WILLIAM H. STEELE, Chief Judge.
This matter comes before the Court on defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment (doc. 63). The Motion has been briefed and is now ripe for disposition.
Plaintiff, Donavette Ely, brought this action against defendant, Mobile Housing Board, alleging constitutional deprivations, regulatory violations, and disability discrimination
At all times relevant to this action, the Mobile Housing Board (the "Board") operated a Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program (the "Section 8 Program"). This Section 8 Program "allows the family to go out to rent from a private landlord. [The Board] pay[s] a portion and the family pays a portion based on their income." (Griffin Dep. (doc. 64-2), at 15-16.) Eligible participants report their income on an annual basis, after which the Board confirms that data and computes the maximum rental amount via a mathematical formula. (Id. at 16-17, 43.) This annual calculation process is referred to as a "recertification." (Id.) The size of the voucher (i.e., number of bedrooms) is determined by reference to a preexisting administrative plan that takes into account the income and specific demographic characteristics (age, gender, etc.) of the family composition of the household. (Id. at 16-17, 43.) The Board then issues a voucher to the participant for the designated number of bedrooms and the designated "shopping amount." (Id. at 19-20, 43.) This shopping amount represents the maximum monthly rental amount that a landlord can receive for the unit, regardless of whether the Board or the participant pays it. (Id. at 43-45.) Again, the Board determines the shopping amount pursuant to a predetermined payment standard that considers the number of bedrooms and the participant's income. (Id. at 19-20, 40.)
As Ely understood from her extensive experience in the Section 8 Program, the participant bears sole responsibility for shopping the voucher and reaching agreement with a landlord to accept the voucher. (Ely Dep. (doc. 64-1), at 124-26.) The Board maintained what it called a "courtesy vacancy list" of landlords who had expressed willingness to rent under the Section 8 Program, and shared that list with participants. (Griffin Dep., at 47.) The Board also directed participants to housing information sources such as the Apartment Guide, the Mobile Register, and so on. (Id. at 48.) Initial vouchers issued by the Board were valid for 60 days. (Id. at 65.) As a Board official put it, "We're holding a pot of money for the family to shop for a unit for 60 days." (Id. at 37.) If a participant fails to reach agreement with a landlord for a suitable unit within that 60-day period, the Board in its discretion may extend the voucher for additional 30-day increments (up to a maximum voucher duration
Once the participant identifies a suitable unit and reaches agreement with the landlord, the Board contacts the landlord to schedule an inspection. (Id. at 20.) After the unit passes inspection, the Board makes a determination of rent reasonableness (essentially comparing the proposed rental rate to the unit's value), allows for rental negotiations with the landlord, and determines the relative rental portions of the Board and the participant. (Id. at 21-22.) Finally, the landlord executes a housing assistance payment contract (sometimes called the "HAP Contract"). (Id. at 22.)
Ely, a single mother of five children between the ages of 1 and 18, had participated in the Section 8 Program since in or about 1996. (Ely Dep. (doc. 74), at 19-20.) At all times relevant to this matter, Ely had only four children (her youngest was born in April 2012, after the events underlying this lawsuit took place). Over the years, Ely had utilized Section 8 Program vouchers to rent housing at no fewer than five addresses. (Id. at 22-26.) She knew how the Program worked, and what her obligations were as a participant. As of 2009, she was receiving a voucher from the Board for a three-bedroom unit. (Id. at 37.) At that time, Ely requested a voucher for a four-bedroom unit for medical reasons as an accommodation to her asthmatic eldest son, Devin Ely ("Devin"). (Id.) As plaintiff explained the situation, "Devin wanted to be cold at all times," while neither Ely nor the younger children desired such chilly temperatures inside their home. (Id. at 40.) Ely's perception was that Devin "couldn't breathe if the heat was on" in the wintertime. (Id.) Based on this concern, Ely wanted a larger house so that "Devin would have his own room, and his own temperature setting." (Id. at 44.)
