FAQs - Recipient Responsibilities

Q. What are the responsibilities of recipient agencies under Section 3
Recipients are required to ensure their own compliance and the compliance of their contractors/subcontractors with the Section 3 regulations, as outlined at 24 CFR § 135.32. These responsibilities include but may not be necessarily limited to the following.

• Designing and implementing procedures to comply with the requirements of Section 3 in order to comply with Section 3: Recipient agencies must take an active role in ensuring Section 3 compliance. The first step is designing or planning and implementing procedures to ensure that all parties, including residents, businesses, contractors, and subcontractors, comply with Section 3.
• Facilitating the training and employment of Section 3 residents: The recipient agency must act as a facilitator, connecting Section 3 residents to training and employment opportunities.
• Facilitating the award of contracts to Section 3 business concerns: The recipient agency must also work to link developers and contractors with capable Section 3 business concerns. Additionally, recipient agencies, when necessary, may direct Section 3 business concerns to organizations that provide capacity building training.
• Ensuring Contractor and Subcontractor Awareness of Section 3 Goals and Responsibilities: The recipient agency is responsible for ensuring that contractors and subcontractors are aware of, and in compliance with, Section 3 requirements.
• Ensuring Compliance and Meeting Numerical Goals: Recipient agencies shall ensure compliance with Section 3 by assessing the hiring and subcontracting needs of contractors; regularly monitoring contractor compliance; assisting and actively cooperating with the Secretary of HUD in obtaining the compliance of contractors; Penalizing non-compliance; Providing incentives for good performance; and Refraining from entering into contracts with any contractor that previously failed to comply with the requirements of Section 3.
• Reporting Requirements: Recipient agencies must document all actions taken to comply with the requirements of Section 3: Recipient agencies must submit a Section 3 Annual Summary Report (Form HUD-60002) for all covered funding to the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. Section 3 reports shall be submitted electronically online at: hud.gov/section3.

Q. What are good strategies for targeting Section 3 residents and businesses?
In order to target Section 3 residents and businesses, recipients must establish and maintain an effective Section 3 program. HUD has found that hiring a Section 3 coordinator or assigning one individual the responsibility of coordinating all Section 3 related activities to be instrumental for reaching the employment and contracting goals.

It is recommended that recipient agencies establish procedures to certify Section 3 residents and Section 3 business concerns and incorporate some form of preference for employment and contracting opportunities.  Thereafter, they should maintain a list of eligible residents and businesses by skill, capacity or interest and contact them on a periodic basis when employment and contracting opportunities are available. Refer to the Section 3 Regulations at 24 CFR Part 135.32 for a listing of responsibilities and the Appendix to the Section 3 regulations for additional examples of effective strategies.

Q. Are funds provided to recipients so that they can comply with the requirements of Section 3?
No. Since Section 3 requirements are only triggered when the normal expenditure of covered funds results in employment, training, or contracting opportunities, there is no need for the Department to provide funds to meet the recipient responsibilities set forth in the regulation.

Q. Does Section 3 require recipient agencies to create new (or unnecessary) training, employment, and contracting opportunities?
Recipient agencies are not required to create jobs or contracts for Section 3 residents and business concerns simply for the sake of creating them. Section 3 requires that when employment or contracting opportunities are generated because a project or activity undertaken by a recipient of covered HUD financial assistance necessitates the employment of additional personnel through individual hiring or the awarding of contracts, the recipient must give preference in hiring to low- and very low- income persons and/or businesses that are owned by these persons or that substantially employ them.

Q. Are Section 3 residents or business concerns guaranteed employment or contracting opportunities under Section 3?
Section 3 is not an entitlement program, there are no guarantees. Residents and businesses must be able to demonstrate that they have the ability or capacity to perform the specific job or successfully complete the contract that they are seeking.

Section 3 requirements provide preference to Section 3 residents and business concerns, but not a guarantee.

Q. Are recipients, developers, and contractors required to provide long- term employment opportunities, and not simply seasonal or temporary employment?
Recipients, developers, and contractors are required, to the extent feasible, to direct all employment opportunities to low- and very low-income persons- including seasonal and temporary employment opportunities. Employment goals are based on "new hires," which are defined as full-time employees for permanent, temporary or seasonal employment opportunities.

Recipients, developers, and contractors are encouraged to provide long-term employment.

Q. When might a recipient agency be exempt from the requirements of Section 3?
Typically, the Department does not grant any exemptions or waivers related to Section 3.

Q. Are recipients REQUIRED to request developers or contractors to make payments into Section 3 training or implementation funds?
No. Recipients are not required to request noncompliant contractors make payments into a fund.

Providing employment, training, and subcontracting opportunities to Section 3 residents and businesses must be the primary goal of developers/contractors. However, such a fund can be used in very specific instances as a penalty for noncompliance.