The Moving To Work (MTW) program, authorized by section 204 of the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996, offers a limited number of housing authorities the opportunity to design and test innovative strategies for addressing the needs of their tenants and communities.
MTW agencies have the flexibility to find new approaches that accomplish three primary statutory goals:
- Reducing cost and achieving greater cost effectiveness in federal expenditures;
- Giving incentives to families with children where the head of household is working, is seeking work, or is preparing for work by participating in job training, educational programs, or programs that assist people to obtain employment and become economically self-sufficient; and
- Increasing housing choices for low-income families.
There are currently 80 housing authorities with MTW status.
39 original MTW agencies have agency-specific MTW agreements with HUD, detailing the flexibilities granted in order to meet program goals, and each have had their agreements extended through the end of 2028. Each year, the housing authority completes an annual plan, to be approved by HUD, and an annual report on the outcomes achieved. Congress authorized the expansion of the MTW program to 100 additional agencies in the 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act.
In January 2021, HUD announced the 31 agencies that have been selected for Cohort 1 of the MTW Expansion. This cohort is comprised of PHAs with 1,000 or fewer aggregate units of public housing and Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) units.
In May 2021, HUD announced the 10 public housing agencies (PHAs) that were selected for Cohort 2 of the MTW Expansion. This cohort will evaluate stepped and tiered rent policies.
HUD has indicated that the future third and fourth cohorts of the MTW Expansion will evaluate work requirements and landlord incentives.
CLPHA’s Membership Spotlight features the outstanding work and achievements of our member public housing authorities - the nation’s largest and most innovative PHAs. Based on interviews with PHA executives, these brief profiles spotlight our members’ initiatives to strengthen their communities and improve life outcomes for their residents. The Membership Spotlight is published in the newsletter, on clpha.org, and on our social media platforms.
In a few months, the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA) will bid farewell to an innovative, valued, and dedicated member who is a true asset to the public housing community. After nearly 30 years in the affordable housing industry and 11 years at the Oakland Housing Authority (OHA), OHA Executive Director Eric Johnson announced his plan to retire at the end of 2019. Johnson’s three decades of service to the affordable housing industry show his commitment to the individuals and families served by public housing authorities, as well as his enthusiasm for finding creative solutions to address the needs of low-income populations.
Johnson came to work in affordable housing from a completely different industry: Hollywood. In the 1980s Johnson worked as a location manager for various films, including Prizzi’s Honor and Turner and Hooch, but he sought a more meaningful career path. Johnson decided to accept a job in housing and rent stabilization with the City of West Hollywood, and through this career change he developed his passion for increasing housing opportunities for those who need them most. After several years at the City of West Hollywood, in 1996 he joined the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) in their resident services department.
During his tenure at HACLA, Johnson fulfilled a variety of roles in several departments, including serving as the head of the housing authority’s Housing Services Department, which included the property management, resident services, and capital improvements departments. He views his work under the Hope VI program in Los Angeles’ Boyle Heights neighborhood simultaneously as one of his greatest successes and challenges at HACLA – though the legal issues and negotiations with the community proved difficult and drawn-out, Johnson is proud of the project’s result and the stakeholders’ ability to find common ground in the end. He does regret that HACLA was unable to convince HUD at the time to build more units at increased density at the sites.
In 2008, Johnson accepted the role of deputy executive director at OHA, a move he also remembers being a significant career challenge because it was difficult for him to leave the Los Angeles communities he loved behind. However, upon moving to Oakland he quickly employed the negotiation skills he displayed during the Boyle Heights project in settling a legal battle between OHA and the City of Oakland. In the decade since, OHA’s relationship with the City has vastly improved, a testament to Johnson’s talents of bringing stakeholders together. Johnson demonstrated strong leadership in this deputy role, and in 2010 he was appointed OHA’s executive director.
At OHA, Johnson has deftly leveraged the housing authority’s Moving to Work (MTW) status to collaborate with local partners around the common goal of serving low-income individuals and families. Johnson is proud of the numerous programs developed under his tenure that link the housing authority’s capacity and resident services with existing federal, state, and local programs and improve life outcomes for various populations of low-income Oaklanders. Using a data sharing agreement between OHA and the local school district, the housing authority has been playing a role in increasing school attendance and parent engagement for their youngest residents.
In 2015, Johnson helped bring a $2.7 million HUD Jobs Plus grant to OHA, funding the housing authority’s successful jobs training and placement program. Another OHA program, in partnership with the Alameda County Social Services Agency, is using the foundation of the California Work Opportunities and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program to provide short-term housing assistance and Section 8 waitlist preference to families experiencing homelessness. Another program offers sponsor-based wraparound services to 125 families, including 25 foster youth exiting the juvenile justice system. Johnson says that without MTW flexibility, OHA programs like these that improve life outcomes for children, foster youth, families experiencing homelessness, and other populations needing targeted housing services would not be possible.
