(a) In order for a housing facility or community to qualify as housing for persons 55 years of age or older, it must be able to produce, in response to a complaint filed under this title, verification of compliance with §100.305 through reliable surveys and affidavits.

(b) A facility or community shall, within 180 days of the effective date of this rule, develop procedures for routinely determining the occupancy of each unit, including the identification of whether at least one occupant of each unit is 55 years of age or older. Such procedures may be part of a normal leasing or purchasing arrangement.

(c) The procedures described in paragraph (b) of this section must provide for regular updates, through surveys or other means, of the initial information supplied by the occupants of the housing facility or community. Such updates must take place at least once every two years. A survey may include information regarding whether any units are occupied by persons described in paragraphs (e)(1), (e)(3), and (e)(4) of §100.305.

(d) Any of the following documents are considered reliable documentation of the age of the occupants of the housing facility or community:

(1) Driver's license;

(2) Birth certificate;

(3) Passport;

(4) Immigration card;

(5) Military identification;

(6) Any other state, local, national, or international official documents containing a birth date of comparable reliability; or

(7) A certification in a lease, application, affidavit, or other document signed by any member of the household age 18 or older asserting that at least one person in the unit is 55 years of age or older.

(e) A facility or community shall consider any one of the forms of verification identified above as adequate for verification of age, provided that it contains specific information about current age or date of birth.

(f) The housing facility or community must establish and maintain appropriate policies to require that occupants comply with the age verification procedures required by this section.

(g) If the occupants of a particular dwelling unit refuse to comply with the age verification procedures, the housing facility or community may, if it has sufficient evidence, consider the unit to be occupied by at least one person 55 years of age or older. Such evidence may include:

(1) Government records or documents, such as a local household census;

(2) Prior forms or applications; or

(3) A statement from an individual who has personal knowledge of the age of the occupants. The individual's statement must set forth the basis for such knowledge and be signed under the penalty of perjury.

(h) Surveys and verification procedures which comply with the requirements of this section shall be admissible in administrative and judicial proceedings for the purpose of verifying occupancy.

(i) A summary of occupancy surveys shall be available for inspection upon reasonable notice and request by any person.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 2529-0046)

[64 FR 16330, Apr. 2, 1999]