Notice2024-16114
Request for Information; Direct Rental Assistance
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
July 23, 2024
Issuing agencies
Housing and Urban Development Department
Abstract
In the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, rental housing subsidies are provided on behalf of an eligible low-income renter to the landlord of a rental unit. Recently, some researchers, advocates, policymakers, and public housing agencies have expressed interest in testing a "direct rental assistance" model. The model would provide a rental housing subsidy directly to the renter, rather than providing it to the landlord. The approach is similar to what HUD did 50 years ago in its Experimental Housing Allowance Program (EHAP). While HUD is not currently providing direct rental assistance, and this Notice does not provide any funding to do so, HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research (PD&R) and Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) are releasing this Request for Information (RFI) to seek public input on the concept to inform future policy development.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 141 (Tuesday, July 23, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 141 (Tuesday, July 23, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59750-59752]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-16114]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
[Docket No. FR-6466-N-01]
Request for Information; Direct Rental Assistance
AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and
Research, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian
Housing, Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD.
ACTION: Request for information.
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SUMMARY: In the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, rental housing
subsidies are provided on behalf of an eligible low-income renter to
the landlord of a rental unit. Recently, some researchers, advocates,
policymakers, and public housing agencies have expressed interest in
testing a ``direct rental assistance'' model. The model would provide a
rental housing subsidy directly to the renter, rather than providing it
to the landlord. The approach is similar to what HUD did 50 years ago
in its Experimental Housing Allowance Program (EHAP). While HUD is not
currently providing direct rental assistance, and this Notice does not
provide any funding to do so, HUD's Office of Policy Development and
Research (PD&R) and Office of Public and Indian Housing (PIH) are
releasing this Request for Information (RFI) to seek public input on
the concept to inform future policy development.
DATES: Comments are requested on or before August 30, 2024. Late-filed
comments will be considered to the extent practicable.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments responsive
to this RFI. All submissions must refer to the docket number and title
of the RFI. Commenters are encouraged to identify the number of the
specific question or questions to which they are responding. Responses
may include the name(s) of the person(s) or organization(s) filing the
comment; however, because any responses received by HUD will be
publicly available, responses should not include any personally
identifiable information or confidential commercial information.
There are two methods for submitting public comments.
1. Electronic Submission of Comments. Interested persons may submit
comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a>.
2. 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.
HUD strongly encourages commenters to submit their feedback and
recommendations electronically. Electronic submission of comments
allows the commenter maximum time to prepare and submit a response,
ensures timely receipt by HUD, and enables HUD to make comments
immediately available to the public. Comments submitted electronically
through the <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a> 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.
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 RFI.
Public Inspection of Public Comments. HUD will make all properly
submitted comments and communications available for public inspection
and copying during regular business hours 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) 708-3055 (this is not a toll-free
number). HUD welcomes and is prepared to receive calls from individuals
who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as individuals with speech or
communication disabilities. To learn more about how to make an
accessible telephone call, please visit <a href="https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs">https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs</a>. Copies of all comments
submitted are available for inspection and downloading at
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Joice, Program Demonstration
Division, Office of Policy Development and Research, Department of
Housing and Urban Development; telephone number 312-913-8597 (this is
not a toll-free number), or via email at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#87c3eef5e2e4f3d5e2e9f3e6ebc6f4f4eef4f3e6e9e4e2c7eff2e3a9e0e8f1"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a3e7cad1c6c0d7f1c6cdd7c2cfe2d0d0cad0d7c2cdc0c6e3cbd6c78dc4ccd5">[email protected]</span></a>. HUD welcomes and is prepared to receive
calls from individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as
individuals with speech or communication disabilities. To learn more
about how to make an accessible telephone call, please visit <a href="https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs">https://www.fcc.gov/consumers/guides/telecommunications-relay-service-trs</a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Developing relevant evidence and using rigorous research are
essential for HUD's mission of creating strong, sustainable, inclusive
communities and quality, affordable homes for all. PD&R is responsible
for supporting innovation in housing policy, improving HUD programs
through evaluations and demonstrations, and conducting
[[Page 59751]]
rigorous research to fill key evidence gaps in the field. HUD's
Learning Agenda: 2022-2026 \1\ aligned with the Department's Fiscal
Year 2022-2026 Strategic Plan \2\ frames a multiyear agenda ensuring a
robust pipeline of research, including research opportunities that we
highlight for Congress in the Department's budget, as well as efforts
HUD launches in-house and with external research partners. The Learning
Agenda draws on extensive stakeholder engagement and input from
practitioners, advocates, people with lived experience in HUD programs,
researchers, and policymakers at the Federal, State, and local levels.
The Learning Agenda: 2022-2026 includes several research questions
about how HUD can effectively meet needs for high-quality, rent-
assisted housing that supports housing security and economic
advancement, including a research question about the potential effect
of providing tenant-based rental assistance directly to the tenant.
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\1\ <a href="https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/HUD-Learning-Agenda.pdf">https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdf/HUD-Learning-Agenda.pdf</a>.
\2\ <a href="https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/CFO/documents/FY2022-2026HUDStrategicPlan.pdf">https://www.hud.gov/sites/dfiles/CFO/documents/FY2022-2026HUDStrategicPlan.pdf</a>.
