Project Specific Information Questionnaires & Project Staff Questionnaires

FY 2013 Project Staff Questionnaire

Please fill out the Project Staff Questionnaire (PSQ) as accurately and completely as possible. In many cases, more than one staff member must assist with the completion of the PSQ. Note: You must complete the PSQ online.

For this survey, we are interested in finding out about your project’s certification processes and staffing related to these activities. All questions refer to the administration of [Project Info 1] and, unless otherwise stated, questions refer to our study period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013.

To get better comparison groups for the study, we sometimes select only a portion (usually county- or city-based sections of an HCV program, or one Public Housing project or one Section 8 property) of your subsidized housing program. We know that certification staff often work across multiple counties or on different project sites and it may be impossible for you to provide staffing and certification information specifically for the project selected for our study.

1. With this in mind, please indicate how you will respond to questions in this survey about [Project Info 2]:

1. I can provide information about staff and certifications [Project Info 3] because staff members work exclusively [Project Info 4].

2. I cannot provide information about staff and certifications specifically for [Project Info 5]. Staff that work [Project Info 4] work on [Project Info 6] as well.

For questions in this section, certification activities refer to both move-in and recertification transactions. It includes the following tasks:

• Sending out letters notifying participants of their upcoming certification

• Interviewing program applicants or program participants during certification

• Reviewing documentation provided by the household

• Collecting third-party verification documents

• Collecting tenant file documentation from households (e.g. Authorization Form 9886/9887, Declaration of Citizenship form, Supplement to Application)

• Performing criminal background checks

• Reviewing EIV reports

• Calculating income, assets, and deductions

• Determining rent amounts for individual households

• If applicable, determining utility allowance and payment standard amounts for individual households

• Entering information on the 50058/50059 that affects household income or rent amounts

For this survey, certification staff includes:

• People who perform move-in certifications and recertification activities

• People who supervise certification staff

• People who perform quality control on certification activities

2. What is the total number of staff at your project? ______________

3. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, on average how many certification staff members worked at your project? ________________

Section I. Project Characteristics

4. What is the Total Number of [Project Units/Tenants]? ________________

5. What is the approximate number of initial/move-in certifications performed from November 2012 to October 2013 for the project? ________________

6. What is the approximate number of annual certifications (not transfers or interims) performed from November 2012 to October 2013 for the project? ________________

For questions 7 through 12, certification staff include:

• People who perform move-in certifications and recertification activities

• People who supervise certification staff

• People who perform quality control on certification activities

7. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how many of the project’s [enter # of staff from the question above] certification staff members had more than 1 year of certification experience at the project? ________________

8. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how many certification staff stopped working on certification activities at the specified project? ________________

9. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how was work assigned to certification staff?

1. By transaction type (i.e. some staff work on move-ins only, some staff work on annual certifications only, some work on interims and transfers only, etc.)

2. By activity type (i.e. some certification staff perform interviews and send out initial third-party verifications, while other staff perform rent calculations and data enter the 50058/50059)

3. By household characteristic related to income sources or type of expenses (i.e. more complicated cases go to particular staff)

4. Alphabetical range by tenant last name (e.g. households with a last name that starts with any letter between A through E belong to one certification staff/staff team)

5. Random assignment, based on staff availability

6. Other case assignment method not listed above

10. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, what was the workload like, on average, for certification staff at this project?

1. The workload was low

2. The workload was not too low or too high

3. The workload was high

11. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please choose the type of organization contracted to perform certification activities for your project:

1. Not Applicable – we do not contract out our certification activities.

2. Government

3. Private Company

4. Nonprofit Organization

Section II: Training and Development

For questions in this section, rent calculation refers to these activities:

• Interviewing program applicants or program participants during certification

• Reviewing documentation provided by the household

• Collecting third-party verification documents

• Reviewing EIV reports

• Calculating income, assets, and deductions

• Determining rent amounts for individual households

• Determining utility allowance and payment standard amounts for individual households

• Entering information on the 50058/50059 that affects household income or rent amounts

12. Does your organization have a training department or staff trainer that provides guidance to staff working on rent calculation activities? O Yes O No

13. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, on average how many training hours did a (one) typical staff member participate in prior to performing rent calculations on their own? ___________

14. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please indicate the approximate number of training hours related to rent calculation each (one staff member) typical new staff goes through for each method of training identified below. “New staff” refers to staff that have been performing rent calculation activities for 1 year or less.

	Method for Training on Rent Calculation for EACH NEW Staff Member	Total Number of Hours from Nov. 1 to Oct. 31, 2013
a.	Reading policies and procedural guides on their own
b.	Classroom-style training administered in-house
c.	Classroom-style training administered by an outside organization
d.	Shadowing or mentorship with more experienced staff
e.	Web-based or recorded training video created in-house
f.	Web-based or recorded training video created by an outside organization
g.	Web-based or recorded training video created by HUD
h.	Other type of training activity not mentioned above

15. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please indicate the approximate number of training hours related to rent calculation each (one staff member) typical experienced staff goes through for each method of training identified below. “Experienced staff” refers to staff that have been performing rent calculation activities for more than 1 year.

