SECTION 27. Direct payment of rent; request of landlord or recipient

The department may, upon the written request of the landlord in the case of a recipient who is in arrears in his rent payment for two consecutive months, pay directly to said landlord, after inspection by the department and written notification by the code enforcement agency of the city or town that the housing conforms to the minimum requirements established by said agency. An amount equal to the rent shall be deducted from the amount otherwise payable to said recipient.

The department may, upon the written request of any recipient, pay directly to any landlord the rent of recipients of public assistance by deducting the amount of the rent from the amount otherwise payable to the recipient provided, however, that the department receives written notification from the code enforcement agency of the city or town that the housing conforms to the minimum requirements established by said agency. The recipient shall have a right of appeal, as provided in section sixteen, to any decision made by the department regarding direct rent payment under this section. In any event, the department shall cause a complaint to be filed in accordance with the provisions of section one hundred and twenty-seven C of chapter one hundred and eleven, in cases where a recipient's housing accommodations are unsafe, unsanitary or not in conformity with local housing codes.