VAWA Emergency Transfer Policy
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Page 1 of 6 Revised 7/1/20202021 Housing and Redevelopment Division Emergency Transfer Plan for Victims of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking Public Housing Program Emergency Transfers The City of Chandler Housing and Redevelopment Division (COCHRD) is concerned about the safety of its tenants, and such concern extends to tenants who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. In accordance with the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), COCHRD allows tenants who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking to request an emergency transfer from the tenant’s current unit to another unit. The ability to request a transfer is available regardless of sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation. The ability of COCHRD to honor such request for tenants currently receiving assistance, however, may depend upon a preliminary determination that the tenant is or has been a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and on whether COCHRD has another dwelling unit that is available and is safe to offer the tenant for temporary or more permanent occupancy. This plan identifies tenants who are eligible for an emergency transfer, the documentation needed to request an emergency transfer, confidentiality protections, how an emergency transfer may occur, and guidance to tenants on safety and security. This plan is based on a model emergency transfer plan published by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the federal agency that oversees that the public housing and housing choice voucher (HCV) programs are in compliance with VAWA. Eligibility for Emergency Transfers A tenant who is a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, as provided in HUD’s regulations at 24 CFR part 5, subpart L, is eligible for an emergency transfer if the tenant reasonably believes that there is a threat of imminent harm from further violence if the tenant remains within the same unit. If the tenant is a victim of sexual assault, the tenant may also be eligible to transfer if the sexual assault occurred on the premises within the 90-calendar- day period preceding a request for an emergency transfer. A tenant requesting an emergency transfer must expressly request the transfer in accordance with the procedures described in this plan. Tenants who are not in good standing may still request an emergency transfer if they meet the eligibility requirements in this section. Emergency Transfer Request Documentation To request an emergency transfer, the tenant shall notify the PHA’s management office and submit a written request for a transfer to any PHA office. The PHA will provide reasonable accommodations to this policy for individuals with disabilities. The tenant’s written request for an emergency transfer should include either: Attachment X Page 2 of 6 Revised 7/1/20202021 1. A statement expressing that the tenant reasonably believes that there is a threat of imminent harm from further violence if the tenant were to remain in the same dwelling unit assisted under the PHA’s program; OR 2. A statement that the tenant was a sexual assault victim and that the sexual assault occurred on the premises during the 90-calendar-day period preceding the tenant’s request for an emergency transfer. Confidentiality The PHA will keep confidential any information that the tenant submits in requesting an emergency transfer, and information about the emergency transfer, unless the tenant gives the PHA written permission to release the information on a time-limited basis, or disclosure of the information is required by law or required for use in an eviction proceeding or hearing regarding termination of assistance from the covered program. This includes keeping confidential the new location of the dwelling unit of the tenant, if one is provided, from the person or persons that committed an act of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking against the tenant. See the Notice of Occupancy Rights under the Violence against Women Act for All Tenants for more information about the PHA’s responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of information related to incidents of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. Emergency Transfer Timing and Availability The PHA cannot guarantee that a transfer request will be approved or how long it will take to process a transfer request. The PHA will, however, act as quickly as possible to move a tenant who is a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking to another unit, subject to availability and safety of a unit. If a tenant reasonably believes a proposed transfer would not be safe, the tenant may request a transfer to a different unit. If a unit is available, the transferred tenant must agree to abide by the terms and conditions that govern occupancy in the unit to which the tenant has been transferred. The PHA may be unable to transfer a tenant to a particular unit if the tenant has not or cannot establish eligibility for that unit. If the PHA has no safe and available units for which a tenant who needs an emergency transfer is eligible, the PHA will assist the tenant in identifying other housing providers who may have safe and available units to which the tenant could move. At the tenant’s request, the PHA will also assist tenants in contacting the local organizations offering assistance to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking that are attached to this plan. Emergency Transfers: Public Housing (PH) Program If you are a public housing resident and request an emergency transfer as described in this plan, the PHA will attempt to assist you in moving to a safe unit quickly. The PHA will make exceptions as required to policies restricting moves. Emergency transfers for which you are not required to apply for assistance include the following: Public housing unit in a different development Public housing unit in the same development, if you determine that the unit is safe At your request, the PHA will refer you to organizations that may be able to further assist you. You may also request an emergency transfer to the following programs for which you are required to apply for assistance: HCV tenant-based program HCV project-based assistance Page 3 of 6 Revised 7/1/20202021 Other programs administered by the PHA (such as state housing programs) Emergency transfers will not take priority over waiting list admissions for these types of assistance. At your request, the PHA will refer you to organizations that may be able to further assist you. Safety and Security of Tenants Pending processing of the transfer and the actual transfer, if it is approved and occurs, the tenant is urged to take all reasonable precautions to be safe. Tenants who are or have been victims of domestic violence are encouraged to contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or a local domestic violence shelter, for assistance in creating a safety