825 R.I. Code R. 825-RICR-40-00-1.2

Current through December 26, 2024

Section 825-RICR-40-00-1.2 - APPLICATION PROCESS

1.2.1APPLICATION FOR ADMISSION

A. Applications must be made available at the management office of each state agency financed Section 8, and must be provided to applicants by mail, upon request.

B. At the time applications are provided or as soon thereafter as possible (but in no event later than the time of acceptance of the application), managing agents must provide all applicants with a pamphlet, substantially identical to § 1.5 of this Part (Exhibit A), which outlines the eligibility requirements for admission to the project and which contains a description of the application and tenant selection procedures employed by the project.

1. The pamphlet must advise the applicant, in bold letters, that it is the applicant's responsibility to keep the project informed of his or her current address, and that failure to keep the project so informed may result in the applicant's removal from the waiting list.

2. Any form of pamphlet other than § 1.5 of this Part (Exhibit A) must be submitted to RIHMFC for approval prior to distribution to applicants.

C. All entries on the application are to be made in ink and all applications must be completed in full.

D. At the time that the application is submitted to the owner or managing agent of a state agency financed Section 8, the applicant must be provided a receipt substantially identical to the receipt attached hereto as § 1.6 of this Part (Exhibit B). The receipt must contain:

1. The applicant's name.

2. The name of the Section 8 project.

3. The date of receipt of the application by the owner or managing agent of the project.

E. In the event that the application is mailed to the project, the project must mail the receipt to the applicant within two business days after receiving the application.

1.2.2EVALUATION OF APPLICANTS

A. Categorical Eligibility Requirements. Within 20 days of the official date of application, the owner or managing agent must determine whether the applicant meets HUD-mandated categorical eligibility requirements relating to family composition and family income, on the basis of the information and materials provided to the owner or managing agent. The applicant must be provided notice of this determination in accordance with §1.2.3(A) of this Part. In the event that the owner or managing agent subsequently received information or materials which indicates that the categorical eligibility requirements are not met, the applicant must be provided notice of this change in determination immediately, as provided in §1.2.3(D) of this Part.

B. Non-Categorical Eligibility Requirements.

1. Owners and managing agents may evaluate applicants for admission to state financed Section 8 's on the basis of "non-categorical" criteria, including, but not limited to, factors such as the applicant's rent paying history or comments from prior landlords.

2. A determination of eligibility on the basis of non-categorical criteria may be made at the same time that the applicant is first evaluated for the categorical eligibility requirements. Management may choose not to do such an initial non-categorical investigation, in which case management will be bound by §1.2.2(B)(4) of this Part, below. If management does choose to do an initial non-categorical determination, then it must be completed not more than sixty (60) days after the official date of application.

3. If the managing agent decides to evaluate applicants on the basis of non-categorical eligibility requirements at the time of initial application, the applicant nonetheless must be notified whether he or she meets HUD-mandated categorical eligibility requirements within 20 days of the official date of application, as provided in §1.2.2(A) of this Part, above. This notification must be made even if a determination of eligibility on the basis of non-categorical criteria is not completed by that time. If the applicant is subsequently determined to be ineligible for admission based on non-categorical eligibility requirements, he or she must be provided notice of this decision as provided in §1.2.3(D) of this Part.

4. A separate and optional determination of eligibility for Section 8 housing on the basis of non-categorical criteria may be made no later than two (2) months before the estimated date by which the applicant may be expected to receive an apartment, or 60 days after the official date of application, whichever is later. This separate determination of eligibility may not include consideration of any matters which occurred prior to the date on which the applicant is placed on the waiting list, except with respect to serious and substantial matters relevant to the applicant's fitness as a tenant, which the managing agent was unaware of and reasonably did not discover at the time the applicant was placed on the waiting list. Examples of such serious and substantial matters are criminal convictions relevant to the applicant's fitness as a tenant and serious and willful destruction of property. The applicant must be provided notice of this determination in accordance with §1.2.3(D) of this Part.

1.2.3NOTIFICATION TO APPLICANT

A. The applicant must be notified in writing of the initial decision regarding his or her categorical eligibility for admission within 20 days of the official date of application. Notification of eligibility for any preference for which an applicant applied must be sent by management no later than sixty (60) days after the application for a preference was made, whether at the initial application or at a later date. See §1.2.5(C) of this Part, for a discussion of preferences.

B. Unfavorable Decision. If the applicant is determined to be ineligible for admission or for a requested preference, the written notice must be substantially identical to § 1.7 of this Part (Exhibit C) and must:

1. Clearly state the reasons in support of that decision with sufficient specificity to fully inform the applicant of the basis of the denial.

