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The Chattanooga Housing Authority’s Housing Choice voucher program needs to lease 98 vouchers before the end of this year to be at full utilization and receive full funding.The authority plans a tenant/landlord fair at 6 p.m. Dec. 17 at 811 N. Holtzclaw Ave. to help voucher holders find landlords.
Chattanooga Housing Authority officials approved the organization’s 2016 budget and renewed contracts for senior services and bedbug inspections during its monthly board meeting Thursday.
“Where we are today is a far cry from where we were a few years ago,” board Chairman Eddie Holmes said. “I’m really appreciative of that.”
The housing authority was on the federal government’s troubled-agency list for mismanaging funds from 2009 until 2011. Being on the troubled list limited the agency financially, because it could not compete for some grants.
On Thursday, the authority’s board of commissioners approved the 2016 operating budget. It projects total revenues of more than $38.4 million and anticipated expenditures of $39.3 million, exclusive of $4 million of depreciation expense.
Overall, the housing authority is in a good financial position, contracted CFO Philippe Lindsay said.
But, he said, the agency has a $818,000 deficit in public housing. He said the deficit is manageable, and he hopes federal government allocations for public housing may be more than expected.
He said he conservatively planned the government would give the housing agency 87 cents for each $1 it is due.
“Due to the lack of available guidance from HUD for FFY 2016, this budget was prepared utilizing pro-ration estimates of 87 percent for public hous,ing and 83 percent for Housing Choice Voucher administrative fund eligibility,” according to Lindsay’s written executive summary of the operating budget. “A budget revision will be presented during 2016 once funding levels can be more reasonably validated.”
Housing authority employees will get no cost-of-living increase for 2016, but the cost of health insurance for employees decreases and the authority has two more staff positions going into 2016 than it did a year ago.
“Based on the price of gas and everything else, particularly with seniors getting Social Security, you will notice that there has been no cost-of-living adjustment included in their checks and accordingly there will be no cost-of-living adjustment for employees,” Lindsay said.
The board renewed its contract with the Partnership for Families, Children and Adults to provide senior services to elderly and disabled residents at $272,859 through Dec. 31, 2016.
It also renewed its Kirkland’s Pest Control contract for bedbug inspection, treatment and control services through Jan. 15, 2017. That cost cannot exceed $95,000.
Also, Jim F. Sattler, vice president of the housing authority’s board of commissioners, announced his appointment by the governor to be on the Tennessee Housing Development Agency board of directors
Contact staff writer Yolanda Putman at yputman@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6431.