS inspections determine that the unit is decent, safe and sanitary, and has passed City building codes.

 

New Leases:  There were five requests for new lease approvals with five units passing and no units failing.

 

Annuals:  There were no annual inspections conducted this month.

 

Re-inspections:  There were 120 re-inspections conducted on units that failed their first inspection.

 

Move-out:  There were no move-out inspections conducted.

 

Specials:  There were no special inspections conducted.

 

Quality Control:  There were no quality control inspections conducted this month. These inspections are required by HUD to ensure that field staff is in compliance with inspection requirements and are conducted by supervisory staff. 

FINANCIAL IMPACT

None.
RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that the Housing Authority Commissioners:

 

  • Receive and file the 2020 April Housing Authority Status Report.

 

By:  Danny Huynh, Housing Manager




ATTACHMENTS:
DescriptionUpload DateTypeFile Name
Statistical report5/7/2020Backup MaterialStatistical_Report_-_April.pdf