The original item was published from April 3, 2018 8:07 am to April 3, 2018 8:13 am
On December 14, 2017, Pensacola City Council approved a new version of the Housing Division's Housing Choice Voucher Program Administrative Plan, the policy document that guides our voucher program. The new Administrative Plan includes several important changes to our inspection process, which are outlined below. The changes went into effect on April 1, 2018.
New Unit Inspections
If a unit fails the New Unit inspection, the landlord will have 15 business days to complete corrections and schedule an inspection revisit. If a revisit is not requested within this time frame, Pensacola Housing will deny the RTA, add additional time to the voucher, and instruct the participant to select a new unit.
If the unit fails the second inspection, Pensacola Housing will deny the RTA, add additional time to the voucher, and instruct the participant to select a new unit. No additional revisits for the unit will be scheduled.
Reinspection Fees for Annual and Biennial Inspections
Pursuant to Pensacola Code of Ordinances Section 7-14-5 and HUD's 2016 Final Rule, effective April 1, 2018, Pensacola Housing will charge a $50 reinspection fee for annual/biennial inspection revisits if the inspector finds that all Owner-Responsible deficiencies from the Inspection Report have not been corrected. The fee will be assessed against the landlord's next HAP payment. Landlords may not pass the fee along to the tenant.
Scheduling Annual/Biennial Revisits
Because of the reinspection fee policy, Pensacola Housing will no longer schedule a courtesy revisit on annual/biennial inspections with deficiencies. Instead, it will be the landlord's responsibility to schedule the revisit once repairs are complete. Requests for revisit appointments will not be accepted from tenants, unless there are "Tenant Responsible" items on the Inspection Report.
Revisits for "Tenant Responsible" Items
For Inspection Reports that include "Tenant Responsible" items, Pensacola Housing will accept revisit requests from those tenants only, so the tenant can have their items cleared in order to be eligible for a moving voucher. These tenants should let the scheduler know they are calling about an Inspection Report that includes Tenant Repairs.
No Shows/Cancellations
Annual/biennial inspections that are no shows, same-day cancellations, or prior cancellations that have not been rescheduled, will no longer be treated as a failed inspection, meaning the HAP will not be subject to abatement after 30 days. Instead, the tenant will receive a 30-day notification that program participation is being terminated. It is a responsibility of the family to allow the PHA to inspect the unit at reasonable times and after reasonable notice.
Summary
With these changes, our intent is to streamline the inspection process and reduce the number of visits required to confirm program compliance. We appreciate our clients' and landlords' participation in our program and look forward to creating a more efficient inspection process with the implementation of these changes.