42 U.S.C. § 1437r : US Code - Section 1437R: Public housing resident management

Search 42 U.S.C. § 1437r : US Code - Section 1437R: Public housing resident management

(a) Purpose
The purpose of this section is to encourage increased resident
management of public housing projects, as a means of improving
existing living conditions in public housing projects, by providing
increased flexibility for public housing projects that are managed
by residents by -
(1) permitting the retention, and use for certain purposes, of
any revenues exceeding operating and project costs; and
(2) providing funding, from amounts otherwise available, for
technical assistance to promote formation and development of
resident management entities.
For purposes of this section, the term "public housing project"
includes one or more contiguous buildings or an area of contiguous
row houses the elected resident councils of which approve the
establishment of a resident management corporation and otherwise
meet the requirements of this section.
(b) Program requirements
(1) Resident council
As a condition of entering into a resident management program,
the elected resident council of a public housing project shall
approve the establishment of a resident management corporation.
When such approval is made by the elected resident council of a
building or row house area, the resident management program shall
not interfere with the rights of other families residing in the
project or harm the efficient operation of the project. The
resident management corporation and the resident council may be
the same organization, if the organization complies with the
requirements applicable to both the corporation and council. The
corporation shall be a nonprofit corporation organized under the
laws of the State in which the project is located, and the
tenants of the project shall be the sole voting members of the
corporation. If there is no elected resident council, a majority
of the households of the public housing project shall approve the
establishment of a resident council to determine the feasibility
of establishing a resident management corporation to manage the
project.
(2) Public housing management specialist
The resident council of a public housing project, in
cooperation with the public housing agency, shall select a
qualified public housing management specialist to assist in
determining the feasibility of, and to help establish, a resident
management corporation and to provide training and other duties
agreed to in the daily operations of the project.
(3) Bonding and insurance
Before assuming any management responsibility for a public
housing project, the resident management corporation shall
provide fidelity bonding and insurance, or equivalent protection,
in accordance with regulations and requirements of the Secretary
and the public housing agency. Such bonding and insurance, or its
equivalent, shall be adequate to protect the Secretary and the
public housing agency against loss, theft, embezzlement, or
fraudulent acts on the part of the resident management
corporation or its employees.
(4) Management responsibilities
A resident management corporation that qualifies under this
section, and that supplies insurance and bonding or equivalent
protection sufficient to the Secretary and the public housing
agency, shall enter into a contract with the public housing
agency establishing the respective management rights and
responsibilities of the corporation and the public housing
agency. Such contract shall be consistent with the requirements
of this chapter applicable to public housing projects and may
include specific terms governing management personnel and
compensation, access to public housing project records,
submission of and adherence to budgets, rent collection
procedures, tenant income verification, tenant eligibility
determinations, tenant eviction, the acquisition of supplies and
materials, rent determination, community service
requirements,,(!1) and such other matters as may be appropriate.
The contract shall be treated as a contracting out of services
and shall be subject to any provision of a collective bargaining
agreement regarding contracting out to which the public housing
agency is subject.
(5) Annual audit
The books and records of a resident management corporation
operating a public housing project shall be audited annually by a
certified public accountant. A written report of each audit shall
be forwarded to the public housing agency and the Secretary.
(c) Assistance amounts
A contract under this section for management of a public housing
project by a resident management corporation shall provide for -
(1) the public housing agency to provide a portion of the
assistance to agency from the Capital and Operating Funds to the
resident management corporation in accordance with subsection (e)
of this section for purposes of operating the public housing
project covered by the contract and performing such other
eligible activities with respect to the project as may be
provided under the contract;
(2) the amount of income expected to be derived from the
project itself (from sources such as rents and charges);
(3) the amount of income to be provided to the project from the
other sources of income of the public housing agency (such as
interest income, administrative fees, and rents); and
(4) any income generated by a resident management corporation
of a public housing project that exceeds the income estimated
under the contract shall be used for eligible activities under
subsections (d)(1) and (e)(1) of section 1437g of this title.
