8107. VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT (VAWA): NOTIFICATION, DOCUMENTATION, AND CONFIDENTIALITY

8107 VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT (VAWA): NOTIFICATION, DOCUMENTATION, AND CONFIDENTIALITY 8107.1 The Violence against Women Reauthorization Act of 2022 (VAWA) provides special protections for victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking who are public housing applicants or residents. The purpose of § 8107 is to help ensure that all actual and potential beneficiaries of DCHA’s public housing program are aware of their rights under VAWA. 8107.2 VAWA protections are available to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, national origin, religion, familial status, disability, or age. 8107.3 In addition to definitions of key terms used in VAWA, § 8107 contains general VAWA requirements and DCHA’s policies in three areas: notification, documentation, and confidentiality. 8107.4 As used in VAWA: The term “affiliated individual” means, with respect to a person: A spouse, parent, brother or sister, or child of that individual, or an individual to whom that person stands in the position or place of a parent; or Any individual, tenant or lawful occupant living in the household of the victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking; The term “bifurcate” means, with respect to a public housing lease, to divide a lease as a matter of law such that certain tenants can be evicted or removed while the remaining family members’ lease and occupancy rights are allowed to remain intact; The term “dating violence” means violence committed by a person who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and where the existence of such a relationship is determined based on a consideration of the following factors: The length of the relationship; The type of relationship; and The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship; The term “domestic violence” includes felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim under the family or domestic violence laws of the jurisdiction receiving grant funding, and in the case of victim services, includes the user or attempted use of physical abuse or sexual abuse, or a pattern of any other coercive behavior committed, enabled, or solicited to gain or maintain power and control over a victim, including verbal, psychological, economic, or technological abuse that may or may not constitute criminal behavior, by a person who is: The current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim, or person similarly situated to a spouse or intimate partner of the victim; A person who is cohabitating or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse or intimate partner; A person with whom the victim shares a child in common; and A person who commits acts against a youth or adult victim who is protected from those acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the jurisdiction. The term “economic abuse” means behavior that is coercive, deceptive, or unreasonably controls or restrains a person’s ability to acquire, use, or maintain economic resources to which they are entitled, including using coercion, fraud, and manipulation to: (1) Restrict a person’s access to money, assets, credit, or financial information; (2) Unfairly use a person’s personal economic resources, including money, assets, and credit, for one’s own advantage; and (3) Exert undue influence over a person’s financial and economic behavior or decisions, including forcing default on joint or other financial obligations, exploiting powers of attorney, guardianship, or conservatorship, or to whom one has a fiduciary duty; The term “sexual assault” means any nonconsensual sexual act proscribed by Federal, tribal, or State law, including when the victim lacks the capacity to consent; The term “stalking” means to engage in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for their safety or the safety of others, or suffer substantial emotional distress; and The term “technological abuse” means an act or pattern of behavior that occurs within domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking and is intended to harm, threaten, intimidate, control, stalk, harass, impersonate, exploit, extort, or monitor another person, except as otherwise permitted by law, that occurs using any form of technology, including but not limited to: (1) Internet enabled devices; (2) Online spaces and platforms; (3) Computers; (4) Mobile devices; (5) Cameras and imaging programs; (6) Apps; (7) Location tracking devices; (8) Communication technologies, or (9) Any other emergency technologies. 8107.5 DCHA will post the following information regarding VAWA in its offices and on its website. It shall also make the information readily available to anyone who requests it: A notice of occupancy rights under VAWA to public housing program applicants and participants who are or have been victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking (Form HUD-5380); A copy of form HUD-5382, Certification of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking and Alternate Documentation; A copy of DCHA’s emergency transfer plan; A copy of HUD’s Emergency Transfer Request for Certain Victims of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking, form HUD-5383; The National Domestic Violence Hot Line: 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or 1-800787-3224 (TTY); and Contact information for local victim advocacy groups or service providers. 8107.6 DCHA will provide the notice of occupancy rights under VAWA, along with the VAWA self-certification form (HUD-5382), as follows: The VAWA information provided to applicants and tenants will consist of the notices specified in §§ 8107.5(a) and 8107.6; DCHA will provide all applicants with information about VAWA at the time they request an application for housing assistance. DCHA will also include such information in all notices of denial of assistance; and DCHA will provide all tenants with information about VAWA at the time of admission and at reexamination. DCHA will also include such information in all lease termination notices. 