HOUSING AUTHORITY GETS BOOST CITY TO CRACK DOWN ON THOSE WHO CHEAT TO GET RENT BREAK.Byline: Jason Kandel Staff Writer BURBANK Burbank, city (1990 pop. 93,643), Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1911. Tourism and the entertainment industry are central to its economy; several motion-picture studios and television headquarters are here. Burbank's aerospace industry collapsed with the end of the Cold War. - The City Council has given the city's Housing Authority the power to crack down on local renters who underreport un·der·re·port tr.v. un·der·re·port·ed, un·der·re·port·ing, un·der·re·ports To report (income or crime statistics, for example) as being less than actually is the case. their incomes to take advantage of the low-income-housing system. The council voted Tuesday night to give housing officials the authority to turn scofflaw scoff·law n. One who habitually violates the law or fails to answer court summonses. Noun 1. scofflaw - one who habitually ignores the law and does not answer court summonses families over to collection agencies or sue them for saying they make less than they actually do. The Housing Authority, which administers the 1,014 so-called Section 8 vouchers, will begin identifying renters who owe more than $3,000 and try to collect by first sending them warning letters. ``If they don't pay after the letter, the city has the authority ... to file a claim in civil court,'' said Judy Carter, the city's housing officer. ``If they don't pay, they can never get back on the program. The ones that we will probably go after, the overpayments are substantial.'' Mayor Jef Vander Borght said officials believe less than 10 households in Burbank have underreported incomes, and the city has overpaid o·ver·pay v. o·ver·paid , o·ver·pay·ing, o·ver·pays v.tr. 1. To pay (a party) too much. 2. To pay an amount in excess of (a sum due). v.intr. To pay too much. them between $20,000 and $30,000. ``It's not fair,'' Vander Borght said. ``They're depriving other people of an opportunity to receive a subsidy subsidy, financial assistance granted by a government or philanthropic foundation to a person or association for the purpose of promoting an enterprise considered beneficial to the public welfare. . We have over 7,000 people on a waiting list.'' The news comes as Southern California's record home prices and rising rents put the squeeze on low- and moderate-income renters. Some 1,000 affordable housing units exist within Burbank. Another 1,000 families get Section 8 vouchers to rent privately owned apartments and homes. To qualify for Section 8, a family of four can earn no more than $32,750 per year in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County. Across the county, about 183,000 people are on waiting lists for 20,000 Section 8 vouchers, officials said. Janet Janet: see Clouet, Jean. JANET - Joint Academic NETwork Huston, a spokeswoman for the state's Department of Housing and Community Development, said many people would be homeless if not for Section 8. ``In a state that already has the worst affordability rankings in the nation, further loss of these critical subsidies makes the situation that much more desperate for people who are barely able to afford safe and permanent shelter even with the vouchers,'' Huston said. Jason Kandel, (818) 546-3306 jason.kandel(at)dailynews.com |
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