• Incredible industry presenters
• Networking opportunities with other Affordable Housing Professionals
• A tradeshow with your favorite vendors
• Mock Trial moderated by Kimball, Tirey & St. John
• Fun meals and entertainment throughout the conference

Don’t miss it! Register today by clicking here!


AHMA TRAINING ON THE CUTTING EDGE
AHMA-PSW continues to bring you "up to the minute current" training. Our popular Fair Housing update was another sell-out training. Watch for "Maintenance fair housing training" coming early this summer.

Managing your wait list and EIV update was successfully brought to Nevada last month. Document retention and destruction, preventing Identity theft was a big hit in San Diego and will be rescheduled for LA shortly after the Annual Seminar.

Check out the AHMA-PSW web site calendar section for all upcoming training.


ASSOCIATE MEMBERS
Associates Summer Event: Next at Bat...AHMA-PSW!
By Gary Glucroft, Screening Pros
As mentioned in the December issue of the AHMA-PSW e.News publication, we’re going to the ball park. Yes it’s true; AHMA-PSW will be traveling down to San Diego to see The Padres play The Atlanta Braves at PETCO Park on Saturday July 12th. The game is in the evening starting at 7:05pm with festivities starting when the gates open for a private AHMA-PSW catered hot dog party.

Plans are currently being finalized and sponsorship opportunities are being created so stay tuned for additional information on registration and sponsorships. Only 200 seats have been pre-purchased, therefore you will need to act fast to get in on the fun.

Also, in less than two months we will be having our annual Seminar and Trade Show at The LAX Marriott Airport Hotel. The event will kick off on Sunday May 18th with the ever-popular Bowling Tournament with the day’s fun wrapping up at the “Get-Acquainted” reception at the LAX Marriott from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. The Monday of the event is always an action packed day of exhibiting, seminars, plenty of networking opportunities and of course the evening party. This year’s evening party is sure to be a hit as it is being dubbed, “AHMA Gonna Have Fun Tonight - Carnival.”

If you haven’t already booked your booth, do so now as there are limited booths left. And don’t forget the sponsorships if you want to get even more exposure. This year we have created even more sponsorship opportunities designed to meet all budgets.

As it is our continued objective to make your AHMA-PSW Associate Membership a true value, please let us know what we can do for you. Feel free to contact me directly at: (800) 877-3908 Ext. 100 or, garyg@thescreeningpros.com.

As your Director of Associates, I look forward to seeing each of you at our upcoming events and wish you a very happy and successful 2008.


WELCOME AHMA-PSW NEW MEMBERS
Planet Telecom
Terry Cropper
Answer Automation Services
(812) 949-4363

Western Seniors Housing
Anthony Sandoval
Property Management for Senior Apartments
(949) 748-8202
www.wshousing.com

Logan Property Management
Lani Yee
(925) 784-3209
www.loganpm.com

LTSC Community Development Corp.
Gayle Wong
Social Service Agency
(213) 473-1689
www.ltsc.org

Disciples House of Glendale, Inc.
Debi Windahl
Low Income Housing for Seniors
(623) 915-5039

Tony’s Security
Tom Tao
Surveillance Equipment & Installation
(626) 757-6742

Sensor Wave Technology, Inc.
Evelya Rivera
Video Surveillance
(888) 649-6905
www.sensorwave.com

Design Center Housing Services
Richard Bradley
Development/Architecture/Property Mgmt./Resident Services
(213) 629-2702
www.losangelescommunitydesigncenter.com

Urban Futures, Inc.
Anita McCarty
Compliance and Multi-layered Funding
(714) 283-9334


LEGISLATIVE AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS

H.R. 5720 Housing Assistance Act  - Passes
Housing Assistance Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY), Chairman of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee, introduced the Housing Assistance Tax Act of 2008 on 4/8/08. Major components of this bill provide: more...


Section 8 Voucher Reform Act of 2008 (SEVRA)
Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd introduced this bill in March and it has been passed by the House, it’s being considered by the Senate. The Section 8 Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA), will improve the Section 8 voucher program, which now serves almost 2 million low-income families all across the nation. more...


National Apartment Association Government Affairs Hotsheet issues for Arizona and California more...


ARIZONA

Arizona Continues To Wrestle With Immigration 
Arizona HB 2625, sponsored by Rep. Russell Pearce (R-18), recently received its first hearing in the House Appropriations Committee, chaired by Pearce. more...


CALIFORNIA

CAA Opposes Attempts to Tighten Rent Control Laws
The California Legislature will vote on legislation this year that prohibits rental property owners from removing old rent-controlled property from the market unless the same number of units are rebuilt and offered at the rent-controlled price. more...


