A 4458 — Requires establishment of Public Housing Hotline Pilot Program in Bureau of Housing Inspection to enable certain public housing occupants to lodge complaints concerning living conditions.*

A4458 1R [First Reprint] ASSEMBLY, No.

Assemblyman Kearney and Assemblywoman Brennan         SYNOPSIS           Requires Bureauestablishment of Public Housing InspectionHotline toPilot establishProgram hotlinein andBureau maintainof databaseHousing forInspection to enable certain public housing occupants to lodge complaints concerning living conditions.conditions.    CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT      As reported by the Assembly Housing Committee on May 14, 2026, with amendments.

    CURRENTAn VERSIONAct OFconcerning TEXTthe     reporting Asof introduced.health and safety living conditions for certain public housing occupants 1[and supplementing P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-1 et seq.)]1.

   An Act concerning the reporting of health and safety living conditions for certain public housing occupants and supplementing P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-1 et seq.).

            1.   11.  a.        As Withinused onein yearP.L.    of, thec.    effective date of P.L.    , c.    (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill),bill): the Bureau of Housing Inspection in the Department of Community Affairs shall establish and maintain a toll-free telephone hotline available 24 hours a day, seven days per week, through which occupants of public housing, as determined under the federal "United States Housing Act of 1937" (42 U.S.C.

s.1437      et“Bureau” seq.),means maythe lodgeBureau complaintsof concerningHousing anyInspection health,in safety,the orDepartment generalof well-beingCommunity issuesAffairs.  related      to“Central theregion” livingmeans conditionsHunterdon, associatedMercer, withMiddlesex, theMonmouth, publicOcean, housingSomerset, facility.and Union counties.

           “Northern b.   region” Themeans hotlineBergen, establishedEssex, pursuantHudson, toMorris, subsectionPassaic, a.Sussex, and Warren Counties.

      "Pilot housing authority" means a housing authority, created or continued pursuant to P.L.1992, c.79 (C.40A:12A-1 et seq.), that has been selected by the bureau as a pilot housing authority pursuant to section 2 of P.L.    , c.    (pending before the Legislature as this bill).         “Pilot program” means the Public Housing Hotline Pilot Program established in the bureau pursuant to subsection a.

of section 2 of P.L.    , c.    (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

      “Pilot public housing” means public housing, as determined under the federal "United States Housing Act of 1937" (42 U.S.C.

s.1437 et seq.), that is administered by a pilot housing authority.  Pilot public housing shall not include housing made affordable only as a result of an occupant’s participation in the federal section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, or other tenant-based housing subsidy program.        “Southern region” means Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, and Salem counties.1        1[1.] 2.1  a.  1(1)1  Within one year of the effective date of P.L.    , c.    1[(C.       )]1 (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the 1[Bureau of Housing Inspection in the Department] Commissioner1 of Community Affairs shall establish 1[and maintain] in the bureau the Public Housing Hotline Pilot Program for the purpose of maintaining1 a toll-free telephone hotline available 24 hours a day, seven days per week, through which occupants of 1pilot1 public housing 1[, as determined under the federal "United States Housing Act of 1937" (42 U.S.C.

s.1437 et seq.),]1 may lodge complaints concerning any health, safety, or general well-being issues related to the living conditions associated with the public housing facility.       1(2)  The Commissioner of Community Affairs shall select for participation in the pilot program one housing authority in each of the northern, central, and southern regions to serve as the pilot housing authority for that region.  The pilot housing authority for the southern region shall be a housing authority for which the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has intervened to take possession of the authority’s programs, projects, and assets within the five years preceding the enactment of P.L.    , c.    (pending before the Legislature as this bill).  The pilot program shall operate for three years following the establishment of the hotline pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection.1      b.    The hotline established pursuant to subsection a.

     c.     The hotline shall receive calls related to the living conditions associated with 1pilot1 public housing and may respond to each call with general or individualized information regarding the laws, regulations, policies, and procedures relevant to the complaints.  Upon the request of a 1pilot1 public housing occupant who calls the hotline, the hotline shall provide the occupant with appropriate referrals for further assistance.  The bureau may employ different technologies and processes in operation of the hotline to ensure efficiency and integrity.

