In December, HUD announced that the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) reached its 185,000 unit limit. HUD’s most recent Rental Assistance Demonstration newsletter in December provides an extensive description of RAD’s Choice Mobility option. Also, the National Housing Law Project and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees launched a new RAD website oriented to residents, workers, and advocates.
HUD has given preliminary approval for 185,000 public housing units, the maximum allowed by Congress, to convert to either Project-Based Vouchers (PBV) or to Project-Based Section 8 Rental Assistance (PBRA) under RAD. Currently HUD has a waiting list of 10,946 public housing units that could be considered for RAD conversion if some of the projects with preliminary approval are withdrawn or revoked.
The December 2015 RAD newsletter is devoted to the Choice Mobility option under RAD. Public housing residents whose developments are converted under RAD have the option to choose to move from their RAD-converted property with a regular Housing Choice Voucher. Residents whose properties converted to PBV can exercise the mobility option for up to one year after conversion; residents in properties converted to PBRA can exercise the mobility option for up to two years after conversion. The mobility option is part of HUD’s strategy to enable residents who choose to do so to move to areas with greater opportunity.
The National Housing Law Project (NHLP) and the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) have created RAD-Watch.org, a new website for residents, workers, and advocates. The site provides basic information about RAD, a tab with a clickable map showing where RAD is happening, and a tab providing brief descriptions of tenant and worker rights. The site also links to NHLP’s RAD webpage which includes a detailed guide for legal services advocates.
HUD’s RAD webpage, which has a link to the list of properties under the 185,000 cap as well as the wait list, is at http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/RAD
HUD’s December 2015 Rental Assistance Demonstration newsletter is at http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/documents/huddoc?id=RAD_Newsltr_Dec2015.pdf
RAD-Watch.org is at http://www.rad-watch.org/
NHLP’s RAD webpage is at http://nhlp.org/rad
NLIHC has a RAD outline at http://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/FactSheet_RAD_2015.pdf, along with general RAD information on page 4-21 of NLIHC’s 2015 Advocates’ Guide at http://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/Sec4.07_Public-Housing-Rental-Assistance_2015.pdf