HomeMy WebLinkAboutAttachment AATTACHMENT "A"
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Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG)
Homeless Prevention & Rapid Re -Housing Program Guidelines
1. SHORT-TERM/MEDIUM-TERM RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 24 CFR 576.106
Program Description:
The Short/Medium-Term rental assistance program provides temporary financial
assistance services to individuals and families who would be homeless but for this
assistance and provides assistance to rapidly re -house persons who are homeless. This
assistance will allow families and individuals to remain in their existing rental units or to
help them obtain and remain in rental units they select located within City limits. Rental
assistance may be tenant -based or project -based. Initial assistance will be for a period of
up to four (4) months, including last month's rent. However, assistance can be extended
for additional nine (9) months, if participant is able to show progress towards financial
sufficiency. Notwithstanding the financial situation of a household, the maximum length
of time a program participant may receive rental assistance through ESG is 24 months
during any 3-year period, including any payments made towards rental/utility payments in
arrears.
Short -Term rental assistance may not exceed rental costs projected over a period of
4 months (including last month's rent). After 4 months, if program participants
receiving Short -Term rental assistance need additional financial assistance to
remain housed, they must be evaluated for eligibility to receive up to 3 months of
Medium -Term rental assistance;
i. Medium -Term rental assistance may not exceed actual rental costs projected over
a period of 4 to 12 months (including last month's rent, if required). If program
participants receiving Medium -Term rental assistance need additional financial
assistance to remain housed, they must be evaluated for eligibility every 3 months
until the maximum assistance allowed under this City program is reached.
Types of Assistance —24 CFR 576.105(1)(2)(3)(4)(5)(6)
ESG funds may be used to pay housing owners, utility companies, and other third parties for
the following costs:
Rental Assistance:
a. May be used to pay up to 4 months rental in arrears for eligible program
participants if the payment enables the program participant to remain in the
housing unit for which the arrears are being paid or move to another unit;
b. No program participant may receive more than 12 months of rental assistance
inclusive of rental in arrears payments;
c. Rental Payments shall follow a subsidy schedule;
d. Rental payments cannot be made on behalf of eligible individuals or families
for the same period of time and for the same cost types that are being provided
through another federal, state, or local housing subsidy program;
e. ESG requires housing units to meet BOTH Rent reasonableness standard in
comparison to other similar units in the area and criteria established under the
US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published Fair
Market Rents (FMRs).
i. Rental Application fees:
a. ESG funds may pay for rental housing application fee that is charged by the
owner to all applicants.
iii. Last Month's Rent:
a. If necessary to obtain housing for a program participant, the last month's rent
to the owner may be paid from ESG funds at the time the owner is being paid
the security deposit and the first month's rent. This assistance must not exceed
one month's rent and must be included in calculating the program participant's
total rental assistance.
iv. Security and Utility Deposits:
a. Security and utility (electric, water & sewer, and gas) deposits covering the
same period of time in which assistance is being provided through another
housing subsidy program are allowable as long as they cover different
expenditures.
v. Utility Payments:
a. The maximum amount of utility payments (electric, water & sewer, and gas)
that can be paid is the total in arrears accrued (past due months) and any current
month not exceeding 4 months. The maximum for all utilities combined is $500;
b. On a limited basis and dependent on availability of matching sources, these
levels of assistance may be adjusted for households who are homeless and have
no current source of income. Utility assistance will include not only assistance
with deposits, but also the utility bill for up to three months, for a maximum of
$150 per month, totaling $450.
c. Household member must have an account in his/her name with the utility
company or proof of responsibility to make utility payments such as canceled
checks or receipts in his/her name from a utility company.
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vi. Moving Cost Assistance:
a. Covers reasonable moving costs, such as truck rental, hiring a moving
company, or short-term storage fees for a maximum of 3 months or until the
program participant is in housing, whichever is shorter. A maximum of $500 is
available for this activity.
All payments will be made directly to the vendors.
Criteria for Eligibility
Standard policies and procedures for evaluating individual's and families' eligibility for
assistance:
1. Must be residents of the City of Miami;
2. Must have household income at or below 30% of area median income (AMI) as
published annually by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.
However, in the event of Rapid -Re -Housing cases only households with a gross
income at, or below 50% of the area median income in initial entry, can qualify for
assistance (max 3 months, plus last month, and security deposit). These households
(50% AMI or below) will not be eligible for additional assistance at re -certification
if their income is not at or below the 30% of AMI.
