| (a) Purpose. The Project Access Program (PA Program)
is a program that utilizes federal Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers,
Non Elderly Disabled Vouchers, and Mainstream Vouchers administered
by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (the Department)
to assist low-income persons with disabilities in transitioning from
institutions into the community by providing access to affordable
housing. This rule provides the parameters and eligibility standards
for this program.
(b) Definitions.
(1) At-Risk Applicant--A household that has applied
to the Department's Section 8 Project Access program, and exited an
Institution prior to issuance of a Department Section 8 Housing Choice
Voucher using an alternate short term rental assistance solution and
is at risk of that short term rental assistance ending.
(2) HHSC--Texas Health and Human Services Commission.
(3) HUD--The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
(4) Institution--Congregate settings populated exclusively
or primarily with individuals with disabilities; congregate settings
characterized by regimentation in daily activities, lack of privacy
or autonomy, policies limiting visitors, or limits on individuals'
ability to engage freely in community activities and to manage their
own activities of daily living; or settings that provide for daytime
activities primarily with other individuals with disabilities. This
definition includes but is not limited to a nursing facility, state
psychiatric hospital, intermediate care facility, or board and care
facility as defined by HUD. The definition for Institution is further
limited for vouchers funded with NED as further provided for in subsection
(e)(2)(C) of this section. This definition does not include a prison,
jail, halfway house, or other setting that persons reside in as part
of a criminal proceeding.
(5) Mainstream Vouchers (MVP) --HUD's Mainstream Voucher
Program.
(6) Non-Elderly Disabled (NED)--HUD's Non-Elderly Disabled
Program.
(7) Section 8--HUD's Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher
Program administered by the Department.
(c) Regulations Governing Program. All Section 8 Program
rules and regulations, including but not limited to, criterion at
24 CFR Part 982 apply to the program.
(d) Project Access in the Department's PHA Plan. Project
Access households have a preference in the Department's Section 8
Program, as designated in the Department's Annual PHA Plan. The total
number of Project Access Vouchers will be determined each year in
the Department's PHA Plan.
(e) Eligibility for the Project Access Program.
(1) A household that participates in the Project Access
Program must meet all Section 8 eligibility criteria, and one member
of the household must meet the eligibility criteria in subparagraphs
(A) and (B) of this paragraph:
(A) Must have a disability as defined in 24 CFR §5.403;
and
(B) Must meet one of the criteria in clauses (i) or
(ii) of this subparagraph:
(i) be a resident of an Institution at the time of
voucher issuance; or
(ii) be an At-Risk Applicant that meets one of the
criteria of subclauses (I) through (IV) of this clause:
(I) A current recipient of Tenant-Based Rental Assistance
(TBRA) from a HOME Investment Partnership Program, whose assistance
from that HOME source is within six months of expiration and is not
eligible for extension or renewal, and was a previous resident of
an Institution prior to receiving the TBRA assistance;
(II) A household with a household member who meets
the criteria of an At-Risk Applicant and has lost their TBRA from
a HOME Investment Partnership Program due to lack of available funding;
(III) A household that is a current recipient of rental
assistance funded by HHSC, whose assistance from HHSC is within six
months of expiration and is not eligible for extension or renewal,
and was a previous resident of an Institution immediately prior to
receiving the assistance; or
(IV) A household that is a current recipient of HHSC
funded group home housing that was a previous resident of a state
hospital immediately prior to receiving the group home assistance.
(2) NED and Mainstream Vouchers have additional eligibility
criteria which are:
(A) The household member with the disability as defined
in 24 CFR §5.403, must be 18 but under 62 years of age at the
time of voucher issuance;
(B) For NED only, the head of household, spouse, co-head,
or sole member, must be a person with a disability; and
(C) For NED only, the qualifying household member must
not be an At-Risk Applicant as described in this subsection, must
be residing in a nursing facility, Texas state psychiatric hospital,
or intermediate care facility immediately prior to voucher issuance,
and must also be referred by the applicable HHSC funded agency.
(f) Waiting List and Allocation of Vouchers.
(1) Unless no longer authorized as a set-aside by HUD,
no more than 10 percent of the vouchers used in the Project Access
Program will be reserved for households with a household member eligible
for a pilot program in partnership with the HHSC for Texas state psychiatric
hospitals who otherwise meets the criteria of the Project Access Program
at the time of voucher issuance.
(2) The Department's Waiting List for PA vouchers will
be kept "open" and the Department will accept an application for the
PA Program at any time. An applicant for the PA Program is placed
on a Waiting List until a voucher becomes available. An applicant
who qualifies for the Project Access HHSC Pilot Program in subsection
(f)(1) of this section is placed on a Waiting List for Project Access
HHSC Pilot Program, and also for the general PA Program Waiting List.
(3) The Department will select applicants off the Waiting
List for the Project Access HHSC Pilot Program, and for the general
PA Program waitlist to ensure that the Department is utilizing all
NED and Mainstream Vouchers before issuing other Section 8 Vouchers.
(4) Maintaining Status on the Project Access Waiting
List. A household on the Project Access waiting list may maintain
their order and eligibility for a Project Access voucher if the household:
(A) Applied for the PA Program and was placed on the
waiting list prior to transition out of an Institution; and
(B) Received continuous rental assistance from one
of the eligible sources identified under subsection (e)(1)(B)(ii)
of this section or other Department funding for rental assistance
from the time of exit from an Institution until the issuance of the
Project Access voucher.
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