     1d.  Within 90 days following the conclusion of each administrative year for the pilot program, the commissioner shall submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), regarding the results of the pilot program.  The report shall include, but not be limited to, a discussion of the volume and subjects of complaints received, and the role of the pilot program in facilitating resolutions to complaints.  The final report shall include the opinion of the commissioner on the advisability of continuing, expanding, or modifying the pilot program.1        2.   1[2.] a.   3.1  a.  The bureau shall establish and maintain a centralized,centralized Statewide1[, Statewide]1 database compiling the substantiated complaints lodged from the hotline established pursuant to section 11[1] 21 of P.L.  P.L.    , c.  c.    (C.1[(C.        )]1 (pending before the Legislature as this bill) for which the bureau shall use to develop a comparative living condition profile of the 1[applicable] pilot1 public housing facilities, and shall post the profile for public inspection on the bureau’s Internet website in an easily accessible location.  The bureau may employ different technologies and processes in operation of the database to ensure efficiency and integrity.

) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) for which the bureau shall use to develop a comparative living condition profile of the applicable public housing facilities, and shall post the profile for public inspection on the bureau’s Internet website in an easily accessible location.  The bureau may employ different technologies and processes in operation of the database to ensure efficiency and integrity.

       3.   1[3.] 4.1  The Commissioner of Community Affairs, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall adopt rules and regulations as necessary to effectuate the provisions of P.L.    , c.    (C.       1[(C.        ))]1 (pending before the Legislature as this bill) to ensure the integrity of both the telephone hotline and the database established pursuant to sections 11[1] 21 and 21[2] 31 of P.L.    , c.    (C.       1[(C.      and        ))]1 (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and to encourage 1pilot1 public housing occupants to use the hotline, by providing for:

and      b.    the posting, in each 1pilot1 public housing facility, of the hotline number and the database Internet website in one or more easily accessible, publicly conspicuous locations.

            4.   1[4.] 5.1  This act shall take effect immediately.immediately 1, and shall expire upon submission of the final report required to be prepared pursuant to subsection d.

    STATEMENT        This bill requires the Bureau of Housingsection Inspection2 in the Department of Communitythis Affairsact1. to establish and maintain a toll-free telephone hotline available 24 hours a day, seven days per week, through which occupants of public housing, as determined under the federal "United States Housing Act of 1937" (42 U.S.C.

s.1437 et seq.), may lodge complaints concerning any health, safety, or general well-being issues related to the living conditions associated with the public housing facility.       The hotline is required, at a minimum, to:

·        include among its staff of live operators persons who speak English and Spanish;

·        offer a multilingual, interactive voice technology response as an alternative option;

and ·        protect caller anonymity.

     Under the bill, the hotline is required to receive calls related to the living conditions associated with public housing and is authorized to respond to each call with general or individualized information regarding the laws, regulations, policies, and procedures relevant to the complaints.       The bill also requires the bureau to establish and maintain a centralized, Statewide database compiling the substantiated complaints lodged from the hotline for the development of a comparative profile of the applicable public housing facilities, and to post the profile for public inspection on the bureau’s Internet website in an easily accessible location.

     The database is required to contain information including, but not limited to:

·        the total number of substantiated complaints lodged, including the total number of substantiated complaints lodged per public housing facility;

·        categories concerning the nature of the substantiated complaints of the living conditions;

·        whether the Commissioner of Community Affairs or local agency have discovered a violation of P.L.1967, c.76 (C.55:13A-1 et seq.) or any other law affecting the habitability or living conditions of the public facility;

·        the specific corrective actions that were taken, and number of reinspections necessary, if any, to address the substantiated complaints or violations;

and ·        the average response time from the time of the substantiated complaint being lodged on the hotline to the time the condition was addressed and, as applicable, abated.

     To ensure the integrity of both the telephone hotline and the database, and to encourage public housing occupants to use the hotline, the commissioner is required to adopt rules and regulations to provide for:

the confidentiality of the names of the occupants calling the hotline and any individual named or otherwise identified during a call;

and the posting, in each public housing facility, of the hotline number and the database Internet website in one or more easily accessible, publicly conspicuous locations.  The bureau is authorized to employ different technologies and processes in operation of both the hotline and the database to ensure efficiency and integrity.