[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 24, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3435-3438]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-1270]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Rural Housing Service


Notice of Funding Availability: Rural Development Voucher Program

AGENCY: Rural Housing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of Rural Development Voucher Program Availability.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) in Fiscal Year 2006 
established a demonstration Rural Development Voucher Program, as 
authorized under Section 542 of the Housing Act of 1949 as amended, 
(without regard to Section 542(b)). This Notice informs the public that 
funding

[[Page 3436]]

is available for the Rural Development Voucher Program. The notice also 
sets forth the general policies and procedures for use of these 
vouchers for Fiscal Year 2012. Pursuant to the requirements in the 
Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012, Public 
Law 112-55 (November 18, 2011), Rural Development Vouchers are only 
available to low income tenants of Rural Development-financed 
multifamily properties where the Section 515 loan has been prepaid, 
either through prepayment or a foreclosure action, prior to the loan's 
maturity date and after September 30, 2005.

DATES: January 24, 2012.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephanie B.M. White, Director, Multi-
Family Housing Portfolio Management Division, Rural Development, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., STOP 0782, 
Washington, DC 20250-0782, telephone (202) 720-1615. Persons with 
hearing or speech impairments may access this number via TDD by calling 
the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2012 
(Pub. L. 112-55, November 18, 2011) provided that the Secretary of the 
USDA shall carry out the Rural Development Voucher program as follows:

    That of the funds made available under this heading, $11,000,000 
shall be available for rural housing vouchers to any low-income 
household (including those not receiving Rental Assistance) residing 
in a property financed with a Section 515 loan which has been 
prepaid after September 30, 2005: Provided further, that the amount 
of such voucher shall be the difference between comparable market 
rent for the Section 515 unit and the tenant paid rent for such 
unit: Provided further, That funds made available for such vouchers 
shall be subject to the availability of annual appropriations: 
Provided further, that the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent 
practicable, administer such vouchers with current regulations and 
administrative guidance applicable to section 8 housing vouchers 
administered by the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development (HUD).

    This notice outlines the process for providing voucher assistance 
to the eligible impacted families when an owner prepays a Section 515 
loan or USDA action results in a foreclosure after September 30, 2005.

Design Features of the Rural Development Voucher Program

    This section sets forth the design features of the Rural 
Development Voucher Program, including the eligibility of families, the 
inspection of the units, and the calculation of the subsidy amount.
    Rural Development Vouchers under this part are administered by the 
Rural Housing Service; an Agency under the Rural Development mission 
area, in accordance with requirements set forth in this Notice and 
further explained in, ``The Rural Development Voucher Program Guide,'' 
which can be obtained by contacting any Rural Development office. 
Contact information for Rural Development offices can be found at 
http://offices.sc.egov.usda.gov/locator/app. These requirements are 
generally based on the housing choice voucher program regulations of 
HUD set forth at 24 CFR part 982, unless otherwise noted by this 
Notice.
    The Rural Development Voucher Program is intended to offer 
protection to eligible multifamily housing tenants in properties 
financed through Rural Development's Section 515 Rural Rental Housing 
Program (515 property) who may be subject to economic hardship through 
prepayment of the Rural Development mortgage. When the owner of a 515 
property pays off the loan prior to the loan's maturity date (either 
through prepayment or foreclosure action), the Rural Development 
affordable housing requirements and rental assistance subsidies 
generally cease to exist. Rents may increase, thereby making the 
housing unaffordable to tenants. When a prepayment occurs, whether or 
not the rent increases, the tenant may be responsible for the full 
payment of rent. The Rural Development Voucher Program applies to any 
515 property where the mortgage is paid off prior to the maturity date 
in the promissory note and the payment occurs after September 30, 2005. 
This includes foreclosed properties. Tenants in foreclosed properties 
are eligible for a Rural Development Voucher under the same conditions 
as properties that go through the standard prepayment process.
    The Rural Development Voucher will help tenants by providing an 
annual rental subsidy, renewable on the terms and conditions set forth 
herein and subject to the availability of funds, that will supplement 
the tenant's rent payment. This program enables a tenant to make an 
informed decision about remaining in the property, moving to a new 
property, or obtaining other financial housing assistance. Low-income 
tenants in the prepaying property are eligible to receive a voucher to 
use at their current rental property, or to take to any other rental 
unit in the United States and its territories.
    There are some general limitations on the use of a voucher:
    (1) The rental unit must pass a Rural Development health and safety 
inspection, and the owner must be willing to accept a Rural Development 
Voucher;
    (2) Also, Rural Development Vouchers cannot be used for units in 
subsidized housing like Section 8 and public housing where two housing 
subsidies would result. The Rural Development Voucher may be used for 
rental units in other properties financed by Rural Development, but it 
will not be used in combination with the Rural Development Rental 
Assistance program.
    (3) The Rural Development Voucher may not be used to purchase a 
home.