3. Case files must include a completed eligibility form and certification (which meets
HUD specifications) that the household meets the eligibility criteria;
4. Records must be kept for each program participant that document: the services and
assistance provided to that program participant; compliance with requirements
under 24 CFR §576.1 01-106, 576.401 (a) and (b), and 576.401 (d) and (e); and,
when applicable, compliance with the termination of assistance requirement in §
576.402;
5. A legally binding, written lease between tenant and landlord is required to receive
ongoing rental assistance;
6. For each individual and family determined ineligible to receive ESG assistance, the
record must include documentation of the reason for that determination;
7. Must be at risk of homelessness due to one or more of the following situations:
a. Has moved frequently because of economic reasons;
b. Is living in the home of another because of economic hardship;
c. Has been notified that their right to occupy their current housing or living
situation will be terminated;
d. Lives in a hotel or motel;
e. Lives in severely overcrowded housing;
f. Is exiting a publicly funded institution.
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g. Victims of domestic violence;
h. Homeless under other Federal statutes: Unaccompanied youth under 25 years
of age, or families with children and youth, who do not otherwise qualify as
homeless under this definition,
8. Be certified as eligible by a Case Manager for the program and attend all required
case management appointments.
2. HOUSING RELOCATION AND STABILIZATION SERVICES
Program Description:
This program provides for services that assist program participants with housing stability
and placement. These services are limited to the following and may only be provided to
eligible participants receiving Rental Assistance as highlighted above in program #1.
I. Case Management
An initial evaluation is made to determine the eligibility of each individual or
family's eligibility for ESG assistance and the amount and types of assistance the
individual or family needs to regain stability in permanent housing. The following
services are provided by the ESG provider:
a. Refer ineligible households to other agencies for assistance;
b. Refer eligible households to other agencies who can provide assistance in
improving the financial situation of the household;
c. Certify households for extensions based on household's actions made towards
financial sufficiency;
d. Refer eligible households for legal services in landlord/tenant disputes and
approve payment of legal expenses, if such legal services attempt to keep the
tenant in their current housing;
e. Require the program participant to meet with a case manager not less than once
per month to assist the program participant in ensuring long-term housing
stability; and
f. Develop a plan to assist the program participant to retain permanent housing
after the ESG assistance ends, taking into account all relevant considerations,
such as the program participant's current or expected income and expenses;
other public or private assistance for which the program participant will be
eligible and likely to receive; and the relative affordability of available housing
in the area.
g. If the household is potentially eligible for more than 3 months of assistance
(plus last month) (Rapid Re -Housing cases only), the case must be scheduled
for reassessment at least two weeks prior to the beginning of the fourth month,
and re -assessment documents will included (1) HUD/HMIS Assessment Form
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(with any applicable updates); (2) an Updated Household Budget; (3) Income
Eligibility Form; (4) Staff Certification of Eligibility for re -assessment; (5)
Housing Stabilization Plan.
Program Services and Deliverables
In compliance with the previously described ESG program requirements, the ESG provider
will provide the following services:
Housing Inspections
Lead Based Paint Standards
Visual assessments are required for ALL units receiving financial assistance if constructed
before 1978, and child under 6 or pregnant woman will live there. If remediation is needed,
follow 24 CFR Part 576.403. ESG provider will coordinate the inspections which will be
completed by trained housing inspectors through subcontracted providers or in-house staff.
Habitability Standards
Under ESG, applicable to all financial assistance, including assistance that is limited to
rental arrears in current housing unit must conduct a Habitability inspection. (Inspection
requirements —See Attachment 1)
Rent Reasonableness
Rents must be the lower of fair market rent as published annually by US Department of
Housing and Urban Development or the rent reasonableness standard for the apartment.
SUBRECIPIENT will obtain the survey to determine if the rent is reasonable and
comparable to area rents for similar units through subcontracted providers or in-house
staff.
Program Reports
SUBRECIPIENT will complete monthly reports for the City consistent with the reporting
requirements of the U.S. HUD ESG Program.
Program Performance Standards
The City projects that 24 persons will exit homelessness and another 16 persons will
avoid homelessness under the grant. A set of performance standards has been established
to ensure that these projections are met. These standards are as follows:
• Monitor the number of households assisted who return to shelters after Homelessness
prevention or Rapid Re -housing Assistance is provided. At least 70% of households
will continue to be in stable housing at least 90 days following the period of
assistance;
■ Monitor the number of households that are assisted directly from a shelter;
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• Based on need, ensure that 100% of clients are being referred to other appropriate
supportive services in the community;
• Issue payment to program landlords within 14 days of receiving a request for
payment package;
• Leverage programmatic dollars by ensuring that assisted clients are contributing
towards their recovery from homelessness.
