| (C) The owner may be contacted and required to complete
the Utility Allowance Questionnaire. In such case, a five day period
will be provided to return the completed questionnaire.
(D) Utilities will be evaluated in the following manner:
(i) For regulated utilities, the Department will contact
the Utility Provider directly and apply the Component Charges in effect
no later than 60 days before the allowance will be effective.
(ii) For deregulated utilities:
(I) The Department will use the Power to Choose website
and search available Utility Providers by ZIP code;
(II) The plan chosen will be the median cost per kWh
based on average price per kWh for the average monthly use of 1000
kWh of all available plans; and
(III) The actual Component Charges from the plan chosen
in effect no later than 60 days before the allowance will be effective
will be entered into the Model.
(E) The Department will notify the Owner contact in
CMTS of the new allowance and, if requested, provide the backup for
how the allowance was calculated. The owner will be provided a five
day period to review the Department's calculation and note any errors.
Only errors related to the physical characteristics of the building(s)
and utilities paid by the residents will be reconsidered; the utility
plan and Utility Provider selected by the Department and Component
Charges used in calculating the allowance will not be changed. During
this five day period, the owner also has the opportunity to submit
documentation and request use of any of the available Green Discounts.
(F) The allowance must be implemented for rent due
in all program Units thirty days after the Department notifies the
Owner of the allowance.
(4) HTC Buildings in which there are Units under an
MFDL program are considered HUD-Regulated buildings and the applicable
Utility Allowance for all rent restricted Units in the building is
the Utility Allowance calculated under the MFDL program. If the Department
is the awarding entity, no other utility method described in this
section can be used. If the Department is not the awarding jurisdiction,
Owners are required to obtain, annually, the Utility Allowance established
by the awarding jurisdiction, and to document all efforts to obtain
such allowance to evidence due diligence in the event that the jurisdiction
is nonresponsive. In such an event, provided that, sufficient evidence
of due diligence is demonstrated, the Department, in its sole discretion,
may allow for the use of the methods described in subsection (c)(3)(B),
(C), (D) or (E) of this section related to Methods to calculate and
establish its utility allowance..
(e) Acceptable Documentation. For the Methods where
utility specific information is required to calculate the allowance
(e.g., base charges, cost per unit of measure, taxes) Owners should
obtain documentation directly from the Utility Provider and/or Regulating
State Agency. Any Component Charges related to the utility that are
published by the Utility Provider and/or Regulating State Agency must
be included. In the case where a utility is billed to the Owner of
the building(s) and the Owner is billing residents through a third
party billing company, the Component Charges published by the Utility
Provider and not the third party billing company will be used.
(f) Changes in the Utility Allowance. An Owner may
not change Utility Allowance methods, start or stop charging residents
for a utility without prior written approval from the Department.
Example 614(5): A Housing Tax Credit Development has been paying for
water and sewer since the beginning of the Compliance Period. In year
eight, the Owner decides to require residents to pay for water and
sewer. Prior written approval from the Department is required. Any
such request must include the Utility Allowance Questionnaire found
on the Department's website and supporting documentation. Developments
may not start or stop charging residents for a utility during a lease
term.
(1) The Department will review all requests, with the
exception of the methodology prescribed in subsection (c)(3)(E) of
this section related to Methods, within 90 days of the receipt of
the request.
(2) If the Owner fails to post the notice to the residents
and simultaneously submit the request to the Department by the beginning
of the 90 day period, the Department's approval or denial will be
delayed for up to 90 days after Department notification. Example 614(6):
The Owner has chosen to calculate the electric portion of the Utility
Allowance using the written local estimate. The annual letter is dated
July 5, 2022, and the notice to the residents was posted in the leasing
office on July 5, 2022. However, the Owner failed to submit the request
to the Department for review until September 15, 2022. Although the
Notice to the Residents was dated the date of the letter from the
utility provider, the Department was not provided the full 90 days
for review. As a result, the allowance cannot be implemented by the
owner until approved by the Department.
(3) Effective dates. If the Owner uses the methodology
as described in subsection (c)(3)(A) of this section related to Methods,
no posting is required, and any changes to the allowance can be implemented
immediately, but must be implemented for rent due at least 90 days
after the change. For methodologies as described in subsection (c)(3)(B),
(C), (D) and (E) of this section related to Methods, the allowance
cannot be implemented until the estimate is submitted to the Department
and is made available to the residents by posting in a common area
of the leasing office at the Development. This action must be taken
by the beginning of the 90 day period in which the Owner intends to
implement the Utility Allowance. Nothing in this section prohibits
an Owner from reducing a resident's rent prior to the end of the 90
day period when the proposed allowance would result in a gross rent
issue.
Attached Graphic
(g) Requirements for Annual Review.
(1) RHS and HUD-Regulated Buildings. Owners must demonstrate
that the utility allowance has been reviewed annually and in accordance
with the RHS or HUD regulations.
(2) Buildings using the PHA Allowance. Owners are responsible
for periodically determining if the applicable PHA released an updated
schedule to ensure timely implementation. When the allowance changes
or a new allowance is made available by the PHA, it can be implemented
immediately, but must be implemented for rent due 90 days after the
PHA published effective date.
(3) Written Local Estimate, HUD Utility Model Schedule
and Energy Consumption Model. Owners must update the allowance once
a calendar year. The update and all back up documentation required
by the method must be submitted to the Department no later than October
1st of each year. However, Owners are encouraged to submit prior to
the deadline to ensure the Department has time to review. At the same
time the request is submitted to the Department, the Owner must post,
at the Development, the Utility Allowance estimate in a common area
of the leasing office where such notice is unobstructed and visible
in plain sight. The Department will review the request for compliance
with all applicable requirements and reasonableness. If, in comparison
to other approved Utility Allowances for properties of similar size,
construction and population in the same geographic area, the allowance
does not appear reasonable or appears understated, the Department
may require additional support and/or deny the request. With the exception
of MFDL developments, if an Owner fails to submit for annual review
during the calendar year, the Development's Utility Allowance will
default to the applicable PHA allowance. If the Development is located
in an area that does not have a PHA, the Development fails to have
a properly calculated Utility Allowance. The Utility Allowance for
MFDL Developments that fail to submit for annual review will be calculated
pursuant to subsection (d) of this section.
(4) Actual Use Method. Owners must update the allowance
once a calendar year. The update and all back up documentation required
by the method must be submitted to the Department no later than August
1st of each year. However, Owners are encouraged to submit prior to
the deadline to ensure the Department has time to review. With the
exception of MFDL developments, if an Owner fails to submit for annual
review during the calendar year, the Development's Utility Allowance
will default to the applicable PHA allowance. If the Development is
located in an area that does not have a PHA, the Development fails
to have a properly calculated Utility Allowance. The Utility Allowance
for MFDL Developments that fail to submit for annual review will be
calculated using the HUD Utility Model Schedule.
Cont'd... |
