WESTFIELD – A bill signed this week by Gov. Deval L. Patrick strengthening the governance structure of local housing authorities throughout the Commonwealth has received rave reviews from legislative leadership but raised questions from the local housing authorities themselves.
Two of the largest proponents of An Act Relative to Local Housing Authorities include the leaders of both houses on Beacon Hill, Speaker Robert DeLeo (D-Winthrop) and outgoing Senate President Therese Murray (D-Plymouth), with DeLeo referring to the legislation as “a crucial step to helping families across the Commonwealth enjoy safe and fulfilling lives.”
Murray, who will be replaced by Sen. Stanley Rosenberg (D-Amherst) as Senate President this fall, said the bill “strengthens accountability, increases oversight and encourages innovation in public housing across the state.”
At the local level, many regional housing authorities are still curious how the bill will affect them as it promises to provide the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) with “tools necessary to monitor LHAs operations and hold them accountable”, while increasing “efficiencies and economies of scale for delivery of services to tenants and staffing and assistance in the field.”
The sprawling bill also looks to “incentivize” LHAs to create innovative practices to improve the lives of residents through a “performance-based monitoring program” to provide uniform assessment standards for evaluating LHA operations.
New guidelines for designating a LHA as “chronically poor performing” have also been created, along with the position of Chief Administrative and Financial Officer (CAFO) to oversee troubled LHAs.
The bill also would establish capital assistance teams to allow LHAs to work collaboratively and provide capital, maintenance and repair planning and technical assistance to LHAs.
Undersecretary Aaron Gornstein, when asked of how many LHAs are classified as “chronically underperforming”, he replied that the department doesn’t use that definition now.
“The housing authorities have been working very effectively in serving their tenants and improving their properties,” he said. “But there are some housing authories that have faced difficulties.”
Gornstein said that the legislation provides a tool for the DHCD to “step in when necessary” and added that Patrick has played a “leading role” in public housing revampment, referencing an attempt last fall to form six regional housing authorities which the legislature shot down.
“(The bill) was a melding of different ideas, from the Governor, the legislature and stakeholder groups such as the local housing authorities,” said Gornstein, who called the legislature’s final proposal a “comprehensive” bill.
Gornstein also referenced some of the incentives written into the bill for LHAs, include a 20 percent increase in their current subsidy, as well as “more flexibility around some of the regulations.”
“The other provisions are really just best practices and provisions that will be implemented to encourage more accountability and financial oversight, and greater resident involvement,” he said. “There’s a requirement going forward for one member of a housing authority’s Board of Commissioners to be a resident of state public housing.”
Gornstein said the bill will require LHA board members to undergo training and calls for annual audits and plans for each individual LHA.
“We’re going to be providing greater efficiencies for capital improvements to the properties, so smaller authorities will be able to join together,” he said.
Three regional capital assistance teams will be set up through the legislation, which Gornstein said will lead to better operation of LHAs statewide in the form of more technical assistance for smaller authorities.
“It’s a fair bill,” said Daniel Kelley, executive director of the Westfield Housing Authority, who has also overseen the Housing Authority in the town of Southwick for a little over a year following a retirement there. “It makes sweeping changes to oversight but it also provides initiative strategies for LHAs and capital improvement plans.”
“Right now, we’ve got about seven modernization projects going on for our facilities. The average age is about 40 years for most of our projects, so we’re getting many projects done that need it,” Kelley said, referencing door replacements, adding elevators, and making other overhauls at some of the city’s developments. “The money will be very beneficial, because these projects are needed.”
While increased transparency is a good thing, Kelley said he is weary of an additional group overseeing his duties.
“DHCD wants review over executive director’s contracts, and those are things that my board approves. We send them down to DHCD,” he said. “I report to my board of directors. They approve my contract, set policy. I don’t know if I want another group coming in telling us we have to do it this way or that way. We’ve been doing it this way since 1948.”
Regarding the increased scrutiny that will be placed on LHAs statewide, Kelley said that, while LHAs like Westfield that receive federal funds are audited every year, smaller LHAs will now be forced to open up the books.
While a mandate has been implementated forcing LHAs to make room on their boards for a tenant of their developments, Kelley said Westfield has already been doing that for quite some time.
“I’ve been here for 24 years, and I’ll bet we’ve had a Tenant President on-board every year that I’ve been here,” he said. “We’ve always gone on the premise that we wanted a tenant. The current tenant has been on for about seven or eight years.”
The city of Westfield owns approximately 515 public housing unit. Kelley said the city’s total public housing portfolio is about 815 units.
“280 units are Section 8 federal housing. We don’t own any federal housing, but we do subsidize Section 8 vouchers,” he said. “I know when I worked in Holyoke back 30 years ago, they had maybe 2,500 units. But we’re considered a large housing authority.”
