The agency exists in a regulatory gray area. It is not a city agency, although the city appoints its board of commissioners. It's not federal, either — but it receives tens of millions of dollars in federal funding every year, and those funds come with additional rules and oversight.

At times, even elected officials and bureaucrats aren't sure who's supposed to be watching the housing authority or responding to tenants' maintenance complaints.

It's amazing that no one figured out what was going on until now.

On Monday, he and other council members will consider a proposed ordinance that would order DNS to investigate tenants' code violation complaints — as they would with private landlords.

FINALLY -- the housing authority isn't "exempt" from oversight.