1. Family Eligibility

    In order to be eligible for the Rural Development Voucher under 
this Notice, a family must:
    (a) Be residing in the Section 515 project on the date of the 
prepayment of the Section 515 loan or upon foreclosure by Rural 
Development;
    (b) The date of the prepayment or foreclosure must be after 
September 30, 2005;
    (c) As required by Section 214 of the Housing and Community 
Development Act of 1980 [42 U.S.C. 1436a] the primary tenant and co-
tenant, if applicable, must be a United States citizen, United States 
non-citizen national or qualified alien.
    (1) For each family member who contends that he or she is a U.S. 
citizen or a noncitizen with eligible immigration status, the family 
must submit to Rural Development a written declaration, signed under 
penalty of perjury, by which the family member declares whether he or 
she is a U.S. citizen or a noncitizen with eligible immigration status:
    (i) For each adult, the declaration must be signed by the adult; 
and
    (ii) For each child, the declaration must be signed by an adult 
residing in the assisted dwelling unit who is responsible for the 
child.
    (2) Each family member, regardless of age, must submit the 
following evidence to the responsible entity:
    (i) For citizens, the evidence consists of a signed declaration of 
U.S. citizenship. Rural Development may request verification of the 
declaration by requiring presentation of a United States

[[Page 3437]]

passport, social security card, or other appropriate documentation;
    (ii) For noncitizens who are 62 years of age or older, the evidence 
consists of: (A) A signed declaration of eligible immigration status; 
and
    (B) Proof of age document; and
    (iii) For all other noncitizens, the evidence consists of:
    (A) A signed declaration of eligible immigration status;
    (B) Alien registration documentation or other proof of immigration 
registration from the United States Citizenship and Immigration 
Services (USCIS) that contains the individual's alien admission number 
or alien file number; and
    (C) A signed verification consent form, which provides that 
evidence of eligible immigration status may be released to Rural 
Development and USCIS for purposes of verifying the immigration status 
of the individual. Rural Development shall provide a reasonable 
opportunity, not to exceed 30 days, to submit evidence indicating a 
satisfactory immigration status, or to appeal to the Immigration and 
Naturalization Service the verification determination of the 
Immigration and Naturalization Service; and;
    (d) The family must be a low-income family on the date of the 
prepayment or foreclosure. A low-income family is a family whose annual 
income does not exceed 80 percent of the family median income for the 
area as defined by HUD. HUD's definition of median income can be found 
at: http://www.huduser.org/portal/datasets/il/il11/index.html
    During the prepayment or foreclosure process, Rural Development 
will evaluate every tenant family to determine if it is low income. If 
Rural Development determines a family is low-income, immediately 
following the foreclosure or prepayment Rural Development will send the 
primary tenant a letter offering the family a voucher and will enclose 
a Voucher Obligation Request Form and a citizenship declaration form. 
If the family wants to participate in the Rural Development Voucher 
Program, the tenant has 10 months from the date of prepayment or 
foreclosure to return the Voucher Obligation Request Form and the 
citizenship declaration to the local Rural Development office. If Rural 
Development determines that the tenant is ineligible, Rural Development 
will provide administrative appeal rights pursuant to 7 CFR part 11.