The Board's response when Ely raised this concern was that she needed to obtain a letter from a doctor. (Id. at 40.) Ely then submitted a letter from Dr. Mark Donahue of the Mobile County Health Department dated March 27, 2009. (Stokes Aff. (doc. 64, Exh. C), ¶ 4.) That letter stated in general terms that, "Due to multiple problems related to asthma, sleep apnea and weight, Devin would benefit from having separate thermostat controls in his bedroom." (Doc. 75, Exh. 4.) The Board notified Ely that the letter needed to be on the physician's letterhead. (Stokes Aff., ¶ 5.) So Ely submitted a second letter from Dr. Donahue, dated May 22, 2009 and printed on Health Department letterhead. (Doc. 75, Exh. 3.) In that letter, Dr. Donahue explained that Devin "has problems with chronic asthma," that "[a]sthma attacks can have many triggers, some being changes in temperature and stress," and that "[h]aving a separate room with separate temperature maintenance, may lead to lessening temperature related stress and thus decrease the likelihood of asthma flare-ups." (Id.) Notwithstanding those letters, Board caseworker Kimberly Stokes determined that Ely's family qualified for only a three-bedroom voucher, based on the following considerations: (i) the Section 8 Occupancy Chart allows for as many as six people to live in a three-bedroom unit; (ii) separate thermostats are not possible in Section 8 homes; and (iii) Devin's asthma could be accommodated by placing him in a separate bedroom with a window air-conditioner, and the other four family members could share the remaining two bedrooms. (Stokes Aff., ¶ 8.) On that basis, the Board issued a
Ely requested a meeting to discuss the decision to issue her a three-bedroom voucher. (Doc. 75, Exh. 6.) Via letter dated July 28, 2009, the Board scheduled a meeting for August 13, 2009. (Id.) At that meeting (which Ely attended), Stokes' supervisor upheld the decision to issue a three-bedroom voucher. (Stokes Aff., ¶ 9.) Following the meeting, Ely submitted a handwritten request for "hearing," citing grounds of "unprofessionalism" and asserting that "my son's medical reasons were not considered." (Doc. 75, Exh. 5.) The Board originally scheduled the hearing for September 9, 2009, but later reset it for September 28, 2009 to accommodate Ely's request for additional time to obtain counsel. (Doc. 64, Exhs. G & H.) A letter dated September 17, 2009 notified Ely that the hearing had been reset for September 28, 2009 at 2:30 p.m. at a specific location. (Doc. 64, Exh. H.) The September 17 letter further specified that, "If you fail to appear within 15 minutes of the scheduled time, the hearing will not be held or rescheduled." (Id.) Ely failed to appear at the designated hearing location at the appointed date and time. (Stokes Aff., ¶ 11.) In her deposition, Ely acknowledged her failure to attend what she called "a follow-up meeting" with Board officials. (Ely Dep., at 58.) Ely further conceded that she received the meetings and hearings she requested. (Id. at 65.)
As of early 2010, Ely resolved that she did not want a three-bedroom voucher and did not want to live in the three-bedroom home on Martin Drive that she was then renting. She wanted a larger place. (Ely Dep., at 62-63.) On March 26, 2010, Ely submitted to the Board a "Move Letter" indicating that she intended to leave her current Section 8 housing before her lease expired. (Doc. 75, Exh. 2.) Based on this announcement, and to facilitate her efforts to shop for housing, the Board prepared a new three-bedroom voucher for Ely on March 29, 2010, and expiring on May 28, 2010. (Doc. 64, Exh. I.) Ely persisted in requesting a four-bedroom voucher. Once again, she requested a four-bedroom voucher based on Devin's asthma; however, Ely never returned the reasonable accommodation form to support the request. (Doc. 64, Exhs. W, X, Y.) By Ely's own admission, this omission was because Devin's treating physician "felt uncomfortable" completing the form, which would have contained a medical certification that Devin "may not share a bedroom with another individual." (Id.)
