Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2009

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Information requirements.

32.— (1) This section applies to—

(a) a household which has applied for housing support and in respect of whom a decision has not been made to provide a dwelling or site, including a household which applied for housing support before the coming into operation of this section,

(b) a household in respect of whom—

(i) a social housing assessment is being carried out under section 20 (3), and

(ii) a decision has not yet been made to allocate a dwelling,

and

(c) a household in receipt of housing support, whether before or after the coming into operation of this section.

(2) In the performance of its functions under the Housing Acts 1966 to 2009, a housing authority may request—

(a) a household to which this section applies, to give to the housing authority all or any of the following information:

(i) the number of household members, together with the age, sex, occupation and condition of health of each member;

(ii) the weekly income of each household member, including any assistance, benefit or allowance received by or on behalf of any household member under the Social Welfare Acts, the Health Acts 1947 to 2008 or the legislation of any other state or from any other source;

(iii) the means of transport available to the household and the cost of such transport,

and

(b) in the case of a household referred to in subsection (1) (a) or (b), to give to it all or any of the following information:

(i) the terms upon which premises are currently occupied by the household, the amount of rent payable in respect of such premises and the name and address of the person to whom rent is payable;

(ii) any dwelling or site provided by a housing authority, or an approved body, previously let or sold to the household or any household member at any time before the application is made;

(iii) any dwelling previously let to the household or any household member under a Chapter 4 tenancy agreement at any time before the application is made.

(3) A request for information shall be in writing and shall specify a period of not less than 14 days from the date of the request within which the information shall be given to the housing authority.

(4) Information shall be given in writing unless the housing authority agrees to the information being given in another form and subject to any conditions it may specify.

(5) Without prejudice to subsection (2), for the purposes of carrying out social housing assessments under section 20 , the Minister may make regulations providing for—

(a) the form in which an application for social housing support shall be made, including by electronic means,

(b) the information and particulars to be provided by a household applying for social housing support and verification of such information and particulars,

(c) the furnishing of such additional information as a housing authority considers appropriate for the purposes of carrying out an assessment,

(d) the period within which the information and particulars, including any additional information, shall be provided by the household concerned, and

(e) such other matters as the Minister considers necessary and appropriate.

(6) (a) Without prejudice to subsection (2), the Minister may make regulations for the purposes of—

(i) the purchase of a dwelling under an incremental purchase arrangement under Part 3 ,

(ii) the purchase of an apartment under Part 4 , or

(iii) the purchase of a dwelling under an affordable dwelling purchase arrangement under Part 5 .

(b) Regulations made under this subsection may provide for the following:

(i) the form and manner in which an application to purchase may be made, including by electronic means;

(ii) the information and particulars to be provided by a household applying to purchase and verification of such information and particulars;

(iii) the furnishing of such additional information as the housing authority considers appropriate for the purposes of considering the application;

(iv) the period within which the information and particulars, including any additional information, shall be provided by the household making the application, and

(v) such other matters as the Minister considers necessary and appropriate.

(7) (a) A person is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding €2,000 where he or she is a member of a household requested to give information to a housing authority under this section or any regulations made under subsection (5) or (6), as the case may be, and he or she—

(i) knowingly makes any statement or representation (whether written or verbal) which is to his or her knowledge false or misleading in any material respect, or knowingly conceals any material fact, or

(ii) produces or furnishes, or causes or knowingly allows to be produced or furnished, any document or information which he or she knows to be false in a material particular.

(b) An offence under paragraph (a) may be prosecuted by the housing authority who requested the information referred to in that paragraph.

(8) Where a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (7) (a) and by reason of that offence the housing authority incurred a higher level of expenditure in providing housing support for a household than it would have incurred otherwise, any such expenditure shall be repayable to the housing authority and the person or the personal representative of that person shall be liable to pay to the housing authority, on demand, the expenditure so repayable and that expenditure, if not so repaid, may be recovered by the housing authority as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(9) Where a person is convicted of an offence under subsection (7) (a) and by reason of that offence the housing authority charged a lower rent in respect of the provision of housing support than it would otherwise have charged, the amount by which the rent was undercharged shall be repayable to the housing authority and the person or the personal representative of that person shall be liable to pay to the housing authority, on demand, the amount so repayable and that amount, if not so repaid, may be recovered by the housing authority as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.