plan. For persons with hearing impairments, that hotline can be accessed by calling 1-800-787-3224 (TTY). Tenants who have been victims of sexual assault may call the Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network’s National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE, or visit the online hotline at https://ohl.rainn.org/online/. Tenants who are or have been victims of stalking seeking help may visit the National Center for Victims of Crime’s Stalking Resource Center at https://www.victimsofcrime.org/our-programs/stalking-resource-center. Form HUD 5383 Page 4 of 6 Revised 7/1/20202021 EMERGENCY TRANSFER U.S. Department of Housing OMB Approval No. 2577-0286 REQUEST FOR CERTAIN and Urban Development Exp. 06/30/2017 VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, DATING VIOLENCE, SEXUAL ASSAULT, OR STALKING Purpose of Form: If you are a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and you are seeking an emergency transfer, you may use this form to request an emergency transfer and certify that you meet the requirements of eligibility for an emergency transfer under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). Although the statutory name references women, VAWA rights and protections apply to all victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault or stalking. Using this form does not necessarily mean that you will receive an emergency transfer. See your housing provider’s emergency transfer plan for more information about the availability of emergency transfers. The requirements you must meet are: (1) You are a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. If your housing provider does not already have documentation that you are a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, your housing provider may ask you for such documentation. In response, you may submit Form HUD-5382, or any one of the other types of documentation listed on that Form. (2) You expressly request the emergency transfer. Submission of this form confirms that you have expressly requested a transfer. Your housing provider may choose to require that you submit this form, or may accept another written or oral request. Please see your housing provider’s emergency transfer plan for more details. (3) You reasonably believe you are threatened with imminent harm from further violence if you remain in your current unit. This means you have a reason to fear that if you do not receive a transfer you would suffer violence in the very near future. OR You are a victim of sexual assault and the assault occurred on the premises during the 90- calendar-day period before you request a transfer. If you are a victim of sexual assault, then in addition to qualifying for an emergency transfer because you reasonably believe you are threatened with imminent harm from further violence if you remain in your unit, you may qualify for an emergency transfer if the sexual assault occurred on the premises of the property from which you are seeking your transfer, and that assault happened within the 90-calendar-day period before you submit this form or otherwise expressly request the transfer. Submission of Documentation: If you have third-party documentation that demonstrates why you are eligible for an emergency transfer, you should submit that documentation to your housing provider if it is safe for you to do so. Examples of third party documentation include, but are not limited to: a letter or other documentation from a victim service provider, social worker, legal assistance provider, pastoral counselor, mental health provider, or other professional from whom you have sought assistance; a current restraining order; a recent court order or other court records; a law enforcement report or records; communication records from the perpetrator of the violence or family members or friends of the perpetrator of the violence, including emails, voicemails, text messages, and social media posts. Form HUD 5383 Page 5 of 6 Revised 7/1/20202021 Confidentiality: All information provided to your housing provider concerning the incident(s) of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, and concerning your request for an emergency transfer shall be kept confidential. Such details shall not be entered into any shared database. Employees of your housing provider are not to have access to these details unless to grant or deny VAWA protections or an emergency transfer to you. Such employees may not disclose this information to any other entity or individual, except to the extent that disclosure is: (i) consented to by you in writing in a time-limited release; (ii) required for use in an eviction proceeding or hearing regarding termination of assistance; or (iii) otherwise required by applicable law. Form HUD 5383 Page 6 of 6 Revised 7/1/20202021 TO BE COMPLETED BY OR ON BEHALF OF THE PERSON REQUESTING A TRANSFER 1. Name of victim requesting an emergency transfer: ______________________________________________________________ 2. Your name (if different from victim’s) ____________________________________________________________________________ 3. Name(s) of other family member(s) listed on the lease: __________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4. Name(s) of other family member(s) who would transfer with the victim: _________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5. Address of location from which the victim seeks to transfer: _____________________________________________________ 6. Address or phone number for contacting the victim: _____________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 7. Name of the accused perpetrator (if known and can be safely disclosed):________________________________________ 8. Relationship of the accused perpetrator to the victim: ___________________________________________________________ 9. Date(s), Time(s) and location(s) of incident(s): ____________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 10. Is the person requesting the transfer a victim of a sexual assault that occurred in the past 90 days on the premises of the property from which the victim is seeking a transfer? _____ If Yes,, skip question 11. If no, fill out question 11. 11. Describe why the victim believes they are threatened with imminent harm from further violence if they remain in their current unit. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 12. If voluntarily provided, list any third-party documentation you are providing along with this notice: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ This is to certify that the information provided on this form is true and correct to the best of my knowledge, and that the individual named above in Item 1 meets the requirement laid out on this form for an emergency transfer. I acknowledge that submission of false information could jeopardize program eligibility and could be the basis for denial of admission, termination of assistance, or eviction. Signature _______________________________________________Signed on (Date) __________________________