983.251—How participants are selected.

(a) Who may receive PBV assistance? (1) The PHA may select families who are participants in the PHA's tenant-based voucher program and families who have applied for admission to the voucher program.

(2) Except for voucher participants (determined eligible at original admission to the voucher program), the PHA may only select families determined eligible for admission at commencement of PBV assistance.

(3) The protections for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, or stalking in 24 CFR part 5, subpart L, apply to admission to the project-based program.

(b) Protection of in-place families. (1) The term “in-place family” means an eligible family residing in a proposed contract unit on the proposal selection date.

(2) In order to minimize displacement of in-place families, if a unit to be placed under contract that is either an existing unit or one requiring rehabilitation is occupied by an eligible family on the proposal selection date, the in-place family must be placed on the PHA's waiting list (if the family is not already on the list) and, once its continued eligibility is determined, given an absolute selection preference and referred to the project owner for an appropriately sized PBV unit in the project. (However, the PHA may deny assistance for the grounds specified in 24 CFR 982.552 and 982.553.) Admission of such families is not subject to income-targeting under 24 CFR 982.201(b)(2)(i), and such families must be referred to the owner from the PHA's waiting list. A PHA shall give such families priority for admission to the PBV program. This protection does not apply to families that are not eligible to participate in the program on the proposal selection date.

(c) Selection from PHA waiting list. (1) Applicants who will occupy PBV units must be selected by the PHA from the PHA waiting list. The PHA must select applicants from the waiting list in accordance with the policies in the PHA administrative plan.

(2) The PHA may use a separate waiting list for admission to PBV units or may use the same waiting list for both tenant-based assistance and PBV assistance. If the PHA chooses to use a separate waiting list for admission to PBV units, the PHA must offer to place applicants who are listed on the waiting list for tenant-based assistance on the waiting list for PBV assistance.

(3) The PHA may use separate waiting lists for PBV units in individual projects or buildings (or for sets of such units) or may use a single waiting list for the PHA's whole PBV program. In either case, the waiting list may establish criteria or preferences for occupancy of particular units.

(4) The PHA may merge the waiting list for PBV assistance with the PHA waiting list for admission to another assisted housing program.

(5) The PHA may place families referred by the PBV owner on its PBV waiting list.

(6) Not less than 75 percent of the families admitted to a PHA's tenant-based and project-based voucher programs during the PHA fiscal year from the PHA waiting list shall be extremely low-income families. The income-targeting requirements at 24 CFR 982.201(b)(2) apply to the total of admissions to the PHA's project-based voucher program and tenant-based voucher program during the PHA fiscal year from the PHA waiting list for such programs.

(7) In selecting families to occupy PBV units with special accessibility features for persons with disabilities, the PHA must first refer families who require such accessibility features to the owner (see 24 CFR 8.26 and 100.202 ).

(d) Preference for services offered. In selecting families, PHAs may give preference to disabled families who need services offered at a particular project in accordance with the limits under this paragraph. The prohibition on granting preferences to persons with a specific disability at 24 CFR 982.207(b)(3) continues to apply.

(1) Preference limits. (i) The preference is limited to the population of families (including individuals) with disabilities that significantly interfere with their ability to obtain and maintain themselves in housing;

(ii) Who, without appropriate supportive services, will not be able to obtain or maintain themselves in housing; and

(iii) For whom such services cannot be provided in a nonsegregated setting.

(2) Disabled residents shall not be required to accept the particular services offered at the project.

(3) In advertising the project, the owner may advertise the project as offering services for a particular type of disability; however, the project must be open to all otherwise eligible persons with disabilities who may benefit from services provided in the project.

(e) Offer of PBV assistance. (1) If a family refuses the PHA's offer of PBV assistance, such refusal does not affect the family's position on the PHA waiting list for tenant-based assistance.

(2) If a PBV owner rejects a family for admission to the owner's PBV units, such rejection by the owner does not affect the family's position on the PHA waiting list for tenant-based assistance.

(3) The PHA may not take any of the following actions against an applicant who has applied for, received, or refused an offer of PBV assistance:

(i) Refuse to list the applicant on the PHA waiting list for tenant-based assistance;

(ii) Deny any admission preference for which the applicant is currently qualified;

(iii) Change the applicant's place on the waiting list based on preference, date, and time of application, or other factors affecting selection under the PHA selection policy;

(iv) Remove the applicant from the waiting list for tenant-based voucher assistance.

Code of Federal Regulations

[70 FR 59913, Oct. 13, 2005, as amended at 73 FR 72345, Nov. 28, 2008; 75 FR 66264, Oct. 27, 2010]