	Method for Training on Rent Calculation for ONE EXPERIENCED Staff Member	Total Number of Hours from Nov. 1 to Oct. 31, 2013
a.	Reading policies and procedural guides on their own
b.	Classroom-style training administered in-house
c.	Classroom-style training administered by an outside organization
d.	Shadowing or mentorship with more experienced staff
e.	Web-based or recorded training video created in-house
f.	Web-based or recorded training video created by an outside organization
g.	Web-based or recorded training video created by HUD
h.	Other type of training activity not mentioned above

16. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please indicate the number of hours spent training on each topic identified below for each (one staff member) new certification staff. “New staff” refers to staff that have been performing rent calculation activities for less than 1 year. If no hours were spent on the topic, please indicate 0.

Training Topic

Number of Training Hours on this Topic for One New Certification Staff
(from 11/1/12 to 10/31/13)

EIV Reports and EIV Security

Hours

Interviewing tenants

Hours

Calculating fixed income sources

Hours

Calculating earned income sources

Hours

Calculating assets

Hours

Calculating deductions (medical, disability, childcare)

Hours

Entering 50058/50059 information

Hours

Other:___________________________________________

Hours

17. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please indicate the number of hours spent training on each topic identified below for each (one staff member) experienced certification staff. “Experienced staff” refers to staff that have been performing rent calculation activities for more than 1 year. If no hours were spent on the topic, please indicate 0.

Training Topic

Number of Training Hours on this Topic for One Experienced Certification Staff
(from 11/1/12 to 10/31/13)

EIV Reports and EIV Security

Hours

Interviewing tenants

Hours

Calculating fixed income sources

Hours

Calculating earned income sources

Hours

Calculating assets

Hours

Calculating deductions (medical, disability, childcare)

Hours

Entering 50058/50059 information

Hours

Other:___________________________________________

Hours

18. On average, how long does it take for a new policy related to rent calculation to be implemented once a PIH Notice or Housing Notice is issued? ______________

19. This question is for Public Housing, Mod Rehab, and Housing Choice Voucher programs ONLY --

PIH Notice2013-03 (HA) issued on January 22, 2013, allows PHAs to verify income using actual past income and allows households with less than $5,000 of assets to self-certify their asset amount and asset income amount. The Notice also allows PHAs to conduct a streamlined reexamination for elderly/disabled families with fixed income, and to establish a payment standard of not more than 120% of FMR as a reasonable accommodation.

What method was used to inform certification staff of the above policy? Please check all that apply.

• Staff members are signed up to the HUD listserv and they received this PIH Notice directly

• The PIH Notice (paper or electronic copy) was provided to staff

• Additional procedures/guidance related to the PIH Notice was provided to staff

• The PIH Notice was discussed with certification staff or certification supervisors at a meeting

• There was no discussion of this policy with staff and they did not receive a notice of this policy

20. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how organized were staff working on certification activities at the project?

1. Very organized

2. Organized

3. Unorganized

4. Very unorganized

21. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how much attention to detail did certification staff working on the project have?

1. A lot of attention to detail

2. Some attention to detail

3. Little attention to detail

4. Very little or no attention to detail

22. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, what was the quality of time management for staff working on certification activities at the project?

1. Very good time management

2. Good time management

3. Poor time management

4. Very poor time management

Section III: Performance Management

23. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, did certification staff at your project undergo a formal or informal goal setting process related to performing certifications?

O Yes O No

24. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, did the project have a dedicated quality control (QC) staff to measure staff performance on the accuracy of data entered on the 50058/50059?

O Yes O No

25. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please indicate the types of certification errors tracked or recorded by your project. Please check all that apply.

• Late recertification transactions

• Errors in earned income calculation

• Errors in fixed income calculation

• Errors in asset calculation

• Errors in elderly/disability allowance determination

• Errors in dependent allowance determination

• Errors in childcare expense calculation

• Errors in disability expense calculation

• Errors in medical expense calculation

• Errors in maintaining accurate tenant file documentation that is not related to verification of income, assets, and expenses

• Errors related to accurate verification of income, assets, and expenses

• None – the project does not track any of the above information. If this option is checked, all other options above will be unselected.

26. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, what percentage of move-in and annual recertification 50058/50059 transactions were reviewed for quality control? ________________

27. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how were files chosen for quality control review? Please check all that apply.

• Files were randomly sampled

• Files were chosen from new staff

• Files were chosen from staff with high error rates or who seem to have more trouble

• Files were chosen based on household income, asset, and expense characteristics

• Move-in transactions were chosen for review

• Recertification transactions were chosen for review

• Interim transactions were chosen for review

• Transfer/move transactions were chosen for review

• We chose another method of selecting cases for review that is not listed above

• All transactions that were processed were reviewed by another staff member. If this option is checked, all other options will be unselected.

• Not Applicable - no files were reviewed

28. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, what file information was typically reviewed during quality control? Please check all that apply.

• Proper core household documentation in the tenant file (e.g. Social Security documentation, Declaration of Citizenship form, birth certificate or other citizenship documentation for all household members, Authorization Form 9886/9887, etc.)