2. Obtaining a Voucher

    Rural Development will monitor the prepayment request process or 
foreclosure process, as applicable. As part of prepayment or 
foreclosure Rural Development will obtain a rent comparability study 
for the property ninety days prior to the date of prepayment or 
foreclosure. The rent comparability study will be used to calculate the 
amount of voucher each tenant is entitled to receive. All tenants will 
be notified if they are eligible and the amount of the voucher within 
90 days following the date of prepayment or foreclosure. The tenant 
notice will include a description of the Rural Development Voucher 
Program, a Voucher Obligation Request Form, and letter from Rural 
Development offering the tenant participation in Rural Development 
Voucher Program. The tenant has 10 months from the date of prepayment 
or foreclosure to return the Voucher Obligation Request Form and the 
signed citizenship declaration. Failure to submit the Voucher 
Obligation Request Form and the signed citizenship declaration within 
the required timeframes will terminate the tenant's the voucher. A 
tenant's failure to respond within the required timeframes is not 
appealable. Once the primary tenant returns the Voucher Obligation 
Request Form and the citizenship declaration to Rural Development, a 
voucher will be issued within 30 days. All information necessary for a 
housing search, explanations of unit acceptability, and Rural 
Development contact information will be provided by Rural Development 
to the tenant at the time the Voucher Obligation Form and citizenship 
declaration is received.
    The family receiving a Rural Development Voucher has an initial 
period of 60 calendar days from issuance of the voucher to find a 
housing unit. At its discretion, Rural Development may grant one or 
more extensions of the initial period for up to an additional 60 days. 
Generally the maximum voucher period for any family participating in 
the Rural Development Voucher Program is 120 days. Only if the family 
needs and requests an extension of the initial period as a reasonable 
accommodation to make the program accessible to a disabled family 
member, Rural Development will extend the voucher search period beyond 
the 120 days. If the Rural Development Voucher remains unused after a 
period of 150 days from original issuance, the Rural Development 
Voucher will become void, any funding will be cancelled, and the tenant 
will no longer be eligible to receive a Rural Development Voucher.

3. Initial Lease Term

    The initial lease term for the housing unit where the family wishes 
to use the Rural Development Voucher must be for one year.

4. Inspection of Units and Unit Approval

    Once the family finds a housing unit, Rural Development will 
inspect and determine if the housing standard is acceptable within 30 
days of Rural Development's receipt of the HUD Form 52517 ``Request for 
Tenancy Approval Housing Choice Voucher Program'' found at http://www.hud.gov/offices/adm/hudclips/forms/files/52517.pdf and the 
Disclosure of Information on Lead-Based Paint Hazards. The inspection 
standards currently in effect for the Rural Development Section 515 
Multi-Family Housing Program apply to the Rural Development Voucher 
Program. Rural Development must inspect the unit and ensure that the 
unit meets the housing inspection standards set forth at 7 CFR 
3560.103. Under no circumstances may Rural Development make voucher 
rental payments for any period of time prior to the date that Rural 
Development physically inspects the unit and determines the unit meets 
the housing inspection standards. In the case of properties financed by 
Rural Development under the Section 515 program, Rural Development may 
accept the results of physical inspections performed no more than one 
year prior to the date of receipt by Rural Development of Form HUD 
52517, in order to make determinations on acceptable housing standards. 
Before approving a family's assisted tenancy or executing a Housing 
Assistance Payments contract, Rural Development must determine that the 
following conditions are met: (1) The unit has been inspected by Rural 
Development and passes the housing standards inspection or has 
otherwise been found acceptable as noted previously; and (2) the lease 
includes the HUD Tenancy Addendum. A copy of the HUD Tenancy Addendum 
will be provided by Rural Development when the tenant is informed he/
she is eligible for a voucher.
    Once the conditions in the above paragraph are met, Rural 
Development will approve the unit for leasing. Rural Development will 
then execute with the owner a Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) 
contract, Form HUD-52641. The HAP contract must be executed before 
Rural Development Voucher payments can be made. Rural Development will 
use its best efforts to execute the HAP contract on behalf of the 
family before

[[Page 3438]]

the beginning of the lease term. In the event that this does not occur, 
the HAP contract may be executed up to 60 calendar days after the 
beginning of the lease term. If the HAP contract is executed during 
this 60-day period, Rural Development will pay retroactive housing 
assistance payments to cover the portion of the approved lease term 
before execution of the HAP contract. Any HAP contract executed after 
the 60-day period is untimely, and Rural Development will not pay any 
housing assistance payment to the owner for that period. In 
establishing the effective date of the voucher HAP contracts, Rural 
Development may not execute a HAP contract that is effective prior to 
the Section 515 loan prepayment.