Termination of Assistance-576.402
If a program participant violates program requirements, the SUBRECIPIENT may
terminate the assistance in accordance with a formal process established by the
SUBRECIPIENT that recognizes the rights of individuals affected. The SUBRECIPIENT
must exercise judgment and examine all extenuating circumstances in determining when
violations warrant termination so that a program participant's assistance is terminated only
in the most severe cases.
However, the assistance may be terminated or denied for the following reasons:
• They are currently receiving HAND assistance, but are not paying their agreed upon
share of rent. In addition they do not have documented reasons about additional
circumstances as to why they are unable to do so.
• They have received HAND assistance within the past year and have not provided
documented evidence of an additional financial or medical emergency that would cause
them to risk their housing stability again (This does not apply if household is currently
homeless).
• The household has received the maximum assistance allowable by HUD or other
applicable funders in the past three year period.
Program participants receiving rental assistance or housing relocation and
stabilization services
To terminate rental assistance or housing relocation and stabilization services to a program
participant, the required formal process, at a minimum, must consist of:
• Written notice to the program participant containing a clear statement of the reasons
for termination;
• A review of the decision, in which the program participant is given the opportunity to
present written or oral objections before a person other than the person (or a subordinate
of that person) who made or approved the termination decision; and
• Prompt written notice of the final decision to the program participant.
Ability to provide further assistance
Termination under this section does not bar the SUBRECIPIENT from providing further
assistance at a later date to the same family or individual.
Note: Additional details can be found in the latest HAND Professional Services Manual, as issued
by Citrus Health Network, Inc.
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Attachment 1
Habitability Standards for ESG
Organizations providing rental assistance with ESG funds will be required to conduct initial and
any appropriate follow-up inspections of housing units into which a program participant will be
moving. Following are the habitability standards that grantees must follow:
(a) State and local requirements. Each SUBRECIPIENT under this Notice must ensure that
housing occupied by a family or individual receiving ESG assistance is in compliance with
all applicable state and local housing codes, licensing requirements, and any other
requirements in the jurisdiction in which the housing is located regarding the condition of
the structure and the operation of the housing or services.
(b) Habitability standards. Except for less stringent variations as are proposed by the
RECIPIENT or SUBRECIPIENT and approved by HUD, housing occupied by a family or
individual receiving ESG assistance must meet the following minimum requirements:
(1) Structure and materials: The structures must be structurally sound so as not to pose
any threat to the health and safety of the occupants and so as to protect the residents
from the elements.
(2) Access: The housing must be accessible and capable of being utilized without
unauthorized use of other private properties. Structures must provide alternate means
of egress in case of fire.
(3) Space and security: Each resident must be afforded adequate space and security for
themselves and their belongings. Each resident must be provided an acceptable place
to sleep.
(4) Interior air quality: Every room or space must be provided with natural or mechanical
ventilation. Structures must be free of pollutants in the air at levels that threaten the
health of residents.
(5) Water supply. The water supply must be free from contamination.
(6) Sanitary facilities: Residents must have access to sufficient sanitary facilities that are
in proper operating condition, may be used in privacy, and are adequate for personal
cleanliness and the disposal of human waste.
(7) Thermal environment: The housing must have adequate heating and/or cooling
facilities in proper operating condition.
(8) Illumination and electricity: The housing must have adequate natural or artificial
illumination to permit normal indoor activities and to support the health and safety
of residents. Sufficient electrical sources must be provided to permit use of essential
electrical appliances while assuring safety from fire.
(9) Food preparation and refuse disposal: All food preparation areas must contain
suitable space and equipment to store, prepare, and serve food in a sanitary manner.
(10) Sanitary condition: The housing and any equipment must be maintained in sanitary
condition.
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(11) Fire safety:
(i) Each unit must include at least one battery -operated or hard -wired smoke
detector, in proper working condition, on each occupied level of the unit. Smoke
detectors must be located, to the extent practicable, in a hallway adjacent to a
bedroom. If the unit is occupied by hearing -impaired persons, smoke detectors must
have an alarm system designed for hearing -impaired persons in each bedroom
occupied by a hearing -impaired person.
(ii) The public areas of all housing must be equipped with a sufficient number, but
not less than one for each area, of battery -operated or hard -wired smoke detectors.
Public areas include, but are not limited to, laundry rooms, community rooms, day
care centers, hallways, stairwells, and other common areas.
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