2. Inform the applicant of his or her right to challenge the decision through the review process within 15 days of mailing of the notice (See § 1.2.4 of this Part).

3. Inform the applicant of the procedures which must be followed to request review.

4. Inform the applicant that he or she may pursue other avenues if the applicant believes that he or she is being discriminated against on the basis of race, color, creed, sex, national origin, age or handicap.

C. Favorable Decision.

1. If an applicant is determined to be categorically eligible for admission and there is an appropriate size bedroom unit available, the managing agent must notify the applicant with notice of this determination within 20 days of the official date of application, in accordance with §1.2.3(A) of this Part. The managing agent must make its decision regarding non-categorical criteria, if such decision is going to be made, so that a final notice of eligibility will be provided to the applicant no later than 60 days after the official date of application. This notice of eligibility must be substantially identical to § 1.8 of this Part (Exhibit D) and must inform the applicant that he or she has been selected for admission to the state agency financed Section 8 and must advise the applicant to contact the managing agent to arrange for signing a lease.

2. If the applicant is determined to be categorically eligible for admission but the project does not have an appropriate size bedroom unit then available for the applicant, the notice must be substantially identical to § 1.9 of this Part (Exhibit E) and must:

a. Inform the applicant that he or she has satisfied the categorical requirements for admission to the project.

b. Inform the applicant that eligibility for admission is contingent upon his or her meeting the categorical eligibility requirements at the time a unit is available, as well as satisfying non-categorical requirements.

c. Inform the applicant that an appropriate size unit is presently unavailable and that he or she has been placed on a waiting list.

d. Inform the applicant as to which waiting list he or she has been assigned, his or her number on the waiting list and the approximate date that a unit may be available. The estimate of the approximate date of availability is not a promise that such a unit actually will be available on that date.

3. Post-October 1, 1981 Projects. At the present time, applicable statutes and HUD regulations exclusively limit admission to Post-October 1, 1981 projects to very low-income applicants. Thus, lower income applicants for admission to post-October 1, 1981 Projects, although technically eligible for admission to the project, are very unlikely to be selected for admission under the current statutes and HUD regulations and are very likely to remain on the waiting list indefinitely. The written notice sent to such lower income applicants must be substantially identical to § 1.10 of this Part (Exhibit F) and must:

a. Inform the applicant that current statutes and regulations limit admission to the project to very-low income applicants, unless there are no such applicants.

b. Inform the applicant of his or her current position on the waiting list.

c. Inform the applicant that he or she will not be admitted to the project for an indefinite period of time.

d. Inform the applicant of the procedures to be followed to request a review on his or her income status if the applicant believes that the owner or managing agent has improperly calculated his or her income and that he or she satisfies the very low-income requirements.

D. Subsequent Notification.

1. If, subsequent to an applicant's receipt of a notice of favorable decision, the owner or managing agent determines that the applicant does not satisfy the categorical or non-categorical eligibility requirements, the applicant must immediately be sent a notice substantially identical to § 1.11 of this Part (Exhibit G). This notice must provide the information outlined in in §1.2.3(B) of this Part.

2. Determinations of ineligibility based on non-categorical eligibility criteria and not provided by notice within 60 days after the official date of application may not take into consideration any matters which occurred prior to the date on which the applicant was initially placed on the waiting list, except with respect to serious and substantial matters relevant to the applicant's fitness as a tenant which the managing agent was unaware of and reasonably did not discover at the time the applicant was placed on the waiting list. See §1.2.2(B)(3) of this Part (for examples of such conduct).

E. Rejection of an Available Apartment.

1. If an applicant is notified that an apartment is available for his or her occupancy, and the applicant rejects the apartment without a bona fide and substantial reason, the owner or managing agent may remove the applicant from his or her place on the waiting list. If the applicant is removed from the waiting list and placed on the bottom of the list, the applicant's official date of application will become the date on which he or she rejected the available apartment.

2. If an owner or managing agent rejects an applicant's reason for refusing an available apartment, the applicant has the right to an informal hearing before RIHMFC to challenge the decision (see § 1.2.4 of this Part), and the written notice to the applicant shall so state, in a form substantially similar to § 1.7 of this Part (Exhibit C) to the Resident Selection Plan.

1.2.4REVIEW PROCESS

A. Any applicant who is determined to be ineligible for admission, a preference for which they applied, or placement on a very low-income limit waiting list due to excess income, or an applicant whose reasons for refusing an available apartment are rejected and who loses his or her place on a waiting list, shall have the right to have an informal hearing before RIHMFC to challenge the decision.