Notwithstanding this setback, Ely ultimately got her wish. In May 2010, the Board issued Ely a four-bedroom voucher because "[her] family size and the ages of [her] children justified it." (Doc. 64, Exh. Y.)
For reasons not divulged in the record, Ely did not immediately voice her concerns about the new voucher to the Board. Instead, Ely waited until July 12, 2010, the voucher's expiration date, to notify her caseworker, Barbara Mitchell, that she had left the voucher at the front desk because she was unhappy with its appearance and the shopping amount. (Doc. 64, Exh. K.)
Plaintiff's evidence is that she experienced difficulty locating a four-bedroom unit within the maximum $746 monthly rental amount for which she had been approved. (Ely Dep., at 74-76.) Ely spoke with Mitchell and other Board officials, requesting that her voucher amount be raised, but they declined to budge from the properly-calculated $746 maximum amount. (Doc. 64, Exh. U.) Shortly before her voucher expired, Ely found a home on Highland Woods Drive that she deemed suitable, and moved in even though the Section 8 Program procedures had not yet been completed. (Ely Dep., at 73-77.) Ely did not enter into a lease or agreement of any kind with the landlord at the Highland Woods address, but simply accepted on faith the landlord's vague statement that she would "work with" Ely. (Id. at 80-81.) Plaintiff and the landlord (who is not a party to this litigation) never reached an agreement as to rent. (Id. at 84-85.)
On September 18, 2010, the date on which her voucher expired, Ely submitted to the Board a "Request for Tenancy Approval" on the Highland Woods house, listing
On October 13, 2010, the Board issued a letter to Ely's landlord explaining that "[t]he maximum rent we can pay this year would be $746.00." (Doc. 64, Exh. R.) The October 13 letter elaborated that "[f]amilies are not allowed to pay additional amounts" above and beyond the Board's contribution under the Section 8 Program. (Id.) The landlord checked and signed a box on the letter indicating that "[t]he maximum rent listed above is not acceptable." (Id.) Accordingly, the landlord did not sign a contract to rent a unit to Ely under the Section 8 Program. (Doc. 64, Exh. W.) Ely, who was already living in the Highland Woods house, never paid any rent to her landlord and never reached agreement as to a monthly rental amount. (Ely Dep., at 91, 96, 128.) In January 2011, the landlord commenced eviction proceedings against Ely for non-payment of rent. (Doc. 64, Exh. S.)
In the meantime, Ely faced pressing problems with respect to her status in the Section 8 Program. Recall that when the Board extended her four-bedroom voucher in July 2010, it notified Ely that no further extensions would be granted beyond the September 18, 2010 expiration date. That date had now come and gone without Ely having submitted an acceptable Request for Tenancy Approval Form identifying suitable housing anywhere close to the financial constraints of that voucher. On September 27, 2010, the Board wrote to Ely, explained these circumstances, and stated that "[y]our final voucher expired on September 18, 2010." (Doc. 64, Exh. Y.) On February 1, 2011, the Board followed up with another letter to Ely, reiterating the pertinent facts and circumstances and concluding as follows: "Having exhausted all allowable extensions of your voucher, you are hereby terminated from the [Section 8] Program." (Doc. 64, Exh. U.)
In the February 1 letter, the Board notified Ely that she could contact Board
Summary judgment should be granted only "if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Rule 56(a), Fed.R.Civ.P. The party seeking summary judgment bears "the initial burden to show the district court, by reference to materials on file, that there are no genuine issues of material fact that should be decided at trial." Clark v. Coats & Clark, Inc., 929 F.2d 604, 608 (11th Cir.1991). Once the moving party has satisfied its responsibility, the burden shifts to the non-movant to show the existence of a genuine issue of material fact. Id. "If the nonmoving party fails to make `a sufficient showing on an essential element of her case with respect to which she has the burden of proof,' the moving party is entitled to summary judgment." Id. (quoting Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986)) (footnote omitted). "In reviewing whether the nonmoving party has met its burden, the court must stop short of weighing the evidence and making credibility determinations of the truth of the matter. Instead, the evidence of the non-movant is to be believed, and all justifiable inferences are to be drawn in his favor." Tipton v. Bergrohr GMBH-Siegen, 965 F.2d 994, 999 (11th Cir.1992) (internal citations and quotations omitted). "Summary judgment is justified only for those cases devoid of any need for factual determinations." Offshore Aviation v. Transcon Lines, Inc., 831 F.2d 1013, 1016 (11th Cir.1987) (citation omitted).
