Sec. 8-72. Operation of projects. Rentals. Tenant eligibility. Inspections. Semiannual statements. Penalty for false statement. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 8-72. Operation of projects. Rentals. Tenant eligibility. Inspections. Semiannual statements. Penalty for false statement. Each developer or housing authority shall manage and operate its housing projects in an efficient manner so as to enable it to fix the rentals for dwelling accommodations at the lowest possible rates consistent with providing decent, safe and sanitary dwelling accommodations, and no housing authority or nonprofit corporation shall construct or operate any such project for profit. To this end an authority or a nonprofit corporation shall fix the rentals for dwelling in its projects at no higher rates than it finds to be necessary in order to produce revenues which, together with all other available money, revenues, income and receipts of the authority or nonprofit corporation from whatever sources derived, will be sufficient (a) to pay, as the same become due, the principal and interest on the bonds of the authority or nonprofit corporation; (b) to meet the cost of, and to provide for, maintaining and operating the projects, including the cost of any insurance, and the administrative expenses of the authority or nonprofit corporation; provided nothing in this section shall be construed as prohibiting any authority or nonprofit corporation from providing for variable rentals based on family income. In the operation or management of housing projects an authority or nonprofit corporation shall, at all times, rent or lease the dwelling accommodations therein at rentals within the financial reach of families of low income. The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development may establish maximum income limits for admission and continued occupancy of tenants, provided such maximum income limits and all revisions thereof for housing projects operated pursuant to any contract with any agency of the federal government shall be subject to the prior approval of such federal agency. The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development shall define the income of a family to provide the basis for determining eligibility for the admission, rentals and for the continued occupancy of families under the maximum income limits fixed and approved. The definition of family income, by the Commissioner of Economic and Community Development, may provide for the exclusion of all or part of the income of family members which, in the judgment of said commissioner, is not generally available to meet the cost of basic living needs of the family. No housing authority or developer shall refuse to rent any dwelling accommodation to an otherwise qualified applicant on the ground that one or more of the proposed occupants are children born out of wedlock. Each housing authority and developer shall provide a receipt to each applicant for admission to its housing projects stating the time and date of application and shall maintain a list of such applications, which shall be a public record as defined in section 1-200. The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development shall, by regulation, provide for the manner in which such list shall be created, maintained and revised. No provision of this part shall be construed as limiting the right of the authority to vest in an obligee the right, in the event of a default by such authority, to take possession of a housing project or cause the appointment of a receiver thereof or acquire title thereto through foreclosure proceedings, free from all the restrictions imposed by this chapter with respect to rental rates and tenant selection. The Commissioner of Economic and Community Development shall approve an operation or management plan of each housing project, which shall provide an income adequate for debt service, if any, administration, including a state service charge, other operating costs and establishment of reasonable reserves for repairs, maintenance and replacements, vacancy and collection losses. Said commissioner shall have the right of inspection of any housing during the period between the date on which construction thereof begins and the date the state loan is fully paid or, in the case of a grant, during the period for which any housing project built pursuant to such grant is used for housing for families of low and moderate income. An authority or developer shall semiannually submit to said commissioner a sworn statement setting forth such information with respect to the tenants and rentals for each housing project hereunder and the costs of operating each housing project under its jurisdiction as said commissioner requires. Any person who makes a false statement concerning the income of the family for which application for admission to or continued occupancy of housing projects is made may be fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than six months or both. With regard to a family who, since the last annual recertification, received any public assistance or state-administered general assistance and received earnings from employment, the authority or developer shall not require any interim recertification due to an earnings increase. At the annual recertification, the authority or developer shall base rent levels on such family's average income throughout the preceding twelve months. During the subsequent twelve-month period, the authority or developer shall not require any interim recertifications due to increased earnings from employment. However, if a family's income has decreased, nothing in this section shall preclude an interim recertification or recertification based on the reduced income level.

      (1949, March, 1950, S. 447d; November, 1955, S. N16; 1957, P.A. 399, S. 1; 1967, P.A. 522, S. 8; P.A. 77-614, S. 284, 610; P.A. 78-303, S. 81, 136; P.A. 78-304, S. 4, 5, 22; P.A. 79-598, S. 3, 4, 10; Oct. Sp. Sess. P.A. 79-3, S. 1, 2; P.A. 82-130, S. 2; P.A. 84-143, S. 2; 84-210; 84-493, S. 5, 9; P.A. 91-374, S. 4; P.A. 95-250, S. 1; P.A. 96-211, S. 1, 5, 6; P.A. 98-114, S. 1; P.A. 04-76, S. 2.)

      History: 1967 act substituted commissioner of community affairs for public works commissioner; P.A. 77-614 substituted department of economic development for commissioner of community affairs, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 78-303 substituted commissioner for department; P.A. 78-304 deleted reference to provisions of Secs. 8-45 and 8-46 and instead restated those provisions in section; P.A. 79-598 substituted commissioner of housing for commissioner of economic development; Oct. Sp. Sess. P.A. 79-3 specified that rentals may be variable based on family income; P.A. 82-130 provided for the issuance of a receipt and the maintenance of a list of applicants; P.A. 84-143 required the commissioner of housing to provide, by regulation, for the manner of creation, maintenance and revision of waiting lists; P.A. 84-210 excluded partnerships from the prohibition against operating projects for profit and included nonprofit corporations in the provisions concerning minimizing of rents; P.A. 84-493 provided procedures when state financial assistance to moderate rental housing projects is in the form of a grant; P.A. 91-374 transferred authority to establish maximum income limits from the housing authority or developer to the commissioner; P.A. 95-250 and P.A. 96-211 replaced Commissioner and Department of Housing with Commissioner and Department of Economic and Community Development; P.A. 98-114 provided a procedure to set rental rates for families who received public or general assistance and had earnings from employment; P.A. 04-76 replaced reference to "received any public or general assistance" with reference to "received any public assistance or state-administered general assistance".

      See Sec. 8-45a re criteria and consideration of applicant's or proposed occupant's history of criminal activity.

      Duties of commissioners. 164 C. 247. Cited. 214 C. 505.

      Cited. 18 CA 393.