John Sarbanes: “As you know, one of the most important principles of this public housing bill is resident empowerment. To this end, the…”

“As you know, one of the most important principles of this public housing bill is resident empowerment. To this end, the legislation mandates that resident advisory boards assist in the development of public housing agency [PHA] plans. It also requires that PHA's: first, conduct public hearings to collect input on their proposed plans; second, make a copy of their proposed plan available for public inspection at least 45 days prior to the public hearing; and third, provide notice of the date of the public hearing at least 45 days in advance of the hearing. Given this emphasis on resident participation, I would anticipate that PHA's would make every effort to ensure that each resident is aware of his or her opportunities to provide input. I would expect PHA's to prominently display, at each of their assisted housing developments, information about the hearings, as well as information about where residents can view copies of the proposed agency plans. I would also expect that PHA's, to the maximum extent practicable, will contact resident groups directly to inform them of this information.”