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In 2023, the PD&R also published a post on the PD&R Edge \3\
identifying HUD's interest in learning about direct rental assistance
programs. In the post, PD&R leadership called attention to the
Philadelphia Housing+ program, a direct rental assistance program in
Philadelphia, and other guaranteed income pilots across the country.
PD&R expressed interest in partnering with public housing agencies,
philanthropies, and other local groups to learn about direct rental
assistance programs. In response to the post on the PD&R Edge, a range
of stakeholders reached out to HUD expressing support for the concept,
underscoring the broad interest in learning about this type of
assistance.
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\3\ <a href="https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr-edge-frm-asst-sec-090523.html">https://www.huduser.gov/portal/pdredge/pdr-edge-frm-asst-sec-090523.html</a>.
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Consideration of a direct rental assistance program has deep roots
at HUD. In the 1970s, HUD ran the Experimental Housing Allowance
Program (EHAP) to test tenant-based housing subsidies. The program
ultimately helped to inform the design of the HCV program, although the
HCV program differs from historic housing allowances on several
important dimensions. One notable feature of EHAP, which was not
adopted by the HCV program, was that the subsidy was paid directly to
the assisted household, rather than being paid to the landlord. One
reason that HUD is now interested in direct rental assistance is to
better understand the implications of that policy design choice.
A growing number of stakeholders have expressed general interest in
the direct rental assistance concept, but many details about the
program design remain unresolved. Among those details are the method of
calculating the subsidy, the mode for conducting the housing
inspection, and the role of PHAs in the process. While HUD has not
committed to a specific set of design choices, PD&R leadership has
outlined a possible program design.\4\ A forthcoming article in
Cityscape \5\ also considers program design choices.
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\4\ <a href="https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdredge/DRA-proposal-9-5-23.pdf">https://www.huduser.gov/portal/sites/default/files/pdredge/DRA-proposal-9-5-23.pdf</a>.
\5\ <a href="https://www.huduser.gov/portal/periodicals/cityscape.html">https://www.huduser.gov/portal/periodicals/cityscape.html</a>.
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HUD's interest in research on direct rental assistance is
fundamentally tied to it being a rental assistance program, not an
unrestricted cash transfer. For direct rental assistance to support
HUD's evidence-based policy development and program improvement goals,
HUD believes it should align with the HCV program in certain ways.
Specifically:
<bullet> The subsidy should be provided to the renter, and the
renter would be required to use the subsidy for housing. The rental
subsidy should not exceed the recipient's total gross rent.
<bullet> The subsidy should be provided to low-income households
eligible for the HCV program, and the amount of the subsidy should be
roughly equivalent to the HCV subsidy.
<bullet> Any test of direct rental assistance should be
administered in partnership with PHAs to ensure that the program draws
HCV-eligible households from the PHA waitlists, but the PHAs would have
no direct contractual relationships with landlords renting to direct
rental assistance recipients.
<bullet> A housing quality requirement of some type should ensure
that direct rental assistance recipients occupy decent, safe, and
sanitary housing.
HUD is interested in learning about the effect of direct rental
assistance on the following outcomes:
<bullet> How likely are households offered direct rental assistance
to complete all necessary steps to receive the assistance? What is the
length of time from an offer of assistance to receipt of assistance?
<bullet> What types of burdens--for tenants, landlords, and PHAs--
are associated with the administration of direct rental assistance?
<bullet> How willing are landlords to rent to tenants receiving
direct rental assistance?
<bullet> Do renters have access to a broad range of units and
neighborhoods using direct rental assistance?
<bullet> What is the quality of housing when tenants are using
direct rental assistance?
<bullet> Do tenants make timely rent payments using direct rental
assistance?
II. Purpose of This Request for Information
The purpose of this RFI is to solicit information regarding the
direct rental assistance concept, including the potential advantages
and disadvantages of such a program. HUD is not currently developing a
direct rental assistance demonstration or pilot, but may do so in the
future under the Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration program or under
other new legislative authority if provided by Congress. There may also
be PHAs, funders, researchers, and other partners interested in
developing pilot programs independent of HUD. Responses to this RFI
will inform HUD and other stakeholders interested in direct rental
assistance. Comments from housing providers, renters, PHAs, and other
organizations that serve low-income renters would be particularly
helpful.
III. Specific Information Requested
While HUD welcomes all comments relevant to the direct rental
assistance concept, HUD is particularly interested in receiving input
from interested parties on the questions outlined below.
1. What policies or procedures should be in place to ensure that
direct rental assistance payments are used by recipients for rental
housing costs?
2. What steps should be taken to ensure that direct rental
assistance is not treated as income for the purposes of taxes and other
public benefit programs?
3. How would the behaviors or engagement of housing providers,
tenants or other stakeholders be expected to respond to direct rental
assistance?
4. How should direct rental assistance subsidies be calculated?
5. How could a direct rental assistance program ensure that
recipients have decent, safe, and sanitary housing, without creating a
burden on landlords that might deter them from accepting tenants with
the direct rental assistance subsidy?
6. What aspects of existing rental assistance programs, beyond
those noted above, should be preserved in a
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direct rental assistance pilot or demonstration?
Solomon Greene,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of the Assistant Secretary
for Policy Development and Research.
Dominique Blom,
General Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of the Assistant Secretary
for Public and Indian Housing.
[FR Doc. 2024-16114 Filed 7-22-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4210-67-P
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