Long-term problems with local housing authority management — including excessive wait times for potential residents, lack of housing maintenance, and a need for greater oversight — are about to be addressed with state reforms years in the making.
The reforms, included in a new law called Ch. 235, will begin rolling out this summer and fall. An overhaul to the system has been long in coming, but gained momentum after it came to light in 2012 that then-Chelsea Housing Authority chief Michael McLaughlin had pocketed twice his $150,000 salary. The scandal revealed a lack of oversight and support of the local authorities responsible for housing about 300,000 elderly, disabled, and low-income people in Massachusetts.
Former Gov. Deval Patrick proposed consolidating the state’s 240 local housing authorities into six regional bodies, but the idea withered in the face of strong resistance. Following that, a group of lawmakers, regulators and housing professionals organized by the Massachusetts chapter of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO) worked together to come up a plan for leaving local authorities intact but providing more resources and oversight.
Two years later, legislators passed the Local Housing Authority Act of 2014. Today the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development is making headway on implementing the changes, but public housing officials say progress has slowed since Gov. Charlie Baker took office in January.
When a new administration takes over on Beacon Hill, it can take a while for new leaders to get a handle on all of the state’s programs and decide what to do with them.
“That’s the apprehension — that the governor will have a different idea of how he would like this all to go,” said Dan Finn, executive director of the Greenfield Housing Authority, who also serves on NAHRO’s board of directors. Speaking of the planned reforms, Finn said, “Some of it will happen sooner than others.”
There’s also the matter of Baker’s pledge to eliminate 5,000 state positions as a way to save money in the new budget beginning July 1. The governor created an early retirement program that is expected to entice thousands of employees. How the job reductions will impact the housing department, or any other state office, remains unclear.
“It looks like there’s going to be some issues with staffing at DHCD, so we’ll watch that,” said NAHRO Executive Director Thomas Connelly. Despite that uncertainty, he said he’s excited to see progress. “It’s the biggest change to the state housing authorities in 40 years, so it’ll take some time.”
Here’s an overview of some of the biggest reforms that will affect local housing authorities and their residents:
∎ Centralized waiting list. Connelly said that a centralized list for housing applicants will likely be one of the first major changes to roll out. Now, people applying for housing within the state’s 240 authorities must apply separately to each authority for which they’d like consideration. Under the new law, there will be one application for all housing authorities and it will be online.
“It’s one-stop shopping for an applicant, and it’s good for the housing authorities, too,” Connelly said. “We convinced the state it was something they should really do. It’s a win-win situation.”
But public policy researchers like Laura Lovett and Ellen Pader expressed concerns over whether the list could pressure applicants to move to another part of the state, leaving behind jobs, family and support networks.
“A central list might facilitate more placement,” said Lovett, a UMass history professor who has studied housing reform efforts. “But then you’re going to have a situation where people are going to be removed from their communities where they have resources.”
Donna Brown, NAHRO deputy director, said if an applicant in Northampton is offered an opening in Boston, but doesn’t want to leave her new job, she will have an opportunity to turn down that unit without losing a spot in line. There will be a limited number of refusals, Brown said — three, perhaps, though the details of the program are still in flux.
∎ More maintenance. The new law also calls for three regional teams, with six members each, to address overdue maintenance needs. “It’s really needed — it takes way too long to put in improvements,” Connelly said.
At any given time, 1,400-1,800 units are vacant for 60 days or more because no one was able to repair the spaces for new tenants, according to the state’s 2012 Housing Commission Report, which described many of the repairs needed as “moderate.”
Connelly said the new maintenance aid is especially geared at helping smaller agencies such as ones in the Pioneer Valley, which often find themselves short-handed. Smaller authorities, he said, also struggle to navigate the state’s procurement process.
Connelly said, “You should see major improvements in how long it takes to get things done.”
Pader, a UMass professor of regional planning, public policy and administration, said she has concerns over how the improvement plans will be prioritized. Connelly responded that during the first year, the teams will focus on smaller improvements at first and more intensive projects later. Connelly said delays in repairs and in turning over units for new tenants endure because more funding is needed.
“It’s not lack of commitment — it’s lack of resources,” said Connelly. “They’ve been cut to the bone.” The Housing Commission Report estimates the state’s housing authorities need $1.5 billion to $2 billion to address all the units’ capital needs.
∎ Oversight and training. Connelly said the state housing department will regularly oversee financial operations and perform annual reviews. There will be a performance evaluation based on 10 indicators designed to help under-performing authorities “get up to snuff.”
The law also requires members of each local housing authority’s community oversight board to undergo a day-long training program. Such training might have helped quash the Chelsea pay scandal, where board members were asked to resign after failing to identify and root out corruption.
“Out of these problems in Chelsea came a truly tremendous piece of legislation,” said Connelly. “Finally the legislation made the state commit to doing these things, and it’s all good news for the housing authorities. We welcome the transparency. There’s always going to be a few crooks out there, and you just want to be sure you have systems in place to eventually discover them and correct the situation.”•
Contact Amanda Drane at adrane@valleyadvocate.com.
