(A) Established.
(1) (a) The governing body shall appoint five persons who shall constitute the Housing Authority and such persons shall be called the Commissioners. One Commissioner shall be appointed each year. Each Commissioner shall serve a five-year term of office or until his or her successor is duly appointed; provided, that all vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired terms.
(b) The governing body may appoint one of its members to serve as one of the five members of such Housing Authority for such term as the governing body may determine. No person shall serve as a Commissioner unless he or she resides within the area of operation of that Housing Authority. A certificate of the appointment or reappointment of any Commissioner shall be filed with the Municipal Clerk and such certificate shall be conclusive evidence of the proper appointment of such Commissioner. A Commissioner shall receive no compensation for his or her services, but he or she shall be entitled to the necessary expenses, including travel expenses, incurred in discharge of his or her duties. A majority of Commissioners shall constitute a quorum of the Authority for the purpose of conducting its business, exercising its powers and for all other purposes. Action may be taken by the Authority upon the vote of the majority of the Commissioners present unless in any case the bylaws of the Authority shall require a larger number.
(c) The Commissioners shall elect a Chairperson and Vice Chairperson from among the Commissioners and shall have the power to employ an executive director who shall serve as ex officio secretary of the Authority. The Authority may also employ legal counsel, or it may call upon the chief law officer of the municipality, for such services as it may require. It may employ technical experts and such other officers, agents and employees as it may require and shall determine their qualifications, duties, compensations and terms of office. The Authority may delegate such other powers and duties to its agents or employees as it may deem proper. During his or her tenure, and for one year thereafter, no Commissioner, officer or employee of the Municipal Housing Authority shall voluntarily acquire any interest, direct or indirect, in any project or in any property included or planned to be included in any project, or in any contract or proposed contract relating to any housing project. If any such Commissioner, officer or employee involuntarily acquires any such interest, or voluntarily or involuntarily acquired any such interest prior to appointment or employment as Commissioner, officer or employee, he or she shall immediately disclose his or her interest in writing to the Authority, and such disclosure shall be entered upon the minutes of the Authority, and he or she shall not participate in any action by the Authority relating to the property or contract in which he or she has any such interest; provided, that nothing herein shall apply to the acquisition of any interest in notes or bonds of the Authority issued in connection with any housing project, or to the execution of agreements by banking institutions for deposit or handling of funds in connection with a project or to act as trustee under any trust indenture, or to utility services, the rates for which are fixed or controlled by a governmental agency.
(d) The Mayor may remove a Commissioner for neglect of duty or misconduct in office in the manner prescribed hereinafter. The Mayor shall send a notice of removal to such Commissioner which notice shall contain a statement containing the charges against him or her. Unless, within ten days from the receipt of such notice, such Commissioner files with the Clerk a request for a hearing before the governing body, the Commissioner shall be deemed as removed from office. If a request for a hearing is filed with the Clerk, the governing body of the municipality shall hold a hearing at which the Commissioner shall have the right to appear in person or by counsel and the governing body shall determine whether the removal shall be disapproved or upheld. If the removal is disapproved, the Commissioner shall continue to hold his or her position.
(2) The Housing Authority shall keep an accurate account of all its activities and of all its receipts and disbursements and shall make a report to the governing body on all such information.
(Prior Code, § 2-206)
(B) Operation and management.
(1) The Authority shall at all times observe the following duties with respect to rentals and tenant selection.
(a) It may rent or lease dwelling accommodations therein only to persons of low income, elderly or handicapped persons of low income and displaced persons in need.
(b) There shall be no discrimination in the eligibility or occupancy of tenants on the basis of race, sex, marital status, religion, color, creed, national origin or ancestry.
(c) The Authority shall not accept any person as a tenant in any dwelling in the housing project if the persons who occupy the dwelling have an aggregate annual income which equals or exceeds the amount which the Authority has conclusively determined to be sufficient to enable one to secure, safe, sanitary and uncongested dwelling accommodations within the area served by the Authority and to provide an adequate standard of living.
(d) The Authority may rent or lease to a tenant a dwelling consisting of a number of rooms which is deemed necessary to provide safe and sanitary accommodations to the occupants without overcrowding.
(e) The Authority shall fix income limits for occupancy and rents after taking into consideration:
1. The family size, composition, age, physical handicaps and other factors which might affect the rent-paying ability of the person; and
2. The economic factors which affect the financial stability and solvency of the project.
(f) The Authority may accept as a tenant any displaced person or persons in need, regardless of income, but in no event shall such person or persons remain as a tenant or tenants of the Authority for more than a period of six months unless such persons also qualify as persons of low income, elderly or handicapped persons of low income.
