LeadingAge joined key Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) officials on May 29 for a stakeholder listening session on proposed modifications to the Performance-Based Contract Administrator (PBCA) program.

At the event, LeadingAge delivered spoken remarks to Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Commissioner Julia Gorden and HUD Deputy Assistant Secretary Ethan Handelman, and followed up with written comments for the agency’s consideration.

PBCAs are HUD’s primary providers for day-to-day monitoring and oversight of most of HUD’s approximately 17,000 project-based Section 8 contracts with property owners throughout the nation; HUD partners with PBCAs to conduct 90% of the day-to-day monitoring and oversight of the HAP contracts.

As part of its fiscal year 2025 budget request to Congress, HUD proposed legislative language allowing the agency to award cooperative agreements to eligible entities to serve as PBCAs through a Notice of Funding Opportunity, rather than a Federal Acquisition Regulation procurement.

The language would also ensure that public housing authorities and their non-profit affiliates, as well as state and local housing finance agencies, are eligible to apply for a PBCA award.

In its written comments, LeadingAge recommended the following approaches to contract administration:

• LeadingAge supports cooperative agreements that allow more flexibility and targeting for HUD.
• LeadingAge supports continued public entity eligibility for contracts, as well as a state-based system.
• LeadingAge strongly supports smooth transitions and minimal disruption for housing communities and the people they serve.
• LeadingAge urges HUD to utilize the rebid process as an opportunity to strengthen data sharing, leveraging, and oversight.
• LeadingAge looks to HUD for clarity on how on creating country-wide consistency and cohesion, as well as additional resources and modernized IT infrastructure.

This first listening session was the only session held in person at HUD’s DC headquarters. HUD will host virtual listening sessions on June 5 and 6.