POLICY UPDATES

October 26, 2016

The following changes to the Bank’s AHP Implementation Plan are effective immediately.

Competitive AHP

Homeless Household Definition

To better align our definition of “homeless household” with the definition used by HUD and other agencies and funders, we have revised the Bank’s definition of “homeless household” to include:

1. An individual or family who will imminently lose their primary residence.
2. Unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age, or qualifying families with children and youth.
3. Any individual or family who is fleeing, or attempting to flee, domestic violence or other dangerous or life-threatening conditions.
4. An individual with a serious mental illness or emotional disorder who would otherwise be considered at risk of homelessness and will reside, alone or with family, in a unit that is funded by a government agency program (e.g., California Mental Health Services Act or local Department of Public Health).

In addition to expanding the definition of homeless household as above, we:

1. Removed language that prohibited formerly imprisoned individuals from qualifying as homeless.
2. Added language stating that a project sponsor may also be the established homeless services provider responsible for certifying that a tenant meets the Bank’s definition of homeless household.
3. Clarified the form of documentation that may be provided to verify homelessness for transitional housing projects.
4. Clarified what types of households are considered at risk of homelessness.

Application Scoring: Community Stability

We have revised the following elements of Community Stability Scoring:

1. Revitalizing Neighborhoods by Optimizing Project Site Use - Demolition or Substantial Rehabilitation of Vacant, Abandoned, or Substandard Residential Buildings: 1) We removed the word “Residential,” and 2) for documentation requirements, we replaced the word “and” with the word “or” for projects involving demolition.
2. Community Planning and Development Initiatives: We removed “Metropolitan Planning Organization or Councils of Government plan area” from the list of types of areas that qualify for points, and added “Redevelopment Areas” and “Federal Place-Based Initiative Areas.”
3. Proximity to Transit and Amenities: 1) We increased the qualifying distance between the project and major transit or amenities from one-quarter to one-third of a mile, and 2) with respect to amenities, we removed the requirement that pharmacies located near the project must be “stand-alone” to qualify for points.
4. Sustainable Developments: We added “net zero energy building certification” as a qualifying certification that will earn three points.

Miscellaneous Corrections and Technical Clarifications

1. We elaborated on the conditions of a tie-breaking event. (Section II. F. 4.)
2. We revised the language under Time Limits on Use of Subsidy to accurately reflect our policy and practice that time limit extensions for the use of the AHP subsidy may be granted before a project reaches the four-year completion deadline. (Section II. F. 4.)
3. We replaced the term “HUD-1 Settlement Statement” with “Closing Disclosure.” This applies to both Competitive AHP and Set-Aside programs. (Section III. A. 8. c.)
4. We inserted the word “federal” into the following text under Use of Donated or Conveyed Government-Owned or Other Properties:  “An applicant may earn one point for the use of a long-term lease from a federal government entity greater than or equal to 15 years.” (Attachment B, Section I.)
5. We corrected a reference under documentation requirements for “Promotion of Empowerment” scoring by replacing the word “following” with “preceding.” (Attachment B, Section V.)

A redline version of the IP outlining changes from the prior version is available. For questions about IP revisions, please email ahp@fhlbsf.com.