• Accurate completion of documentation in the tenant file (e.g. the Declaration of Citizenship form lists all household members, the Disclosure of Lead Based Paint form is properly initialed and signed, the Authorization Form 9886 is signed and dated, etc.)

• Proper unit documentation in the tenant file (e.g. Disclosure of LBP, RTA/RFTA, documentation of Rent Reasonableness, lease, and/or HAP Contract)

• Presence of verification documents in the tenant file

• Appropriate type of verification documentation (follows verification policy) is in the tenant file

• Verification documents meet your program’s timeframe for acceptable documentation

• Correct income calculation

• Correct medical expense calculation

• Correct disability expenses calculation

• Correct child care expense calculation

• Correct Payment Standard amount applied to rent calculation, if applicable to your program type

• Correct Utility Allowance amount applied to rent calculation, if applicable to your program type

• Properly entered data on the 50058/50059 (e.g. correct spelling of name, accurate SS number based on documentation in the file, correct income amounts listed based on file documentation, etc.)

• Accuracy of the rent adjustment or HAP amendment letter in the tenant file

• Consistency of a household’s certification/interview application to tenant file documentation

• General spot check of the file is performed. If this option is checked, all other options above will be unselected.

• Not Applicable – There is no quality control review of files. If this option is checked, all other options above will be unselected.

29. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, when were files typically reviewed for quality control? Please select the primary period when files were reviewed.

1. Prior to 50058/50059 approval

2. Within 7 calendar days of 50058/50059 submission

3. Within 30 calendar days of 50058/50059 submission

4. Within 60 calendar days of 50058/50059 submission

5. Within 3 months of 50058/50059 submission

6. Within 6 months of 50058/50059 submission

7. Within 1 year of 50058/50059 submission

8. Not applicable – Files are not reviewed for quality control.

30. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, who typically made file corrections when errors were found in the file during quality control (QC)?

1. The person who performed quality control of the file

2. The certification staff who made the error

3. Other correction staff not mentioned above

4. Not Applicable – there was no QC review, no QC errors were found, or there were no QC errors that required a correction

31. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, what were the primary methods of providing feedback to certification staff regarding errors found in the quality control process? Please check the primary method(s) that apply.

1. Specific deficiencies for each file are recorded and made available to certification staff

2. One-on-one conversations to discuss QC findings (phone or in-person)

3. A general report on QC findings is provided to all certification staff

4. Team/group meetings to discuss QC issues

5. Other feedback method not mentioned above

6. Not Applicable – there was no QC review, no QC errors were found, or there were no QC errors that required feedback to staff. If this option is checked, all other options above will be unselected.

32. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, how frequently were certification staff provided with feedback on their performance in calculating rent?

Drop- Down Options Provided:

• Daily

• Weekly

• Monthly

• Quarterly

• semi-annually

• annually

• other time period

• N/A – feedback is not provided

33. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, we want to know who performed quality control reviews of files and how many files were reviewed. Please indicate the number of files reviewed by each reviewer listed below:

Reviewer Approximate Number of Files Reviewed

from Nov. 1, 2012-Oct. 31, 2013

Supervisor or Team Leader _________

Other Certification Staff _________

Internal Staff Reviewer/QC Staff _________

Contract Administrator _________

OIG Auditor _________

HUD-Affiliated Auditor _________

Other type of reviewer not listed above _________

34. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, did your project require certification staff to review the household’s previous 50058/50059 prior to starting the certification process for the household’s current 50058/50059 transaction? O Yes O No

35. For the period from November 1, 2012 to October 31, 2013, please indicate how often your staff, as a whole, made an error in calculating rent for each type of error listed below. Please answer using a scale of 1 to 4 (1 is very often and 4 is rarely):

[Response format: horizontal radio buttons from 1 to 4, and “N/A” option]

1. Missing, incomplete, or incorrect verification of income

2. Missing, incomplete, or incorrect verification of assets

3. Missing, incomplete, or incorrect verification of allowances (elderly/disabled allowance, dependent allowance)

4. Missing, incomplete, or incorrect verification of deductions (medical, childcare, disability expense)

5. Incorrect calculation of earned income

6. Incorrect calculation to fixed income

7. Incorrect calculation of assets

8. Incorrect calculation of medical expenses

9. Incorrect calculation childcare expenses

10. Incorrect calculation of disability expenses

11. Incorrect calculation of student income or financial aid

12. Applying the incorrect payment standard, if applicable to your program type

13. Calculating incorrect utility allowance, if applicable to your program type

14. Errors related to attention to detail – transposing numbers, not rounding correctly, etc.

15. Late recertification transactions

Section IV: General Project Information

36. If we have question about your project’s responses to this survey, we would like to contact you. Please provide your contact information below:

Name: _________________________________ Title: ________________________________________

Phone Number: ___________________________ Email Address: ________________________________

37. How many staff members were required to provide input to answer all questions in this survey? _______

38. Please list of job titles of these staff members here: ___________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________________

39. If you have additional thoughts about the survey, please share them here:

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________________________FY2013 Project Staff Questionnaire 18