In a November 10 letter, House Financial Services Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-CA) notes her support for efforts to improve HUD’s Performance Based Contract Administrators program and urges HUD to consider her concerns about the draft solicitation as well as stakeholder feedback before moving the solicitation process forward.

HUD’s draft solicitation of the PBCA re-bid process, which was out for public comment until September 28, would reform how HUD procures contractors to provide Housing Assistance Payments contract support services to HUD and service approximately 16,000 project-based rental assistance contracts. The draft solicitation resulted in a flood of comments from stakeholders, including LeadingAge.

In her November 10 letter, Chairwoman Waters expresses concern that HUD’s proposed PBCA procurement plan could put mission driven entities like state housing finance agencies and public housing authorities at a disadvantage from becoming PBCAs if they provide financing for HUD-assisted properties. “Given the sensitive nature of the responsibilities of PBCAs, it is important to ensure the participation of mission driven entities that often reinvest contract funds into affordable housing preservation and development as well as supportive services,” the letter says.

Chairwoman Waters also says that the “federally assisted stock of affordable housing is aging and now is not the time to reduce the number of PBCAs, which may diminish the quality of oversight and response to tenants’ needs.”

Read the letter here.