8107.7 DCHA’s alternative methods of communicating with the VAWA victim include the following: Whenever DCHA has reason to suspect that providing information about VAWA to a public housing tenant might place a victim of domestic violence at risk, DCHA will attempt to deliver the information by other means, i.e., by hand directly to the victim, email, or by having the victim come to an office or other space that may be safer for the individual, making reasonable accommodations as necessary. DCHA may decide not to send mail regarding VAWA protections to the victim’s unit if DCHA believes the perpetrator may have access to the victim’s mail, unless requested by the victim; When discussing VAWA with the victim, DCHA will take reasonable precautions to ensure that no one can overhear the conversation such as having conversations in a private room; and The victim may, but is not required to, designate an attorney, advocate, or other secure contact for communications regarding VAWA protections. The victim must provide to DCHA an authorization to release information to the designee. 8107.8 If a tenant or applicant requests protections under VAWA, DCHA will request in writing that the tenant provide documentation in accordance with § 8107. Any request for documentation of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking shall be in writing, shall specify a deadline of 30 calendar days following receipt of the request, will describe the three forms of acceptable documentation, will provide explicit instructions on where and to whom the documentation must be submitted, and will state the consequences for failure to submit the documentation or request an extension in writing by the deadline; DCHA may, in its discretion, extend the deadline for ten (10) business days. In determining whether to extend the deadline, DCHA shall consider factors that may contribute to the victim’s inability to provide documentation in a timely manner, including cognitive limitations, disabilities, limited English proficiency, absence from the unit, administrative delays, the danger of further violence, and the victim’s need to address health or safety issues. Any extension granted by DCHA will be in writing. If the tenant or applicant fails to provide the documentation within 30 calendar days from the date of receipt of the written request for documentation, or such longer time as permitted in § 8107.8(b), DCHA may deny relief for protection under VAWA. 8107.9 The individual may satisfy DCHA’s request by providing any one of the following three (3) forms of documentation: A completed and signed HUD-approved certification form (HUD-5382, Certification of Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, or Stalking) or comparable report or document providing the required information, which must include the name of the perpetrator only if the name of the perpetrator is safe to provide and is known to the victim. The form may be filled out and submitted on behalf of the victim; A federal, state, tribal, territorial, or local police report or court record, or an administrative record that documents the incident of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking (i.e., police reports, protective orders, and restraining orders); or Documentation signed by a person who has assisted the victim in addressing domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and/or stalking, or the effects of such abuse. This person may be an employee, agent, or volunteer of a victim service provider; an attorney; a mental health professional; or a medical professional. The person signing the documentation must attest under penalty of perjury to the person’s belief that the incidents in question are bona fide incidents of abuse. The victim must also sign the documentation. 8107.10 DCHA will not require third-party documentation in addition to the HUD- approved certification form, except in instances of conflicting documentation. 8107.11 Once the victim provides documentation, DCHA shall acknowledge receipt of the documentation. 8107.12 If presented with conflicting certification documents from members of the same household, DCHA will attempt to determine which is the true victim by requiring each of them to provide third-party documentation in accordance with § 8107.9(b)-(c). When requesting third-party documents, DCHA shall provide contact information for local domestic violence and legal aid offices. In such cases, applicants or tenants will be given thirty (30) calendar days from the date of the request to provide such documentation. 8107.13 If DCHA does not receive third-party documentation within the required timeframe (and any extensions), DCHA will deny VAWA protections and shall notify the applicant or tenant in writing of the denial. If, as a result, the applicant or tenant is denied or terminated from the program, DCHA will hold separate hearings for the applicants or tenants. 8107.14 If DCHA receives third-party documentation within the required timeframe, the documentation will be reviewed by DCHA’s VAWA panel and a recommendation shall be made to the program for final determination. 8107.15 Generally, DCHA will require documentation of abuse as outlined § 8107.9. If DCHA accepts an individual’s statement or other corroborating evidence of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, DCHA will document acceptance of the individual’s statement or evidence. 8107.16 All information provided to DCHA regarding domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, including the fact that an individual is a victim of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking, will be retained in confidence. 8107.17 With respect to the information in § 8107.16, DCHA will not: (a) Enter the information into any shared database; (b) Allow employees or others to access the information unless they are explicitly authorized to do so and have a need to know the information for purposes of their work; and (c) Provide the information to any other entity or individual, except to the extent that the disclosure is: (1) Requested or consented to by the individual in writing in a time- limited release, (2) Required for use in an eviction proceeding; or (3) Otherwise required by applicable law. 8107.18 If disclosure is required for use in an eviction proceeding or is otherwise required by applicable law, DCHA will inform the victim before disclosure occurs so that safety risks can be identified and addressed. SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 73 DCR 007351 (May 15, 2026). District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Housing 14 DCMR § 8107