Find Homeowner Assistance Fund Programs by State: Read More

Online Privacy Policy

The National Council of State Housing Agencies (“NCSHA,” “we” or “us“) believes strongly in protecting the integrity and privacy of personally identifiable information gathered from visitors and subscribers to our website (“Users” or “you“). This Privacy Policy explains our collection and handling of personally identifiable information received from Users in communications and transactions conducted on or through this website. It does not apply to any other information received or collected by us through any other means.

When this Privacy Policy uses the term “personally identifiable information,” we mean information that identifies a particular individual, such as the individual’s name, mailing address, email address, and telephone number. When other information (such as consumer preferences, policy positions, etc.) is directly associated with personally identifiable information, this other information is also treated as personally identifiable information for purposes of this Privacy Policy. Personally identifiable information does not include user names, aliases, or other data provided by our Users in the course of registering with or using our site, except when we request User email addresses as their identifier. Personally identifiable information is sometimes referred to in this Privacy Policy as “personal information.”

Please review this Privacy Policy periodically as we may modify it from time to time. Each time you visit our website or provide us with online information, you are accepting and agreeing to our Privacy Policy and practices as then in effect.

1. PERSONAL INFORMATION WE COLLECT

(a) Registration Information

As a membership organization and trade association, we must be able to provide NCSHA Members, policymakers, and the public with information about our programs, positions, initiatives, and events. Therefore, we often ask our website visitors to register with us for various purposes, including for membership, receipt of information, purchase of publications (ours and others), receipt of email communications, and registration for conferences and events.

The personal information we collect in these exchanges include names, mailing addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, and various professional and demographic information about you or your organization.

If Users register for events and/or purchase publications or other products or services from us, we may also collect credit card information, the type of products or services ordered, and the date of the order or purchase. We also will collect personal information when Users register online or log into or visit our website.

Also, our website offers message boards, social community environments, profile pages, and other public forums in which Users may provide us with “Submissions” (as defined in our Terms of Use linked in the footer of this page). If you provide personal information to us when you use any of these features, that personal information may be publicly posted and otherwise disclosed without limitation as to its use by any third party. Our rules regarding public forums and Submissions are described in our Terms of Use, and you should review those policies closely before using those features of this site.

We use the information we receive to help personalize your experience at ncsha.org, to send you updates and new, and to send you information about NCSHA programs, events, and activities. We may also provide you with research materials, Congressional Record excerpts, copies of bills and enacted laws, hearing summaries, and other advocacy materials or connect you with a public representative.

We generally do not collect personally identifiable information about Users on our website without their permission. However, our membership includes organizations seeking support for legislative and regulatory positions, and those organizations possess personal information about their own members, users, and supporters. Therefore, you should recognize that personally identifiable information that we may collect may be otherwise available to others beyond our responsibility or control.

(b) Email Addresses

We place email links on our site to allow you to contact us directly and we may otherwise collect your email address through technical means. The information that Users provide us or that we collect is used to respond directly to their questions or comments and to operate our site more efficiently. We also use these addresses in membership recruitment initiatives. All of our emails contain a link for Users to unsubscribe or modify their profiles. Users may also subscribe or unsubscribe to any newsletter or email communication from NCSHA at any time.

(c) Automated Data Capture, Cookies

Like most websites, we use cookies to automatically track certain information about our Users. A “cookie” is a small piece of data stored on a User’s hard drive but which does not itself contain any personal information. Cookies enhance a User’s experience by saving them from having to log in or provide information each time they visit a web page and by customizing our content based on such User’s interests. A User can configure their browser to be alerted when a site is attempting to send a cookie and refuse the cookie.

We also log internet protocol (IP) addresses and browser types for system administration purposes, to diagnose problems with our site, and to gather broad demographic information about our Users. An IP address is associated with the access point through which a User enters the internet. By itself, an IP address is not personally identifiable, but we may combine IP addresses with personally identifiable information. IP addresses enable us to collect information about the frequency with which Users visit our site and enable us to track User activity and click-through behavior. Combining IP addresses with personal information enables us to personalize emails to our Users and improve the effectiveness of our communications and our Users’  online experience.

(d) Information That We Collect from Others

We may update and supplement personally identifiable information that we collect from Users with other information that we obtain from third parties, including from our members. In addition, we often collect information about persons and organizations who are not yet Users of our website. When we associate information that we obtain from third parties with personally identifiable information collected under this Privacy Policy, all such information is handled under this Privacy Policy.

2. USE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION

(a) Use by NCSHA

We primarily use the personally identifiable Information collected through this site to operate our online services and to process transactions initiated hereunder, including membership applications, publication purchases, registrations for events or conferences, or to disseminate our policies and positions. We also use personally identifiable information to improve our advocacy efforts, to analyze our site usage, and to improve our site and services. We may use personal information to deliver information to our Users regarding events, activities, and policy matters that we believe will be of interest.