As noted, Ely's Complaint asserts three categories of causes of action against the Board. First, she brings a claim under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging denial of due process, to-wit: The Board "terminated Plaintiff's housing assistance payments without providing her with due process, and denied her adequate notice or a meaningful opportunity to be heard." (Doc. 1, ¶ 30.) Second, the Complaint alleges that the Board violated HUD requirements and regulations by (i) terminating her housing assistance payments "without first advising her of the specific grounds," (ii) failing to provide Ely "with an opportunity to examine any documents or records related to the termination," (iii) failing to inform Ely of her "option to pursue a formal hearing if a settlement is not reached in the informal conference hearing," (iv) failing "to provide an impartial hearing officer," and (v) allowing the hearing officer's decision to be "based completely on hearsay evidence." (Id., ¶¶ 24-27.) Third, the Complaint asserts statutory claims for violation of what plaintiff calls the "Federal Housing Amendment Act" and the "American Disabilities Act," grounded in allegations that the Board failed to provide reasonable accommodation for Ely's minor child's disability. Plaintiff's theory, as articulated in
Ely's § 1983 claim alleges that the Board violated her due process rights under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments by (i) "terminat[ing] Plaintiff's housing assistance payments without providing her with due process," and (ii) "den[ying] her adequate notice or a meaningful opportunity to be heard." (Doc. 1, ¶ 30.)
As a general matter, plaintiff is correct that recipients of Section 8 housing benefits are widely acknowledged to have a property interest in continued receipt of these benefits. See, e.g., Swift v. McKeesport Housing Authority, 726 F.Supp.2d 559, 574 (W.D.Pa.2010) ("Plaintiff's Section 8 voucher, like welfare benefits, is a property interest for purposes of due process.").
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Board moves for summary judgment on Ely's due process claims on the ground that no process was due in this case. It is beyond cavil, of course, that no constitutional right to procedural due process lies in the absence of a protected liberty or property interest.
Defendant's conclusion that Ely was owed no due process with respect to her expired voucher is bolstered by regulations promulgated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development ("HUD"). The HUD regulations explain that in the Section 8 context, a public housing authority (or "PHA") such as the Board "is not required to provide a participant family an opportunity for an informal hearing for... a PHA determination not to approve an extension or suspension of a voucher term." 24 C.F.R. § 982.555(b)(4).
In response, plaintiff does not challenge defendant's argument that a constitutionally protected property interest lapses when a Section 8 housing voucher expires. She neither distinguishes nor rebuts the persuasive authorities on which defendant relies. She identifies no case law supporting a contrary result (i.e., that a Section 8 Program recipient retains a property interest even after a voucher expires by its terms). She points to nothing in either HUD regulations or the Board's administrative plan that would have entitled her to either a further extension of her voucher or a hearing based solely on her post-expiration request.
