CITY TO CHECK TENANTS' PASTS PROBES AIMED AT CURBING CRIMINAL ACTIVITY.

Byline: Helen Gao Staff Writer

Complying with federal regulations, Glendale officials will conduct criminal background checks on local residents who receive Section 8 rental housing subsidies, starting July 1.

``The intent here is to prevent Section 8 from harboring or providing assistance to criminal activity'' said Madalyn Blake, director of community development and housing.

The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development ordered the background checks in 2001 as part of its effort to carry out provisions in the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act.

Currently, nearly 1,600 residents in Glendale rely on Section 8 subsidies to pay their rent. An additional 10,700 people are on a waiting list for assistance.

Burbank has about 1,000 residents in its Section 8 program and 9,000 people on the waiting list. Since 1999, the city has paid a contractor to screen applicants at a cost of $50 each.

Although serious crimes have been associated with public housing in cities such as Chicago, Linda Simmons, Burbank's housing administrator, said only a small number of local Section 8 tenants are found to have criminal records.

``The clients who have criminal convictions, once we let them know the federal regulations, they accept that,'' she said.

Glendale's Blake said she knows of only two cases in the city where families lost their Section 8 subsidy because a relative was involved in criminal activities.

Nevertheless, some housing advocates worried that background checks would lead to family breakups and pit parents against children who have criminal backgrounds.

``It just opens the door for constant fighting and bitterness in the family for the financial harm caused by the child,'' said Zoya Zakarian, who is a member of the Glendale Section 8 Advisory Board.

``If that child does not have a conscience, punishing the parents doesn't do any good.''

Burbank's background checks apply only to adults. And when Glendale city staff members surveyed 21 other housing agencies in the state, they found only one includes minors in the screening process.

While the Glendale Housing Authority, consisting of the City Council, generally approves of background checks, it has not decided on whether minors should be included.

Glendale Mayor Gus Gomez said he believes minors should be included in background checks.

``If you happen to be a neighbor, it doesn't matter whether the criminal activity is coming from the adult or child,'' he said.

Another major issue the Housing Authority needs to determine is whether background checks should apply only to new tenants or to those who are now in the program.

Glendale Councilman Bob Yousefian, who is particularly concerned about child molesters, argued that everyone in the program should be checked out.

``There are people who may be predators we may not know of,'' he said. ``People find out later after some kid has been abused.''

Ultimately, who will be required to undergo background checks may be determined by the expenses entailed. Officials of the Glendale Police Department and the Housing Division both told the Housing Authority that they would need additional staff to handle the work.

Police Chief Russell Siverling also warned that researching the criminal backgrounds of minors might be difficult because their records are lodged with Juvenile Court and may not be easily accessible.

The Housing Authority is expected to approve background-check guidelines at a later date, after it has been presented with the cost of doing the work.

Although cities have discretionary power to craft parts of their own background-check standards, the federal government has spelled out a set of its own prohibitions.

Adopted in 2001, the prohibitions require cities to exclude any family with a household member who is currently engaging in illegal use of drugs; who has been convicted of drug-related criminal activity while living in federally-assisted housing; or who is a sex offender subject to a lifetime registration requirement.