CAA Targets Eviction Delay Tactics
In California eviction cases, one of the most common delay tactics is to request a jury trial at the last possible minute. Jury trials are expensive and time consuming. While property owners generally prevail in these situations (the same outcome obtained without a jury), the resident gains additional time in the unit and is usually represented free of charge by an organization or attorney who uses the jury trial delay tactic. more...


San Diego Approves Lead Hazard Ordinance
On March 11, the San Diego City Council voted to pass the Lead Hazard Prevention and Control Ordinance. The ordinance had been debated at the city level for more than five years, and the San Diego County Apartment Association (SDCAA) was a key stakeholder during that development process. The ordinance affects all commercial and residential properties (including rental) in the City of San Diego built prior to 1979. more...


Eliminate Smoking in Multi Family Housing? Ever since secondhand smoke was declared a human carcinogen a decade ago, the anti-smoking movement has been gaining steam both in California and across the country. During this time, anti-smoking groups have successfully passed state and local laws that restrict smoking in the workplace and many other indoor and outdoor public areas. more...


If you would like to know the 110th Congress Legislative Positions NAHMA takes on behalf of it’s members on current legislation, you can find it on the AHMA-PSW and NAHMA websites. Here is a current position statement.


AHMA-PSW Members Beware! The wording in your vacancy ads could cost you thousands of dollars! Click here for article.


CALFHA Announces Electronic Filing Mandate - Pursuant to the Asset Management Notice Dated December 12, 2007 issued by the California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA), the information from the audits of financial statements of projects for periods ending on or after December 31, 2007 must be submitted electronically to CalHFA using their new Web Compliance Management System (WCMS). The owner or manager can enter the financial information into WCMS. You can access the WCMS User Guide by clicking here. A hard copy of the audited financial statements is still required to be sent to CalHFA. If you have any questions, you should contact the Asset Manager assigned to your property.


IRS announces rebate release schedule
The IRS has released its schedule for issuance of rebate checks in response to the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 (P.L. 110-185). more...


City of San Diego’s Recycling Ordinance – Effective January 1, 2008
The City of San Diego's Recycling Ordinance was unanimously approved by the City Council on November 13, 2007. The new ordinance requires recycling of plastic and glass bottles and jars, paper, newspaper, metal containers and cardboard at private residences, commercial buildings, and at special events requiring a City permit. more...


California Low-Income Housing Tax Credits Do Not Trigger Prevailing Wage Requirements
by Gary P. Downs and Christian D. Dubois

The affordable housing industry recently received good news about California state low-income housing tax credits ("LIHTCs"). On April 23, the California First District Court of Appeal published a long-anticipated ruling that the receipt of state LIHTCs does not trigger prevailing wage requirements. The ruling settles a long period of uncertainty and allows affordable housing developers to take advantage of an important resource while avoiding a costly budget hit.

The controversy has centered around California Labor Code Section 1720, which requires the payment of prevailing wages in projects that are considered "public works" by virtue of being "paid for in whole or in part out of public funds." Although the detailed list of subsidies in Section 1720 that are deemed to meet this test does not include LIHTCs, certain observers have argued that LIHTCs are covered implicitly. In 2005, the California Department of Industrial Relations ("DIR") issued a coverage determination that the use of California state LIHTCs does not subject a project to prevailing wage requirements. Woodhaven Manor Apartments, PW Case No. 2005-034 (11/16/2005). more...


HUD NEWS

John L. Garvin, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Multifamily Housing Programs and Senior Advisor to Federal Housing Commissioner, acknowledges that the section 8 funding for fiscal year 2008 is deficient by approximately two billion dollars. more...


Projects submitting RCS (Rent Comparability Studies) 120 days or more prior to the contract expiration date are seeing contracts renewed for six months at the existing rents. more...


HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson Resigns, Washington Post, 4/1/08


Bush nominates new HUD Secretary
On Friday, the White House announced SBA Administrator Steven Preston has been selected to succeed outgoing HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson. Jackson’s resignation was effective as of Friday, April 18, 2008.

President Bush’s decision to nominate Preston comes as a surprise because his name had not emerged in speculation about who would replace Jackson. For the text of the press conference, please click here. NAHMA will keep you updated as the nomination process goes forward.


Ken Pagano Testifies on Project-Based Section 8 Funding Shortfall to House Appropriations Committee
Ken Pagano, President and CEO of Essex Plaza Management, testified on behalf of NAHMA at the House Appropriations Committee hearing on the need for additional funding for Project-Based Section 8 on Wednesday, April 23, at 10:00 a.m.

Ken is the current Secretary of NAHMA, Chairman of the Regulatory Affairs Committee, and Vice Chair of the Tax Credit Committee.

For a copy of Ken's testimony, please click here.


RHIIP Listserv Posting #95
Important Enterprise Income Verification (EIV) System Related Information more...


RHIIP Listserv Posting #96
ECONOMIC STIMULUS PAYMENTS (TAX REBATES) EXCLUDED FROM INCOME more...