B. In order to obtain an informal hearing, the applicant must complete a Request for Hearing form, which shall be provided to applicants who have been determined to be ineligible for admission or for any preference, and forward it to RIHMFC no later than fifteen days from the date of the notice of ineligibility. The Request for Hearing form to be provided to applicants must be substantially identical to § 1.12 of this Part (Exhibit H).

C. RIHMFC will promptly contact both the applicant and the managing agent of the state agency financed Section 8 to schedule a time for the informal hearing

D. The following procedures shall apply at the informal hearing:

1. The hearing will be conducted by an employee of RIHMFC selected to act as hearing officer.

2. Each party shall have the right to be represented by counsel, at their own expense.

3. Each party shall have the right to present and establish all facts by oral testimony and/or by documentary evidence.

4. The applicant and the managing agent shall have the right to produce live witnesses at the informal hearing.

5. The applicant shall have the right to review his entire application file prior to the informal hearing. Unless other arrangements are made by agreement, the applicant must be given an opportunity to review the application file at least thirty minutes prior to the informal hearing. Any document not made available to the applicant prior to the informal hearing may not be relied upon by the managing agent at the hearing.

6. Within ten (10) working days after the informal hearing, the hearing officer shall issue a written decision on the applicant's request for review of the managing agent's determination of ineligibility.

7. The written decision must briefly set forth the reasons for the decision, and must be based solely on the evidence presented at the hearing and applicable statutes and regulations.

8. The hearing officer shall promptly mail a copy of the written decision to the parties and their counsel, if any, upon issuance of the decision.

1.2.5WAITING LISTS

A. Eligible applicants for whom an appropriate size unit is unavailable will be placed on a waiting list.

B. Four separate waiting lists must be maintained for each bedroom size unit in each project. The following waiting lists must be maintained for each size unit:

1. Very low-income preference list.

2. Very low-income non-preference list.

3. Lower income preference list.

4. Lower income non-preference list.

C. At the present time, HUD regulations regarding preferences have not yet been implemented. Until HUD preference regulations are implemented and are made effective, owners and managing agents of state agency financed Section 8 projects need only establish two waiting lists for each bedroom size unit in the project, i.e., very low-income and lower income.

D. Each waiting list must be posted in a public area at the project which is easily accessible to applicants. The waiting list must state:

1. The name of each applicant (last name, first initial only); and

2. The date of application.

E. Updated waiting lists must be posted monthly. The appropriate waiting list must be regularly revised between updates to show that an applicant has been admitted from the waiting list. The revision must indicate the date of admission of the applicant and the basis for preferential admission, if applicable. See §§ 1.3(D) and 1.3(E)(6) of this Part.

F. Transfers. In the event of a change in the applicant's profile which would affect eligibility, such as a change in income, family size or eligibility for preference, the applicant will be transferred to the waiting list which is appropriate in light of the changed circumstances.

1. The applicant's position on the new waiting list will be based upon the official date of application for admission to the project and not upon the date that the changed circumstances were brought to the managing agent's attention.

2. The revised waiting list shall note the fact of the transfer after the applicant's name on the new list so as to inform other applicants on that list of the transfer.

G. In-House Transfers. In the event of a change in the profile of an existing tenant which would affect the unit size which is appropriate for that tenant, such as a change in family size or a need for a specially designed unit, the existing tenant will be added to the waiting list which is appropriate in light of the changed circumstances

1. The existing tenant will be placed at the top of the waiting list and will be assigned the next available appropriate size unit.

2. The revised waiting list shall note the fact of the addition after the existing tenant's name on the list so as to inform other applicants on that list of the addition.

H. In July of each year applicants on each waiting list whose application is more than two years old must be contacted by the owner or managing agent of the project in order to determine whether they remain interested in admission to the project.

1. Owners or managing agents shall contact applicants by mailing a letter to the applicant's last known address.

2. The letter shall be substantially identical to §§ 1.13 (Exhibit I) and 1.14 (Exhibit J) of this Part. The letter must inform the applicant, in both English and Spanish, that he or she must respond in writing to the managing agent within 90 days of the mailing of the letter, and that his or her name will be removed from the waiting list if he or she fails to respond to the managing agent within that time. If the applicant fails to respond in writing to the managing agent within the 90-day period, then his or her name may be removed from the waiting list.

3. If the letter to the applicant is returned to the managing agent as undeliverable, the managing agent will send a second letter to the applicant. If the applicant fails to contact the managing agent within 90 days of the date the second letter was mailed, he or she will be removed from the waiting list.

825 R.I. Code R. 825-RICR-40-00-1.2