Admissions and Continued Occupancy Plan

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING AND COMMENT PERIOD FOR MODIFICATION OF DCHA’S ADMISSIONS AND CONTINUED OCCUPANCY PLAN

The District of Columbia Housing Authority (DCHA) is providing notice of a Public Hearing and Comment Period to solicit comments on DCHA’s Admissions and Continued Occupancy Plan (ACOP).

To download a copy of the proposed ACOP, click here. To request a copy of the proposed ACOP, send an email to publiccomments@dchousing.org or call 771-240-4377.

View Public Hearing Presentation

A Virtual Public Hearing took place Monday, April 14.

View Proposed Changes to the ACOP

Comments
Written comments regarding the proposed ACOP will be accepted through 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday, July 1. Email your comments to publiccomments@dchousing.org. Comments submitted during the prior public comment period that ran from March 21, 2025 to April 20, 2025, will be reviewed and need not be re-submitted.

Alternatively, you can mail comments to:

District of Columbia Housing Authority
Office of the General Counsel
Attn: General Counsel
300 7th Street, SW
10th Floor
Washington, DC 20024

Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation

DCHA strives to host inclusive, accessible events that enable all individuals, including individuals with disabilities, to engage fully. It is the policy of DCHA that all agency-sponsored public meetings and events are accessible to people with disabilities. DCHA is committed to providing equal access to events for all participants & residents with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation, or assistance in participating in a meeting or event due to a disability as defined under the Americans with Disabilities Act, please contact our ADA/504 Program Office at 202-535-1000 or at ADA504@dchousing.org with your complete request. Every reasonable effort will be made to meet your request.

If you need a sign language interpreter or foreign language interpretation or translation, please contact our Office of Customer Engagement at 202-535-1000 or go to www.dchousing.org/language. Please allow at least 3 business days to make the necessary arrangements.

	Current ACOP	Proposed ACOP
Calculating Public Housing Residents' Rent		CHANGE REQUIRED BY HUD Must be included in income when calculating rent: • Income received as independent contractor, day laborer or seasonal worker. Exclude from income when calculating rent: • Payments from temporary (less than 180 days) employment with the Census Bureau. • Economic stimulus payments. • State and federal tax refunds. • Gifts, in-kind donations, and lump-sum payments such as lottery or contest winnings. • All worker’s compensation, regardless of frequency or length, or amount.
Household Member Absences	Temporary absence – family member away from unit for 60 consecutive days or less. Permanent absence – family member away from unit for 61 consecutive days or more	Temporary absence – family member away for 180 consecutive days or less. Permanent absence – family member away 181 consecutive days or more.
Assets	Required to submit supporting documents to verify assets (like savings) of $15,000 or more.	Required to submit supporting documents for assets (like savings) of $50,000 or more. Assets of $49,999 or less will be excluded from tenant rent calculation.
Verifying Info with DCHA	Supporting documents to verify recertification information must be dated within 60 days of the recertification.	To verify fixed income, supporting documents must be dated within one-year of recertification. All other supporting documents must be dated within 120 days of recertification.
Pet Policy	Pets ONLY allowed: • At elderly/disabled sites. • If grandfathered in. Pet-owners required to: • Pay pet deposit every year. • Renew pet registration every year.	Allow up to 2 pets at ALL housing sites when: • Request approved by DCHA. • Payment of one-time pet deposit. • Renew pet registration every year. IMPORTANT NOTE: Assistance animals used to help persons with disabilities are NOT pets and may be subject to different requirements.
Grievances An opportunity to dispute certain adverse DCHA actions or inactions involving a lease or DCHA policy. For example, disputing a rent change.	Must request grievance within 30 days of the event.	Must request grievance within 6 months of the event.
Definition of Elderly	When a family has a head, co-head or spouse who is 62 years or older.	When a family has a head, co-head or spouse who is 55 or older. NOTE: This may lower tenant rent payments for elderly-families and allow more families to obtain an elderly preference at certain sites.
Waiting List	One Public Housing Waiting List for all properties. Applicants ordered by date and time of application. As applicants pulled from waiting list, they are offered available unit at ANY property.	Site-based Public Housing Waiting List. When the waiting list reopens, applicants must select up to 5 properties where they would like to live. When site-based Waiting List for high-demand properties reopen, they may close after a limited time (two weeks). This is called a “finite period.” • Applicants on finite period site- based waiting lists will be pulled by random choice technique. When site-based waiting list for lower-demand properties reopen, they may remain open and have no end date. This is called “continuously open.” • Applicants on continuously open site-based waiting lists will be pulled by date and time of application.

Admissions and Continued Occupancy Plan

Current Plans and Policies

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