Street roots
May 25, 2012
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New federal guidelines for low-
income housing support cut out
explicit tenant protections
regarding bed bug infestations
BY A M A N D A WALDROUPE
S T A F F W R IT E R
he Department of Housing and Urban
Development’s new landlord
guidelines for dealing with bed bug
infestations have some tenant-rights
P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F O R K IN
B ed bugs, shown here craw ling on a mattress, have become widespread in recent years, sp a n n in g the United States. They are the subject o f
advocates concerned that renters could be
changes in federal guidelines fo r Section 8 vouchers that elim inate explicit protections to low-income tenants.
on the hook for costly exterminations.
The new guidelines were released in late
April, replacing its prior notice that had
been published in August.
a treatment. It explicitly stated that owners
effort.” In other parts of the notice, owners
properties - including building owners,
“It’s highly unusual for H U D to issue a
“may not deny tenancy to a potential
were also explicitly prohibited from
landlords, property management
notice and then in an extremely short
resident on the basis of the tenant having
charging
tenants
the
cost
of
treating
a
bed
companies, and tenants.
period of time —
experienced a prior
bug infestation.
“These are like guidance. It’s not as
eight months —
bed bug infestation.”
The notice released in late April replaces
powerful and as legal as regulations, but it’s
change it,” says Ed
It also had a
the majority of the language from the
the next best thing,” Gramlich says.
Gramlich, the
Everybody taow s that early “Tenant’s Rights and August notice. Most notably, it deletes the
The notice only applies to project-based
regulatory director
response and appropriate
Responsibilities”
“Tenants Rights and Responsibilities”
Section 8 subsidized housing — housing
for the National Low
section. Among
section. The few references the notice
where the Section 8 voucher is tied to the
eoairanaleation between the
Income Housing
other things, it
housing unit and cannot follow the voucher
makes to tenants and what they can expect
landlord and the tenant is
Coalition, a national
recipient — and multifamily insured and
strongly urged
from their landlords is a clear direction to
c r s lie a l to e o n t r o llin p a n d
advocacy
tenants to report
tenants to “fully cooperate with the
assisted properties.
T
o r g a n iz a t io n e y e in g
the notice change.
b e d
time yon have a deterrent tor
tenants to report, it's going to
have a negative Impact.”
in f e s t a t i o n s a s s o o n
(la n d lo r d ’s ) e ffo r t s to id e n tify a n d a d d r e s s
as they knew of one.
infestations.”
It also advised
“Usually, H U D is
tenants that they
very careful about
could expect
putting out notices.”
treatments to start
The August notice
M U L T N O M A H C O U N T Y .. B E D B U G T A S K
within five days,
went into detail
would not need to
about bed bug
move for treatments
infestations and the
to happen, and that
variety of treatment
“the tenant will not be expected to
methods, and what
contribute to the cost of the treatment
tenants could expect from landlords during
j
Added to the notice is a vague sentence
concerning tenant’s advocates the most,
which they say opens the door to expecting
tenants to pay for the cost of bed bug
treatments: “(landlords’) requests for
tenants to pay the costs of infestation
treatment must be in accordance with the
provision for tenant payment of damages.”
Notices give broad guidance and rules for
people associated with H U D subsidized
L e e Jones, a H U D
s p o k e s p e rs o n , sa ys
there are “som e changes in tone, c e rta in ly ”
in the new notice, “but it really did not see
any change in the rights of responsibilities
of residents.”
He said the notice was revised after
concerns had been brought to H U D by
parties he would not name. He said part of
the reason the notice was revised was to
emphasize the necessity for tenants to
See BU GGED , page 7
tjr
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