(b) Use by Our Members, Supporters, and Suppliers

NCSHA works closely with its Members and constituent organizations, affiliates, and other third parties. Often, our Users are also Members, participants, or consumers of the products, services, and communications of these other organizations. Our Members may have access to User personal information directly from those Users who participate in both organizations’ activities.

With regard to our events and conferences, we may be required or choose to provide some of our Users’ personal information to our sponsors and vendors in order to reserve lodging, conference rooms, tour participation, meals, recreational events, and other activities. This sharing of information may subject our Users’ information to the policies and practices of other organizations. We encourage all of our members, sponsors, and vendors to adopt privacy policies consistent with ours. However, the use of our Users’ personal information by our members, vendors, and sponsors is governed solely by their privacy policies and is beyond our control and beyond the scope of this Privacy Policy.

You hereby waive and release NCSHA from any and all claims or liabilities relating to or resulting from any actions or omissions of such third parties, including but not limited to their breach of their own privacy policies.

(c) Links

Our website includes links to sites operated by other parties. Some of these other websites may contain our name and trademarks; others may not. When you click on these links and visit these other websites, regardless of whether or not they contain our name and trademarks, you should know that we do not control these other websites, or the business practices of the owners or operators thereof, and this Privacy Policy does not apply to such other sites. Any information you submit to a linked site or which is collected by a linked site will be subject to the privacy policies of those sites, if any. Also, the operators of those sites may collect different kinds of information about you and may use and disclose that information in different ways than we would if collected on our site. You should review those policies carefully as we are not responsible for those other sites or for the actions of their operators.

(d) Legal Disclosures

NCSHA may disclose personal information if required to do so by law, by the order of any court, by the direction of any administrator or other authority, to cooperate with law enforcement, or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to prevent injury or property damage, whether to you, to us, to our members, or to others. We may attempt to notify you when we are making such a disclosure, but we may not do so in an emergency or when law or the order of a court or administrative authority prohibits us from doing so. As a practical matter, prior notice of the disclosure of personal information in such cases cannot be assured and should not be expected.

(e) Your Passwords

You should never disclose your password to any third parties. If you lose control of your password, you may lose substantial control over your personal information and may be subject to legally binding actions taken on your behalf. You may also suffer identity theft. Therefore, if your password has been compromised for any reason, you should immediately change your password. Experts recommend that you regularly change your password, that it be at least eight elements and include both letters and numbers, and that you not leave your password on documents on or around your computer.

(f) Changes to This Policy

If we decide to change this Privacy Policy, we will post those changes here so that you will always know what information we gather, how we might use it, and whether we may disclose it to anyone.

3. HOW WE SECURE YOUR INFORMATION

NCSHA is extremely sensitive to the security of the information gathered through this site. We utilize security measures to protect against loss, misuse, or alteration of the information under our control. Our web server is located in a remote, secure environment, and all databases containing personal information are encrypted. All financial transactions conducted on this site are processed by a secure server with encryption.

WHILE WE TAKE COMMERCIALLY REASONABLE STEPS TO PROTECT AGAINST UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO PERSONAL INFORMATION HELD BY US OR STORED ON OUR SERVERS, NEITHER NCSHA NOR ANY OFFICER, DIRECTOR, MEMBER, OR AGENT THEREOF CAN WARRANT THAT OUR SITE AND/OR OUR STORAGE FACILITIES WILL NEVER BE SUBJECT TO AN UNAUTHORIZED INTRUSION, DIVERSION, EQUIPMENT FAILURE, OR OTHER ERROR. ACCORDINGLY, WE HEREBY DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL LIABILITY RESULTING FROM ANY SUCH ACTIONS OR EVENTS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY AND ALL DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES. YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY FOR ANY VIOLATION OF THIS PRIVACY POLICY OR ANY BREACH OF YOUR PRIVACY, REGARDLESS OF CAUSE, SHALL BE FOR YOU TO DISCONTINUE YOUR USE OF THIS SITE.

4. PERSONALIZATION

(a) How to Unsubscribe from Mailing Lists

All NCSHA online communication provides information on how to unsubscribe quickly and easily. Those wishing to opt out of receiving communications from NCSHA can simply contact Member Services at membership@ncsha.org, via phone at 202-624-7710, or via U.S. mail at 444 North Capitol Street NW, Suite 438, Washington, DC 20001.

(b) How to Correct Information You Have Provided

You may correct and/or change any of your personal information directly on https://www.ncsha.org/, or by contacting Member Services at membership@ncsha.org or 202-624-7710.

(c) How to Contact Us About Privacy

If you have any questions about our Privacy Policy, the information we have collected from you online, the practices of this site, or your interaction with this website, please send us an email at:  membership@ncsha.org

You can also reach us via U.S. mail at:

National Council of State Housing Agencies
444 North Capitol Street NW, Suite 438
Washington, DC 20001
202-624-7710 (main)