On February 2, HUD released the pre-publication content of its Notice of Certain Operating Cost Adjustment Factors (OCAFs) for 2026. The notice, expected to be published in the Federal Register on February 3, establishes OCAFs for Section 8 Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBRA) contracts issued or renewed under the Multifamily Assisted Housing Reform and Affordability Act of 1997 (MAHRA). In addition, streamlined regulations issued in 2024 implementing certain provisions of HOTMA allow the use of OCAFs for some Project-Based Voucher (PBV) contracts.
The 2026 OCAFs in the notice are applicable to eligible contract with an anniversary date on or after February 11, 2026. An appendix includes the OCAF or each state.
The notice also seeks comments on the methodology and data sources used to determine the OCAFs, which are issued for each state and territory. According to the notice, “State-level data for electricity, fuel oil, and natural gas from Department of Energy surveys are relatively current and continue to be used. Data on changes in employee benefits, employee wages, goods/supplies/equipment, property taxes, and water/sewer/trash costs are available only at the national level. HUD uses State and HUD Region data for insurance, continuing the practice adopted for FY 25 OCAFs.”
The notice provides specific information on the data sources used for each of the nine cost indicators which are Electricity, Employee benefits, Employee wages, Fuel Oil, Goods/Supplies/Equipment, Insurance, Natural Gas, Property Taxes, and Water/Sewer/Trash. HUD then poses nine specific questions about the data sources and methodologies used in developing the state-level OCAFs. Comments are due 60 days after the formal publication in the Federal Register.
The 2026 OCAFs vary considerably, ranging from a low of 3.3 for Maine, and a high of 9.8 for Louisiana (and 12.3 for the Virgin Islands), with a national rate of 5.1. Most are in the 4.5-6.5 range. OCAFs for the last ten years can be found here.