4771059 Housing Authority, District of Columbia - Notice of Final Rulemaking - Applying Utility Allowances

THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA HOUSING AUTHORITY

 

NOTICE OF FINAL RULEMAKING

 

The Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia Housing Authority (DCHA), pursuant to the District of Columbia Housing Authority Act of 1999, effective May 9, 2000 (D.C. Law 13-105; D.C. Official Code § 6-203 (2012 Repl.)), hereby gives notice of the adoption of the following amendments to Chapter 53 (Recertifications, Housing Quality Standard Inspections, and Family Moves) of Title 14 (Housing) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR.    

 

The purpose of the proposed amendments is to simplify the Utility Allowance Schedule.

 

The proposed rulemaking was published in the D.C. Register on November 15, 2013, at 60 DCR 015864.  Final action to adopt this rulemaking was taken at the Board of Commissioners regular meeting on February 12, 2014.  The final rules will become effective upon publication of this notice in the D.C. Register.

 

The amended provisions of Chapter 53 “Recertifications, Housing Quality Standard Inspections, and Family Moves,” of Title 14, “Housing,” of the DCMR are added as follows:

 

Section 5311 is amended as follows:

 

5311                APPLYING UTILITY ALLOWANCES

 

5311.1             PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

 

                        The purpose of the simplified calculation of utility allowances for Housing Choice Voucher participants is to enable program participants, landlords, and PHA to be able to easily calculate a participant utility allowance utilizing one utility schedule.  The new utility allowance is based on the lower of the bedroom size or voucher size, source of heating, electricity, and whether the participant is responsible for paying water and sewer usage.  The utility consumption rates for the District of Columbia shall be reviewed annually and if there is a change of 10% or more the simplified utility allowance schedule shall be adjusted accordingly.

 

5311.2             The utility allowance is calculated for each Family based upon DCHA’s utility allowance schedule. The schedule is based on the average utility costs in the District of Columbia.    The utility allowance schedule set by DCHA applies to all assisted program types.

 

5311.3             A DCHA established utility allowance schedule is used in determining Family Share and HAP.  DCHA shall use the appropriate utility allowance as calculated by Section 5332. 

 

5311.4             DCHA, under its MTW Authority, established its “Simplified Utility Allowance Schedule”.  The following provisions shall apply to calculating utility allowances:

             

(a)                DCHA shall use a simplified schedule to calculate utility allowances at the time of a Family’s initial lease-up, biennial recertification, interim recertification,  or when a family transfers to another unit pursuant to § 5333 – Family Moves;

 

(b)               The utility allowance calculation for all participants shall be determined using one structure type selected by DCHA annually.

 

(c)                Generally, DCHA shall determine the structure type to by using the most commonly rented structure type based on the previous fiscal year.

 

(d)               At its discretion, DCHA may select a structure type larger or smaller than the most commonly rented structure type if it determines that selecting the most common structure type may cause a disproportionate number of hardships or disproportionate number of excessive allowances to Families.

 

(e)                Based on the structure type chosen, DCHA shall provide to all Families a flat allowance for tenant-paid gas and electric, an additional flat allowance if the unit is all electric, and an additional flat allowance if the participant is also responsible for water and sewer.

 

5311.5             DCHA shall approve a utility allowance amount higher than shown on DCHA’s schedule if a higher allowance is needed as a reasonable accommodation for a Family member with a disability, in accordance with DCHA’s procedures regarding reasonable accommodation.

 

5311.6             In the event of an interim recertification, DCHA shall use the utility allowance schedule in effect at the time of the family’s last biennial recertification .  Revised utility allowances shall be applied to a Family’s rent and subsidy calculations at the first biennial  recertification that is effective after the allowance is adopted.