Patchogue CDA adopts revised Housing Choice Voucher administrative plan to comply with HOTMA

The Patchogue Village Community Development Agency on June 5 adopted revisions to its Housing Choice Voucher administrative plan intended to comply with the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act (HOTMA) of 2016. The board approved a resolution adopting the updated plan, which the agency said will take effect on June 1 of the current fiscal year.

"We had to update our full administrative plan," said Mary Ann Truso, executive director, explaining the changes required by HOTMA and the agency’s approach to implementation. Truso told the board that some HOTMA elements cannot be implemented immediately because HUD systems and the CDA’s software vendor have not yet completed necessary updates.

Key changes included in the revised plan that the board approved:

- Retaining annual reexaminations for existing voucher households rather than moving eligible households to biannual or triennial reviews; Truso said the CDA chose annual reviews because its program is small and annual contact is easier to manage.

- A provision that income increases that raise a household’s adjusted income by less than 10% will not trigger an interim reexamination, reducing administrative churn for households with modest income changes.

- An expanded income definition to capture irregular and "gig" income and a revised approach to streamline income determination by considering prior-12-month earnings for current participants while using prospective income determination for new admissions.

- An asset limit applied to new admissions; assets under $50,000 may be self-certified for certain asset types. Truso said she recommended that the asset limitation not be applied retroactively to current participants.

Truso said the agency published a public hearing notice more than 45 days in advance and that the draft revised administrative plan was posted online and made available at the CDA office; she reported the agency received no public comments by the published deadline.

The board opened and closed the public hearing during the meeting and then approved a resolution adopting the revisions. The transcript does not record a mover or seconder for the resolution; the motion carried.

The CDA said it will implement elements of the plan as HUD and the CDA’s software vendor allow. Truso said the agency worked with a consultant on the changes and will bring additional administrative adjustments to the board as software and federal system updates permit.