When asked about the public housing industry’s greatest needs, Johnson stressed that housing authorities need to seek diverse sources of funding and become much less dependent on federal, state, and local monthly federal assistance payments. Another area of great need, and of opportunity, that Johnson sees is the development of workforce housing for households making 60 to 120 percent of Area Median Income (AMI). Johnson believes that housing authorities could do more to address the housing needs of people who do not qualify for traditional housing assistance, yet cannot afford market-rate housing. “If we want to be seen as a protected and valuable industry, we need to serve these people [in the middle],” says Johnson. He adds that by addressing the workforce housing population, the public housing industry can build more support from communities and elected officials.
Johnson was reluctant to position himself as an expert when asked if he had any advice for public housing professionals, but he observed that his experience moving between different skill sets and departments at HACLA, including resident services, development, and capital improvement, and becoming knowledgeable in as many areas as possible, helped him to understand the industry from several angles. He also emphasized the importance of always remembering who public housing authorities serve. “Affordable housing is not about the housing, it’s about the people who live in the housing, and their life outcomes,” he said. “Never forget this.”
In OHA’s press release announcing his retirement, Greg Hartwig, Chair of the housing authority’s Board of Commissioners, praised Johnson’s successful career at OHA and his passion for improving residents’ life outcomes: “Eric has exceeded our highest expectations and has been a pleasure to work with… He has always kept the welfare of our residents and the need to expand our reach to serve even more people as his highest priority; adding new life-enhancing services for our residents and significant numbers of new affordable housing units. His leadership in mitigating the effects of the worst rent and housing crisis in Oakland history has been exceptional. In addition, Eric has positioned OHA for long term success in an era of uncertain government funding and has won both local and national recognition. He will be dearly missed by all of us.”
Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf also praised Johnson’s leadership and unwavering focus on resident wellbeing: “Oakland city leaders have benefited immensely from Eric’s leadership at the Housing Authority, and many more of our vulnerable residents and families enjoy a sense of housing security thanks to his personal mission to make federally funded programs work better for those who most rely on them. As a member of the city’s Housing Cabinet, Eric approached his role with a refreshing blend of technical expertise and humanity. During the worst affordable housing crisis in a generation, Eric has created initiatives which serve as a model for the region, and consistently fought to break down silos in the human service sector that have historically kept communities from ending cycles of poverty. My colleagues and I will miss him dearly and wish him well in all his future endeavors.”
When asked about his retirement plans, Johnson deadpanned that he would “float in the pool” at his house in Palm Springs. After three decades of exceptional, innovative service to the affordable housing industry and many years of engaged CLPHA membership, CLPHA wishes Johnson a happy and relaxed retirement.
Image captions (from top to bottom, left to right): Johnson with children at Lockwood Gardens “School’s Out Block Party;” "Never give this man a mic" - Johnson addresses OHA Employees at their annual all-staff retreat; Ceasar Chavez Day at HACLA's old Aliso Village with Ethel Kennedy and the HOPE VI team; 2018 groundbreaking event for a VASH project-based Section 8 project currently under construction; With Congresswoman Barbara Lee and HUD Secretary Julian Castro after a meeting with Tech Industry Leaders to discuss the housing crisis in the Bay Area; With Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and others cutting the ribbon at the Grand Opening of OHA’s new Parents And Children Together (PACT) site, expanding the number of units for this reunification/re-entry program
DATE: Tuesday, May 14, 2019
TIME: 1:30-3:00pm EST
REGISTER: Click here to register
QUESTIONS: nbarrett@clpha.org
The MTW Collaborative, which works on behalf of the current 39 Moving to Work (MTW) agencies, and the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities (CLPHA) will be hosting a webinar on MTW specifically for larger-sized PHAs who are interested in applying to the program under Cohort 2, which will study rent reform policies.
During the webinar you will have the opportunity to engage with and learn from current MTW agencies with many years of valuable experience operating under MTW. These agencies are widely recognized as experts and innovators in their local communities and at the national level. Our panelists will focus on the advantages and benefits of MTW, potential challenges, the application process, and other important topics.
If you are a larger PHA who is considering applying to MTW under Cohort 2, we highly encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to learn more about the program.
WHEN:
May 14, 2019, 1:30-3:00pm EST
PANELISTS
Rick Gentry, CEO - San Diego Housing Commission
Michael Johnston, Executive Director - Cambridge Housing Authority
David Northern, CEO - Housing Authority of Champaign County
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact Nicole Barrett, nbarrett@clpha.org
Executives and staff from the 39 public housing authorities that participate in the Moving to Work (MTW) Demonstration program gathered in Washington, D.C., this week for the 2019 MTW Conference, Bringing Innovation Home. The meeting featured learning tracks focused on improving resident outcomes, improving the quality and quantity of affordable housing, peer-learning among executives, and opportunities for PHA executives who are new to MTW or considering whether to apply for the next cohort to learn more about the program and application process.