(g) All persons of low income, elderly or handicapped persons of low income, or displaced persons in need, shall be entitled to the benefits of this section and the Authority may establish rules and regulations consistent with the purposes of this section concerning eligibility and occupancy of the housing project or other such shelter.
(h) Nothing herein shall prohibit the right of the Authority to inquire into the financial condition, family composition, medical, personal and employment history of any tenant or prospective tenant.
(i) The Authority shall prohibit subletting by tenants.
(2) The Authority may establish from time to time rules and regulations consistent with federal and state laws and regulations and the purposes of this section concerning the termination of tenancy. Any tenant so terminated shall be sent a written notice of termination setting out the reasons for such termination and any tenant served with a notice shall be given the opportunity to contest the termination in an appropriate hearing, except that tenants who have created or maintained a threat constituting a serious and clear danger to the health or safety of other tenants or Authority employees need not be given such a hearing by the Authority. Such notice may provide that if the tenant fails to pay his or her rent or comply with any covenant or condition of his or her lease, or the rules and regulations of such Authority, or cure a violation or default thereof, as the case may be, as specified in such notice, or follow the procedure for a hearing as set forth in the notice, all within the time or times set forth in such notice, the tenancy shall then be automatically terminated, and no other notice or notices need be given of such termination or the intent to terminate the tenancy, and upon such termination, and without any notice other than as provided for in this section, the Authority may file suit against any tenant for recovery of possession of the premises and may recover the same as provided by law.
(3) The Authority may establish from time to time rules and regulations consistent with the purposes of this section concerning personal property of tenants and other persons located in projects of the Authority, and if such personal property is not removed from a dwelling unit at the time of the termination of the lease, at the time of vacation or abandonment of the dwelling unit or at the time of the death of any tenant, then the Authority may remove the same and store such property at the tenant’s risk and expense. In the event that possession of such personal property is not taken by the tenant or other person authorized by law to take possession within 45 days after such termination, vacation or abandonment, and any storage removal charges remain unpaid, then the Authority may, at its option, dispose of the personal property in any manner which the Authority deems fit, except that any proceeds from the disposal of such personal property shall be paid to the General Fund of the body which created the Authority. No tenant or other person shall have any cause of action against the Authority for such removal or disposition of such personal property.
(Prior Code, § 2-207)
(C) Rules and regulations. The Housing Authority may establish from time to time rules and regulations consistent with the purposes of this section concerning the priority of eligible applicants for occupancy. The Authority may give preferential treatment to applicants who are service members or veterans, relatives of service members or veterans, to disabled service members or veterans, the elderly or disabled, those in urgent need of adequate housing or who have no adequate source of income; provided, that in any such system of priority, displaced persons in need shall have a priority ahead of all other persons; and provided further, that no tenant in good standing then in occupancy and qualified for continued occupancy shall have his or her tenancy terminated in order to provide dwelling units for classes or categories of applicants as the Authority may establish.
(Prior Code, § 2-208)
(D) Reports. The Housing Authority shall keep an accurate account of all its activities and of all its receipts and disbursements and shall make an annual report at the second regular meeting in January of each year to the governing body. Such report shall include all mortgages and other interests in real property held by the Housing Authority, including options to purchase and land sale contracts; a listing of all bond issues and their essential terms and obligations; and all other financial obligations of the Housing Authority over $50,000. Such reports shall be considered public records. If there has been no change from the last report in the status of any of the items reported pursuant to this section, the Housing Authority may file a statement to that effect in lieu of the report.
(Prior Code, § 2-209)
(E) Using authority; ownership. The Municipal Housing Authority is owned by the municipality and operated through the Housing Authority Commission. The Housing Authority shall constitute a body corporate and politic and shall have all the powers necessary or convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of the State Housing Authority Law.
(Prior Code, § 2-210)
(F) Definitions. Except as otherwise specifically provided, the definitions and terms set out in the state statutes relating to Housing Authorities under the State Housing Authority Law are hereby adopted by reference as they now exist or may hereafter be amended.
(Prior Code, § 2-211)
Statutory reference:
Similar provisions, see Neb. RS 71-1522, 71-1524 through 71-1526, 71-1529, 71-1536 and 71-1547