A breach of the lease will be issued for severe or repeated violations of the dwelling lease, such as but not limited to the following: use or sale of drugs, failure to keep the unit clean, destruction of housing authority property, unauthorized pets, unauthorized person or persons living in the unit (an unauthorized person is anyone not on the lease staying in the unit for more than a week), failure to maintain utilities, failure to complete the community service requirement, failure to complete annual re-certification, failure to report income, etc. If you receive a breach of lease, in most cases you may appeal the notice. The first thing you must do is carefully read the notice. The notice will tell you if you are eligible to appeal. Those who may appeal should submit a written request form to the main office (address listed above) within five (5) days of receiving the Breach of Lease notice. At the informal meeting, you will be able to explain your side of the complaint and/or present evidence that you have corrected the problem. The meeting officer will listen to both sides and determine if the breach and eviction are warranted. If the meeting officer determines that you are correct, or that you have cured the breach, or that the Housing Authority was just wrong in issuing the breach, you will be allowed to remain in occupancy. If, however, the meeting officer decides the Housing Authority was right to issue the breach and you haven’t cured the breach, he will allow the Housing Authority to proceed with the eviction. In that case, you will have five (5) days to request a Formal Grievance hearing. In order to obtain a Formal Grievance Hearing, you must submit a written request form to the main office within five (5) days of receiving the decision from the informal meeting. At the Formal Hearing, you will be able to explain your side of the complaint and/or present evidence that you have corrected the problem. The hearing officer will listen to both sides and determine if the breach and eviction are warranted. If the hearing officer determines that you are correct, or that you have cured the breach, or that the Housing Authority was just wrong in issuing the breach, you will be allowed to remain in occupancy. If the Hearing officer decides the Housing Authority was right to issue the breach and you haven’t cured the breach, he will allow the Housing Authority to proceed with the eviction and you will be required to vacate the premises and terminate your tenancy.