The conference kicked off with the launch of the MTW Collaborative, a new organization created to represent existing and future MTW PHAs and advocate for MTW. Hunter Kurtz, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian Housing at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, offered keynote remarks on the first day of the convening. “Affordable housing is not one-sized fits all...allowing local flexibility is key to providing additional affordable housing across the country,” said Kurtz.
Panel sessions and roundtable discussions enabled practitioners at all levels to share innovative ideas, best practices, research findings, and practical guidance for using MTW flexibilities to meet residents’ needs. Speakers covered: affordable housing accreditation, resident engagement and self-sufficiency, cross-sector collaborations, evaluations, staffing, housing mobility, intertwining MTW flexibility with the Rental Assistance Demonstration program, and more.
During the closing panel of the conference, CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman congratulated attendees on effectively implementing the full range of MTW flexibilities to best serve their residents. She also called on practitioners, the innovators in the field, to think about how their local solutions can be scaled up to support the whole public housing portfolio.
Conference materials are on the HAI Group website.
March 26, 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM ET
Public Housing Authorities eligible to apply to MTW Cohort 2 are invited to attend HUD’s free webinar tomorrow at 3:00 PM ET.
On March 14, HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing released a notice offering eligible PHAs the opportunity to apply for admission to the MTW program, as the second cohort under the expansion process.
Following recommendations from the MTW Research Advisory Committee, the second cohort will be required to study alternative rent reform policies designed to increase resident self-sufficiency and reduce PHA administrative burdens. Per the notice, the second cohort will consist exclusively of mid/large sized agencies, with 1,001 units or more of combined public and HCV housing. The alternative rent policies will be limited to non-elderly, non-disabled households, so eligible agencies must have 1,000 or more existing non-elderly, non-disabled public housing and/or HCV households within their units.
HUD has provided the following dial-in information:
The conference begins at 3:00 PM Eastern Time on March 26, 2019; you may join the conference 10 minutes prior.
Step 1: Dial into the conference.
Dial-in: 1-877-369-5243 or 1-617-668-3633
Access Code: 0745060##
Need an international dial-in number?
Step 2: Join the conference on your computer.
Entry Link: http://ems8.intellor.com/login/813496
When you access the entry link above, you will be provided a choice - to install the WebEx plug-in for your preferred browser or to join the web conference using a temporary path. Either option is acceptable.
On March 14, HUD’s Office of Public and Indian Housing released a notice offering eligible PHAs the opportunity to apply for admission to the MTW program, as the second cohort under the expansion process.
Per the 2016 MTW Expansion statute, eligible PHAs must be high performing, meet certain size and selection requirements, and represent geographic diversity across the country. Additionally, the expansion of MTW includes a significant research and evaluation component. Housing agencies will be added to the MTW demonstration as part of a cohort, and each cohort will be directed to enact a specific policy change subject to evaluation by HUD. HUD has created a research advisory committee, including members of HUD, housing experts, and existing MTW agencies, to determine which policy changes will be enacted and evaluated.
Following recommendations from the MTW Research Advisory Committee, the second cohort will be required to study alternative rent reform policies designed to increase resident self-sufficiency and reduce PHA administrative burdens. Per the notice, the second cohort will consist exclusively of mid/large sized agencies, with 1,001 units or more of combined public and HCV housing. The alternative rent policies will be limited to non-elderly, non-disabled households, so eligible agencies must have 1,000 or more existing non-elderly, non-disabled public housing and/or HCV households within their units.
Per the notice, agencies will be able to select one of four proposed alternative rent policies listed below, including the option of creating their own policy:
- MTW Test Rent #1 – Tiered Rent (Income-Based): Households are grouped by income into tiers.
- MTW Test Rent #2 – Stepped Rent: 5% Step (Decoupled from Income): Rents are increased annually (or, in the HCV program, the participant contribution is increased) according to a fixed schedule of 5% of Fair Market Rent (FMR) by bedroom size.
- MTW Test Rent #3 – Stepped Rent: 3% Step (Decoupled from Income): Rents are increased annually (or, in the HCV program, the participant contribution is increased) according to a fixed schedule of 3% of Fair Market Rent (FMR) by bedroom size.
- MTW Test Rent #4 – PHA Proposed Alternative Tiered/Stepped Rent: PHAs may propose a tiered or stepped rent that is different from the three HUD test rent policies above.
Agencies interested in applying to the second cohort will be chosen through a two-step selection process that is outlined in the Notice. PHAs selected will be required to forgo the ability to utilize certain rent reform MTW waivers/activities outside of those within the scope of the evaluation, these waivers are listed in the Notice. Additionally, PHAs selected may not pursue RAD conversions to Project-Based Rental Assistance during the evaluation time period, but can still pursue Project-Based Voucher conversions.
Agencies who are interested in applying must submit a letter of interest by June 12, 2019. To view the full notice, click here.
Please contact MTW Program Manager Nicole Barrett at nbarrett@clpha.org with any questions.