(a) PHA responsibility for reexamination and verification.

(1) The PHA must conduct a reexamination of family income and composition at least annually.

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(3) of this section, the PHA must obtain and document in the tenant file third-party verification of the following factors, or must document in the tenant file why third-party verification was not available:

(i) Reported family annual income;

(ii) The value of assets;

(iii) Expenses related to deductions from annual income; and

(iv) Other factors that affect the determination of adjusted income.

(3) For a family with net assets equal to or less than $5,000, a PHA may accept a family's declaration that it has net assets equal to or less than $5,000, without taking additional steps to verify the accuracy of the declaration.

(i) The declaration must state the amount of income the family expects to receive from such assets; this amount must be included in the family's income.

(ii) A PHA must obtain third-party verification of all family assets every 3 years.

(b) Streamlined income determination—

(1) General. A PHA may elect to apply a streamlined income determination to families receiving fixed income as described in paragraph (b)(3) of this section.

(2) Definition of “fixed income”. For purposes of this section, “fixed income” means periodic payments at reasonably predictable levels from one or more of the following sources:

(i) Social Security, Supplemental Security Income, Supplemental Disability Insurance.

(ii) Federal, state, local, or private pension plans.

(iii) Annuities or other retirement benefit programs, insurance policies, disability or death benefits, or other similar types of periodic receipts.

(iv) Any other source of income subject to adjustment by a verifiable COLA or current rate of interest.

(3) Method of streamlined income determination. A PHA using the streamlined income determination must adjust a family's income according to the percentage of a family's unadjusted income that is from fixed income.

(i) When 90 percent or more of a family's unadjusted income consists of fixed income, PHAs using streamlined income determinations must apply a COLA or COLAs to the family's fixed-income sources, provided that the family certifies both that 90 percent or more of their unadjusted income is fixed income and that their sources of fixed income have not changed from the previous year. For non-fixed income, the PHA is not required to make adjustments pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section.

(ii) When less than 90 percent of a family's unadjusted income consists of fixed income, PHAs using streamlined income determinations must apply a COLA to each of the family's sources of fixed income individually. The PHA must determine all other income pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section.

(4) COLA rate applied by PHAs. PHAs using streamlined income determinations must adjust a family's fixed income using a COLA or current interest rate that applies to each specific source of fixed income and is available from a public source or through tenant-provided, third-party-generated documentation. If no public verification or tenant-provided documentation is available, then the owner must obtain third-party verification of the income amounts in order to calculate the change in income for the source.

(5) Triennial verification. For any income determined pursuant to a streamlined income determination, a PHA must obtain third-party verification of all income amounts every 3 years.

(c) Interim reexaminations.

(1) At any time, the PHA may conduct an interim reexamination of family income and composition.

(2) At any time, the family may request an interim determination of family income or composition because of any changes since the last determination. The PHA must make the interim determination within a reasonable time after the family request.

(3) Interim examinations must be conducted in accordance with policies in the PHA administrative plan.

(d) Family reporting of change. The PHA must adopt policies prescribing when and under what conditions the family must report a change in family income or composition.

(e) Effective date of reexamination.

(1) The PHA must adopt policies prescribing how to determine the effective date of a change in the housing assistance payment resulting from an interim redetermination.

(2) At the effective date of a regular or interim reexamination, the PHA must make appropriate adjustments in the housing assistance payment in accordance with §982.505.

(f) Accuracy of family income data. The PHA must establish procedures that are appropriate and necessary to assure that income data provided by applicant or participant families is complete and accurate.

(g) Execution of release and consent.

(1) As a condition of admission to or continued assistance under the program, the PHA shall require the family head, and such other family members as the PHA designates, to execute a HUD-approved release and consent form (including any release and consent as required under §5.230 of this title) authorizing any depository or private source of income, or any Federal, State or local agency, to furnish or release to the PHA or HUD such information as the PHA or HUD determines to be necessary.

(2) The PHA and HUD must limit the use or disclosure of information obtained from a family or from another source pursuant to this release and consent to purposes directly in connection with administration of the program.

(Information collection requirements contained in this section have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 2577-0169.)

[63 FR 23861, Apr. 30, 1998, as amended at 64 FR 13057, Mar. 16, 1999; 64 FR 26649, May 14, 1999; 64 FR 56915, Oct. 21, 1999; 65 FR 16822, Mar. 30, 2000; 80 FR 8247, Feb. 17, 2015; 81 FR 12376, Mar. 8, 2016; 82 FR 58341, Dec. 12, 2017; 85 FR 27139, May 7, 2020]