Relating to rental assistance.

Rental aid rules change for young people

Oregon’s long-term rental aid program serves people under 25 who meet at least one current or recent status requirement. These include homelessness, substitute care, living in a qualifying child care center, or confinement in a qualifying correctional facility. Living in a facility for addiction treatment, rehabilitation, or mental health treatment also qualifies. The law adds child care centers and replaces the prior correctional-or-detention category with a different correctional-facility definition. The Housing and Community Services Department must operate the program in three or four regions, covering urban, rural, and coastal areas. It must consult housing and youth-service groups, state agencies, and the Oregon Youth Authority. It must collect participant data on demographics, including race; aid amounts; tenancy length; rehousing or homelessness; housing arrangements; and access to and use of education, job training, health insurance, and primary care. The department can hire housing authorities, community action agencies, or community-based housing and social service providers to deliver aid and collect and report data. This section sets no dollar amount or end date.