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Boston Housing Authority outlines voucher supports but says it lacks authority over private landlords
Summary
The Boston Housing Authority told the council it manages about 16,000 voucher households and refers private-landlord discrimination complaints to OFHE/MCAD; BHA described intake forms, eviction-sealing assistance and landlord outreach through its ECHO program.
Virginia Albert, assistant director of civil rights at the Boston Housing Authority (BHA), told the Council that BHA manages roughly 16,000 voucher households and about 8,000 public-housing households and that allegations by voucher holders against private landlords are referred to the Boston Fair Housing Commission and the Office of Fair Housing and Equity for investigation.
Albert described BHA protocols: a specialized intake form to facilitate referrals to OFHE; internal flexibility to extend voucher deadlines for residents reporting discrimination; an eviction-sealing guide to help residents seal past evictions; and partnerships with nonprofits and the Boston Public Schools to provide security-deposit and moving-cost assistance. She said BHA’s authority to investigate discrimination against private landlords is limited and that enforcement responsibilities rest with MCAD, OFHE and HUD.
Councilors pressed BHA on whether it vets preferred landlords and whether it collects neighborhood-level success data for voucher holders; Albert said the city’s AFFH assessment contains neighborhood analysis and that BHA would follow up on data-collection questions.
