SF4704 Summary

• Minnesota Housing Finance Agency must develop annual projections of emergency rental assistance needs and submit reports to legislative committees by January 15 each year.

• Housing Finance Agency and Human Services Commissioner must develop criteria for measuring application processing timeliness, with goals to process applications within two weeks and make payments within 30 days of complete application receipt; report findings by January 15, 2027.

• Both commissioners must develop uniform e-signature options for rental assistance applications and require implementation by June 30, 2026 across family homelessness prevention and assistance program, emergency assistance, and emergency general assistance programs.

• Commissioners must develop recommendations to simplify verification procedures, including allowing self-attestation of emergencies/assets/income, verbal authorization for landlord/utility provider communication, and landlord applications on behalf of tenants; recommendations due January 1, 2025 with adoption by July 1, 2025.

• Human Services Commissioner must modify MAXIS system for greater payment flexibility, evaluate adequate processor compensation and funding needs, and develop emergency assistance program modifications with comprehensible eligibility criteria; funding evaluation report due January 1, 2026.