(d) Waiver of Federal requirements
(1) Waiver of regulatory requirements
Upon the request of any resident management corporation and
public housing agency, and after notice and an opportunity to
comment is afforded to the affected tenants, the Secretary may
waive (for both the resident management corporation and the
public housing agency) any requirement established by the
Secretary (and not specified in any statute) that the Secretary
determines to unnecessarily increase the costs or restrict the
income of a public housing project.
(2) Waiver to permit employment
Upon the request of any resident management corporation, the
Secretary may, subject to applicable collective bargaining
agreements, permit residents of such project to volunteer a
portion of their labor.
(3) Exceptions
The Secretary may not waive under this subsection any
requirement with respect to income eligibility for purposes of
section 1437n of this title, rental payments under section
1437a(a) of this title, tenant or applicant protections, employee
organizing rights, or rights of employees under collective
bargaining agreements.
(e) Direct provision of operating and capital assistance
(1) In general
The Secretary shall directly provide assistance from the
Operating and Capital Funds to a resident management corporation
managing a public housing development pursuant to a contract
under this section, but only if -
(A) the resident management corporation petitions the
Secretary for the release of the funds;
(B) the contract provides for the resident management
corporation to assume the primary management responsibilities
of the public housing agency; and
(C) the Secretary determines that the corporation has the
capability to effectively discharge such responsibilities.
(2) Use of assistance
Any assistance from the Operating and Capital Funds provided to
a resident management corporation pursuant to this subsection
shall be used for purposes of operating the public housing
developments of the agency and performing such other eligible
activities with respect to public housing as may be provided
under the contract.
(3) Responsibility of public housing agency
If the Secretary provides direct funding to a resident
management corporation under this subsection, the public housing
agency shall not be responsible for the actions of the resident
management corporation.
(4) Calculation of Operating Fund allocation
Notwithstanding any provision of section 1437g of this title or
any regulation under such section, and subject to the exception
provided in paragraph (3), the portion of the amount received by
a public housing agency under section 1437g of this title that is
due to an allocation from the Operating Fund and that is
allocated to a public housing project managed by a resident
management corporation shall not be less than the public housing
agency per unit monthly amount provided in the previous year as
determined on an individual project basis.
(5) Calculation of total income
(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), the amount of funds provided
by a public housing agency to a public housing project managed by
a resident management corporation may not be reduced during the 3-
year period beginning on February 5, 1988, or on any later date
on which a resident management corporation is first established
for the project.
(B) If the total income of a public housing agency (including
any amounts from the Capital or Operating Funds provided to the
public housing agency under section 1437g of this title) is
reduced or increased, the income provided by the public housing
agency to a public housing project managed by a resident
management corporation shall be reduced or increased in
proportion to the reduction or increase in the total income of
the public housing agency, except that any reduction in amounts
from the Operating Fund that occurs as a result of fraud, waste,
or mismanagement by the public housing agency shall not affect
the funds provided to the resident management corporation.
(6) Retention of excess revenues
(A) Any income generated by a resident management corporation
of a public housing project that exceeds the income estimated for
purposes of this subsection shall be excluded in subsequent years
in calculating (i) the allocations from the Operating Fund for
the public housing agency under section 1437g of this title; and
(ii) the funds provided by the public housing agency to the
resident management corporation.
(B) Any revenues retained by a resident management corporation
under subparagraph (A) shall be used for purposes of improving
the maintenance and operation of the public housing project, for
establishing business enterprises that employ residents of public
housing, or for acquiring additional dwelling units for low-
income families.
(f), (g) Repealed. Pub. L. 105-276, title V, Sec. 532(a)(5), Oct.
21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2575
(h) Applicability
Any management contract between a public housing agency and a
resident management corporation that is entered into after November
7, 1988, shall be subject to this section and the regulations
issued to carry out this section.