Required Language in Rejection Letters

Q I was reading through the item in your April 2009 issue, “Top 10 Audit Findings in 2008” (p. 1). I noticed that #10 on the list was “Rejection letter lacks new reasonable accommodation language.” Where can I find this new language?

A The item in the Top 10 list referred to language that is now required in notification letters to program applicants who are rejected. The text added in Change 2 to Handbook 4350.3 is found in Chapter 4, Section 4-9 (C)(2), on page 4-24. Written rejection notices must include the statement that persons with disabilities have the right to request reasonable accommodations to participate in the informal hearing process. According to the Section 8 contract administrator in Idaho, which compiled the Top 10 list, failure to include this language in rejection letters was one of the most frequent errors it cited in its site reviews in 2008.