Absent extenuating circumstances not present here, constitutional law does not create property interests by estoppel. See, e.g., Connecticut Bd. of Pardons v. Dumschat, 452 U.S. 458, 465, 101 S.Ct. 2460, 69 L.Ed.2d 158 (1981) ("A constitutional entitlement cannot be created — as if by estoppel — merely because a wholly and expressly discretionary state privilege has been granted generously in the past.") (emphasis, internal quotation marks and citation omitted); Bryan Media, Inc. v. City of St. Petersburg, 293 Fed.Appx. 717, 718-19 (11th Cir.2008) (concluding that plaintiff's estoppel argument did not give rise to a property interest, where plaintiff adduced no evidence that city's actions rose above mere negligence and made no showing of a serious injustice). Furthermore, "a benefit is not a protected entitlement if government officials may grant or deny it in their discretion." Town of Castle Rock, Colo. v. Gonzales, 545 U.S. 748, 756, 125 S.Ct. 2796, 162 L.Ed.2d 658 (2005). The Board never promised Ely a hearing. It never told her she was entitled to one. Applicable regulations and administrative plans conferred upon the Board broad discretion to determine whether to grant a hearing or not. Even if the Board had promised to give Ely a hearing, she cannot show reliance or injustice in a manner that might give rise to a colorable argument of equitable or promissory estoppel. The February 1 letter does not create a constitutionally protected property interest out of thin air. Yet plaintiff points to nothing else that might serve as a basis for a property interest underlying her due process claims.
When the smoke clears, what remains is this: The Board argues that Ely's due process claims fail as a matter of law because she had no property interest in further extension of an expired Section 8 Program voucher. Case authorities, federal regulations, and the Board's administrative plan all bolster that conclusion. In response, plaintiff's only counterargument is that the Board could not deny her a hearing once it offered her one. That argument lacks legal or equitable support in the record and briefs, and will not be credited on summary judgment. On the record and arguments presented by the parties, the Court finds that Ely did not have a property interest in receiving Section 8 Program benefits after her voucher expired, by its plain terms. Absent a protectable property interest, plaintiff's due
Ely also brings separate claims against the Board for violating HUD regulations concerning notice and a hearing. In particular, Ely maintains that the Board failed to comply with the notice provisions of 24 C.F.R. § 982.555(c)(2) and the hearing requirements of 24 C.F.R. § 982.555.
The glaring defect in Ely's claims predicated on the HUD regulations is that, on their face, those regulations are inapplicable here. Plaintiff cites the notice provisions of § 982.555(c)(2). (Doc. 72, at 11-13.) But that regulation is confined to "cases described in paragraphs (a)(1)(iv), (v) and (vi) of this section," which concern determinations that a family "is residing in a unit with a larger number of bedrooms than appropriate," that assistance for a participant family will be terminated "because of the family's action or failure to act," or that assistance will be terminated "because the participant family has been absent from the assisted unit for longer than the maximum period." § 982.555(a)(1)(iv)-(vi), (c)(2). None of those circumstances are present here.
Plaintiff also takes the Board to task because, she says, "if there is no right to request a hearing, the notice must so state." (Doc. 72, at 12.) She later repeats the argument, saying, "[I]f MHB's contention is that Ely was not entitled to a hearing then the notice was required to state that she was not entitled to a hearing." (Id. at 13.) Plaintiff provides no citation to any regulation or other authority for this purported "requirement." Of course, it is plaintiff's obligation to furnish the Court with citations of authority in support of her legal arguments. Yet she has not done so. As such, the Court is unable to discern any viable legal basis for plaintiff's claim that the Board violated HUD requirements by failing to notify her that she was not entitled to a hearing contemporaneously with its determination that no further extensions to her voucher would be granted.
Next, plaintiff argues that the Board violated the hearing requirements of § 982.555. (Doc. 72, at 13-18.) Again, that regulation expressly provides that a PHA need not provide an informal hearing for a "determination not to approve an extension or suspension of a voucher term." 24 C.F.R. § 982.555(b)(4). That is precisely the determination at issue in this case. The Board found that Ely's voucher was expired and that no further extensions would be granted. That determination falls squarely within the confines of § 982.555(b)(4); therefore, the Board could not have violated that regulation by not providing her a hearing. Defendant is entitled to summary judgment on this claim, as well.