5. Subsidy Calculations for Rural Development Vouchers

    As stated earlier, if eligible, the tenant will be notified of the 
maximum voucher amount within 90 days following prepayment or 
foreclosure. The maximum voucher amount for the Rural Development 
Voucher Program is the difference between the comparable market rent 
for the family's former Section 515 unit and the tenant's rent 
contribution on the date of the prepayment. The voucher amount will be 
based on the comparable market rent; the voucher amount will never 
exceed the comparable market rent at the time of prepayment for the 
tenant's unit if the tenant chooses to stay in-place. Also, in no event 
may the Rural Development Voucher payment exceed the actual tenant 
lease rent. The amount of the voucher does not change either over time 
or if the tenant chooses to move to a more expensive location.

6. Mobility and Portability of Rural Development Vouchers

    An eligible family that is issued a Rural Development Voucher may 
elect to use the assistance in the same project or may choose to move 
to another location. The Rural Development Voucher may be used at the 
prepaid property or any other rental unit in the United States and its 
territories that passes Rural Development physical inspection 
standards, and where the owner will accept a Rural Development Voucher 
and execute a Form HUD 52641. Tenants and landlords must inform Rural 
Development if the tenant plans to move during the HAP agreement term, 
even to a new unit in the same complex. All moves (within a complex or 
to another complex) require a new obligation, a new inspection and a 
new HAP agreement. In addition, HUD Section 8 and federally assisted 
public housing is excluded from the Rural Development Voucher Program 
because these units are already federally subsidized. Tenants with a 
Rural Development Voucher would have to give up the Rural Development 
Voucher to accept the assistance at those properties. The Rural 
Development Voucher may be used in other properties financed by Rural 
Development, but it cannot be used in combination with the Rural 
Development Rental Assistance program. Tenants with a Rural Development 
Voucher that apply for housing in a Rural Development-financed property 
must choose between using the voucher or Rental Assistance. If the 
tenant relinquishes the Rural Development Voucher in favor of Rental 
Assistance, the tenant is not eligible to receive another Rural 
Development Voucher.

7. Term of Funding and Conditions for Renewal for Rural Development 
Vouchers

    The Rural Development Voucher Program provides voucher assistance 
for 12 monthly payments. The voucher is issued to the household in the 
name of the primary tenant, as the voucher holder. The voucher is not 
transferable from the voucher holder to any other household member 
except in the case of the voucher holder's death or involuntary 
household separation such as the incarceration of the voucher holder or 
transfer of the voucher holder to an assisted living or nursing home 
facility. Upon receiving documentation of such cases, the voucher may 
be transferred at the Agency's discretion to another tenant on the 
voucher holder's lease.
    The voucher is renewable subject to the availability of 
appropriations to the USDA. In order to renew a voucher, a tenant must 
return a signed Voucher Obligation Form which will be sent to the 
tenant within 60-90 days before the current voucher expires. If the 
voucher holder fails to return the renewal Voucher Obligation Form 
before the current voucher funding expires, the voucher will be 
terminated.
    In order to ensure continued eligibility to use the Rural 
Development Voucher, at the time they apply for renewal of the voucher, 
tenants must certify that the current family income does not exceed 80 
percent of family median income. Rural Development will advise the 
tenant of the maximum income level when the renewal Voucher Obligation 
Form is sent.
    Renewal requests will have no preference and will be processed as a 
new application as described in this Notice.

8. Non-Discrimination Statement

    ``The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits 
discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of 
race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, 
sex, (including gender identity and expression) marital status, 
familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, 
genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or 
a part of an individual's income is derived from any public 
assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all 
programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means 
for communication of program information (Braille), large print, 
audio tape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-
2600 (voice and TDD).
    To file a complaint of discrimination write to USDA, Assistant 
Secretary for Civil Rights, Office of the Assistance Secretary for 
Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Stop 9410, Washington, 
DC 20250-9410 or call toll-free at (866) 632-9992 (English) or (800) 
877-8339 (TDD) or (866) 733-8642 (English Federal relay) or (800) 
845-6136 (Spanish Federal relay). USDA is an equal opportunity 
provider, and employer.''

9. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The information collection requirements contained in this document 
are those of the Housing Choice Voucher Program, which have been 
approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520) and assigned OMB 
control number 2577-0169. In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act, HUD may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to 
respond to, a collection of information unless the collection displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

    Dated: January 16, 2012.
Tammye Trevi[ntilde]o,
Administrator, Rural Housing Service.
[FR Doc. 2012-1270 Filed 1-23-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-XV-P