In a last-ditch effort to bolster this cause of action, plaintiff contends that her claims as to regulatory violations are well-founded because "Griffin, MHB's corporate representative[,] admitted that regulation [sic] were not followed and that procedures were not handled properly in Ms. Ely's case." (Doc. 72, at 17-18.) Plaintiff cites to no specific pages of Monica Griffin's deposition in this case, but would apparently refer the Court generically to the entire 71-page transcript. This is procedurally improper. See Rule 56(c)(1)(A) ("A party asserting that a fact cannot be or is genuinely disputed must support the assertion by ...
To the extent that plaintiff argues that the Board violated HUD regulations or requirements by not providing further extensions beyond the 120 days Ely was granted to shop her voucher, such a claim cannot survive scrutiny, either. Applicable HUD regulations specify that "[t]he initial term of a voucher must be at least 60 calendar days." 24 C.F.R. § 982.303(a). Plaintiff's voucher plainly satisfied that criterion. Moreover, those regulations go on to state that, "[a]t its discretion, the PHA may grant a family one or more extensions of the initial voucher term in accordance with PHA policy as described in the PHA administrative plan." Id. § 982.303(b)(1). Thus, the Board's decision of whether or not to allow Ely extensions of her voucher beyond the initial 60-day term was discretionary, with such discretion being cabined by the Board's own policy. The only evidence before the Court on summary judgment is that Board policy provided for a maximum term of 120 days for vouchers in the Section 8 Program. (Griffin Dep., at 65-66.) Plaintiff identifies no genuine issues of fact as to whether the denial of further voucher extensions to Ely ran afoul of Board policy or otherwise abused the Board's discretion granted by HUD regulations; therefore, any claim by Ely that the Board violated HUD requirements by not extending her voucher beyond the 120-day period must fail.
Plaintiff's final category of claims asserted against the Board sounds in theories of disability discrimination and failure to provide reasonable accommodation. Such claims were purportedly brought under the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988
The Complaint makes clear that Ely's disability discrimination claims are rooted in the contention that the Board "was aware of [Devin's] disability and the Plaintiff may need more time than the normal person to locate suitable housing for her family," but that the Board nonetheless "refused to provide the Plaintiff with any additional extensions for her four (4) bedroom voucher." (Doc. 1, ¶¶ 35, 39.) Plaintiff reiterates this argument in her brief, insisting that the Board failed to reasonably accommodate her son's disability by declining to extend her voucher. (Doc. 72, at 22.)
In the housing context, the law is clear that "the duty to make a reasonable accommodation does not simply spring from the fact that the handicapped person wants such an accommodation made." Schwarz v. City of Treasure Island, 544 F.3d 1201, 1219 (11th Cir.2008) (citation omitted). That is to say, a defendant "cannot be liable for refusing to grant a reasonable and necessary accommodation if the [defendant] never knew the accommodation was in fact necessary." Id. (citation omitted). Although a request for accommodation need not employ "magic words," the defendant "must have enough information to know of both the disability and desire for an accommodation,
Plaintiff's disability discrimination claims under the FHAA and the ADA suffer from a systematic failure of proof in multiple respects. First, the record shows that the Board lacked knowledge of Devin's health condition as of spring 2010. Even after the Board reminded her in writing, plaintiff failed or refused to return the medical verification for her reasonable accommodation request at that time (which was that Devin required a separate bedroom), and admitted that Devin's physician was not comfortable completing the form. (Doc. 64, Exhs.W, X.) Without that medical information, the Board could not know whether Devin was then disabled and, if so, what accommodations he might require. Second, the summary judgment record is devoid of evidence suggesting any linkage between Ely's son's health condition and the length of time it took her to locate a four-bedroom unit.
Third, even if plaintiff's evidence could support a reasonable inference that Devin was disabled in mid-2010 and that his disability somehow impaired Ely's ability to shop the Section 8 Program voucher in a timely manner, summary judgment would remain appropriate on this category of claims. The reason is that Ely never requested an extension of her voucher as a reasonable accommodation.
For all of the foregoing reasons, Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment