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115th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session } { 115-719
======================================================================
TRANSITIONAL HOUSING FOR RECOVERY IN VIABLE ENVIRONMENTS DEMONSTRATION
PROGRAM ACT
_______
June 8, 2018.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Hensarling, from the Committee on Financial Services, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
together with
MINORITY VIEWS
[To accompany H.R. 5735]
The Committee on Financial Services, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 5735) to amend the United States Housing Act of
1937 to establish a demonstration program to set aside section
8 housing vouchers for supportive and transitional housing for
individuals recovering from opioid use disorders or other
substance use disorders, and for other purposes, having
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with amendments
and recommends that the bill as amended do pass.
The amendments (stated in terms of the page and line
numbers of the introduced bill) are as follows:
Page 3, strike lines 13 and 14 and insert the following:
(C) Criteria for eligible entities.--And
eligible entity shall--
(i) provide an evidence-
Page 3, line 19, strike the period and insert ``; and''.
Page 3, after line 19, insert the following:
(ii) demonstrate prior experience
administering rental assistance
vouchers, demonstrate prior experience
administering transitional housing
programs under the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Act, or demonstrate a
partnership with a public housing
agency or a housing program of a State,
unit of local government, or Indian
tribe (as such term is defined in
section 4 of the Native American
Housing and Self-Determination Act of
1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)) that ensures
effective administration of rental
assistance vouchers.
Purpose and Summary
On May 9, 2018, Rep. Andy Barr introduced H.R. 5735, the
``Transitional Housing for Opioid Recovery Demonstration
Program Act of 2018'' or the ``THRIVE'' Act. H.R. 5735 would
create a demonstration program in which 10,000 vouchers would
be set-aside and distributed to eligible entities for the
support of transitional housing for those individuals
undergoing opioid use disorder or other substance abuse
disorder recovery. There would be a time-limit on the vouchers
of 12-24 months and the voucher would be only available for
people in programs that provide evidence-based treatment and
job skills training according to standards established by the
Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD). Four years after implementation of the demonstration
program, the HUD Secretary would submit a report to Congress
that evaluates the effectiveness of the program and includes
recommendations as to whether the Congress and HUD should
implement a larger-scale program or adopt a longer-term
approach.
Background and Need for Legislation
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention,
approximately 64,000 people died of a drug overdose in 2016.
Sixty-five percent (42,000) of those deaths were related to the
opioid epidemic, compared to only 8,400 deaths in 2000.\1\
Given the declaration of a national public health emergency
last fall, there is need for additional transitional housing
for opioid and other substance recovery. H.R. 5735 would create
such a demonstration program to test whether the short-term
transitional housing approach is transformational in helping
covered individuals maintain sobriety after completing
rehabilitation, gain valuable skills in job training, obtain
employment, and eventually transition back to society to lead
independent lives.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, ``Drug Overdose
Death Data,'' updated December 19, 2017, https://www.cdc.gov/
drugoverdose/data/statedeaths.html and National Institute on Drug
Abuse, ``Overdose Death Rates,'' revised September 2017, available at
https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/trends-statistics/overdose-
death-rates.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On October 26, 2017, President Trump announced that his
Administration was declaring the opioid crisis a national
Public Health Emergency under federal law, effective
immediately and the President stated, ``I am directing all
executive agencies to use every appropriate emergency authority
to fight the opioid crisis.''
On March 29, 2017, President Trump signed an Executive
Order to establish the President's Commission on Combating Drug
Addiction and the Opioid Crisis. The Commission will be chaired
by Governor Chris Christie and will study ways to combat and
treat the scourge of drug abuse, addiction, and the opioid
crisis. The Commission's Final Report issued on November 1,
2017 noted, ``There is a critical shortage of recovery housing
for Americans in or pursuing recovery. Recovery residences
(also known as ``sober homes'' or ``recovery homes'') are
alcohol- and drug-free living environments for individuals
seeking the skills and social support to remain free of alcohol
or other drugs and live a life of recovery in the
community.''\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\Final Report of the President's Commission on Combating Drug
Addiction and the Opioid Crisis, November 1, 2017, available at,
https://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/whitehouse.gov/files/images/
Final_Report_Draf_11-15-2017.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
On November 20, 2017, the Council of Economic Advisers
(CEA) released a report on the economic costs of the opioid
crisis. The CEA found that ``previous estimates of the economic
cost of the opioid crisis greatly understate it by undervaluing
the most important component of the loss--fatalities resulting
from overdoses.''\3\ The CEA report estimated that in 2015,
``the economic cost of the opioid crisis was $504.0 billion, or
2.8 percent of GDP that year. This is over six times larger
than the most recently estimated economic cost of the
epidemic.''\4\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/cea-report-
underestimated-cost-opioid-crisis/.
\4\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The goal of H.R. 5735 is to establish a demonstration
program to set aside Section 8 housing vouchers for supportive
and transitional housing for individuals recovering from opioid
and other substance use disorders.
The demonstration program will provide participants who
have a drug and substance abuse disorder a free, clean, safe
and supportive structured environment. This approach to
transitional housing would allow residents an opportunity to
address their addiction, mental health, homelessness or other
personal challenges in a supportive environment that could
include required participation in activities such as recovery
classes, life skills education classes, mandatory savings
plans, and full-time or part-time employment.
The program created by the THRIVE Act is the first step in
a longer-term and community-based approach to treatment
immediately after a covered individual has completed an initial
traditional treatment, such as short-term or transitional
residential programs. The housing services provided by H.R.
5735 would complement services provided onsite such as case
management, peer support, and daily living and coping skills
education to assist individuals in improving their lives.
Supportive housing, when used as a short-term approach, can
help thousands of Americans maintain sobriety after they
complete rehabilitation, gain valuable skills and job training,
obtain employment, and eventually transition back into society
to lead independent and productive lives.
Hearings
The Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on
Housing and Insurance held a hearing examining matters relating
to H.R. 5735 on April 17, 2018.
Committee Consideration
The Committee on Financial Services met in open session on
May 22, 2018, and ordered H.R. 5735 to be reported favorably to
the House, as amended, by a recorded vote of 34 yeas to 19 nays
(recorded vote no. FC-178), a quorum being present. Before the
motion to report was offered, the Committee adopted an
amendment offered by Mr. Barr, no. 1, by voice vote.
Committee Votes
Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of
Representatives requires the Committee to list the record votes
on the motion to report legislation and amendments thereto. A
recorded vote was held on the amendment offered by Mr. Crist,
no. 3. The amendment failed by a vote of 21 yeas to 32 nays
(Record vote no. FC-177). A recorded vote was held on a motion
by Chairman Hensarling to report the bill favorably to the
House, as amended. The motion was agreed to by a recorded vote
of 34 yeas to 19 nays (Record vote no. FC-178), a quorum being
present.
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Committee Oversight Findings
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the findings and recommendations of
the Committee based on oversight activities under clause
2(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives,
are incorporated in the descriptive portions of this report.
Performance Goals and Objectives
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the Committee states that H.R. 5735
will provide transitional housing support to thousands of
Americans recovering from opioid and substance use disorders
and will help them gain valuable skills and job training,
obtain employment, and eventually transition back into society
to lead independent lives by establishing a demonstration
program to set aside Section 8 housing vouchers for supportive
and transitional housing.
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures
The Committee has not received an estimate of new budget
authority contained in the cost estimate prepared by the
Director of the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to Sec.
402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. In compliance with
clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House, the
Committee opines that H.R. 5735 will not establish any new
budget or entitlement authority or create any tax expenditures.
Congressional Budget Office Estimates
The cost estimate prepared by the Director of the
Congressional Budget Office pursuant to Sec. 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 was not submitted timely to
the Committee.
Federal Mandates Statement
This information is provided in accordance with section 423
of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995.
The Committee has determined that the bill does not contain
Federal mandates on the private sector. The Committee has
determined that the bill does not impose a Federal
intergovernmental mandate on State, local, or tribal
governments.
Advisory Committee Statement
No advisory committees within the meaning of section 5(b)
of the Federal Advisory Committee Act were created by this
legislation.
Applicability to Legislative Branch
The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public
services or accommodations within the meaning of the section
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.
Earmark Identification
With respect to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the Committee has carefully reviewed
the provisions of the bill and states that the provisions of
the bill do not contain any congressional earmarks, limited tax
benefits, or limited tariff benefits within the meaning of the
rule.
Duplication of Federal Programs
In compliance with clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII of the Rules
of the House of Representatives, the Committee states that no
provision of the bill establishes or reauthorizes: (1) a
program of the Federal Government known to be duplicative of
another Federal program; (2) a program included in any report
from the Government Accountability Office to Congress pursuant
to section 21 of Public Law 111-139; or (3) a program related
to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal
Domestic Assistance, published pursuant to the Federal Program
Information Act (Pub. L. No. 95-220, as amended by Pub. L. No.
98-169).
Disclosure of Directed Rulemaking
Pursuant to section 3(i) of H. Res. 5, (115th Congress),
the following statement is made concerning directed rule
makings: The Committee estimates that the bill requires no
directed rule makings within the meaning of such section.
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation
Section 1. Short title
This section cites H.R. 5735 as the ``Transitional Housing
for Recovery in Viable Environments Demonstration Program Act''
or the ``THRIVE Act.''
Section 2. Demonstration program to study the impact of using rental
vouchers for supportive and transitional housing for
individuals recovering from opioid use disorders or other
substance use disorders
This section establishes a five year demonstration program
in which the HUD Secretary allocates and distributes Section 8
Housing Choice Vouchers to eligible non-profit organizations
for the purposes of providing supportive and transitional
housing assistance to individuals suffering from opioid or
other substance use disorders. Eligible non-profit
organizations must provide such assistance for a period of 12
to 24 months. The Secretary shall set aside the lesser of 0.5
percent of the total number of housing choice vouchers or
10,000 vouchers for the purposes of the demonstration program.
To participate in the demonstration program, an eligible
entity shall provide an evidence-based treatment program and a
job skills training program for individuals recovering from an
opioid use disorder or other substance use disorder that meet
standards established by the HUD Secretary. The eligible entity
must demonstrate prior experience administering rental
assistance vouchers, prior experience administering
transitional housing programs under the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Act, or demonstrate a partnership with (1) a public housing
agency; (2) a housing program of a State or unit of local
government; or (3) an Indian tribe.
To receive a rental assistance voucher under this
demonstration program, an eligible entity shall submit an
application to the HUD Secretary that includes (i) a
description of the terms of the treatment program, job skills
training, and rental assistance to be provided to the
individual, and assurances that the description shall be
communicated to individuals that receive a voucher pursuant to
this demonstration program; and (ii) a transitional plan that
begins on the date on which a covered individual completes the
treatment program of the eligible entity that includes
information on additional treatment, job skills training, and
housing resources and services available to such individual.
In selecting eligible entities to receive rental assistance
vouchers, the HUD Secretary shall ensure that entities are
diverse, represent an appropriate balance of eligible entities
located in urban and rural areas, and provide transitional
housing programs in diverse geographic regions with high rates
of mortality due to opioid and other substance use disorders,
based on data of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention. The HUD Secretary must consider the success of each
eligible non-profit entity at helping individuals complete
treatment programs, the type of job skills training program
provided by the eligible entity, the percentage of participants
in the job skills training program that gain and maintain
employment, and the percentage of participants in the treatment
program of the eligible entity that do not relapse into opioid
or other substance usage and do not receive Federal assistance
for treatment of an opioid or other substance use disorder.
Upon turnover of the housing choice voucher of an
individual, the eligible entity that initially offered the
voucher may use the voucher to provide rental assistance to
another covered individual.
The HUD Secretary shall not make rental assistance
available under this demonstration program after the expiration
of the 5-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of
the Act.
An eligible entity that receives a rental assistance
voucher under this demonstration program shall submit to the
HUD Secretary annually the transitional plan outlined in this
Act and information on each covered individual's housing upon
termination of the provision of rental assistance. Not later
than four years after the date of enactment, the eligible
entity must submit a plan describing that treatment and housing
options for any covered individual who will not have completed
the program before the day this demonstration program sunsets.
The HUD Secretary shall submit a report to Congress that
analyzes the impact of rental assistance provided under this
demonstration program not later than two years after the date
of enactment of this bill. Not later than four years after the
date of enactment, the HUD Secretary shall submit a report to
Congress that includes recommendations for the continuation or
expansion of the program established under this bill.
An eligible entity is defined as a nonprofit organization
that meets the criteria established under this bill, and a
covered individual is defined as an individual recovering from
an opioid use disorder or other substance use disorder.
Section 3. Repeal of rental voucher demonstration program
The rental voucher demonstration program is repealed five
years after date of enactment of this Act.
Section 4. Return of vouchers
An eligible entity that provided vouchers for rental
assistance under this demonstration program shall return any
such voucher to the HUD Secretary five years after the date of
enactment of this Act.
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new
matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no
change is proposed is shown in roman):
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new
matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no
change is proposed is shown in roman):
UNITED STATES HOUSING ACT OF 1937
TITLE I--GENERAL PROGRAM OF ASSISTED HOUSING
* * * * * * *
lower income housing assistance
Sec. 8. (a) For the purpose of aiding lower-income families
in obtaining a decent place to live and of promoting
economically mixed housing, assistance payments may be made
with respect to existing housing in accordance with the
provisions of this section.
(b) Other Existing Housing Programs.--(1) In general.--The
Secretary is authorized to enter into annual contributions
contracts with public housing agencies pursuant to which such
agencies may enter into contracts to make assistance payments
to owners of existing dwelling units in accordance with this
section. In areas where no public housing agency has been
organized or where the Secretary determines that a public
housing agency is unable to implement the provisions of this
section, the Secretary is authorized to enter into such
contracts and to perform the other functions assigned to a
public housing agency by this section.
(2) The Secretary is authorized to enter into annual
contributions contracts with public housing agencies for the
purpose of replacing public housing transferred in accordance
with title III of this Act. Each contract entered into under
this subsection shall be for a term of not more than 60 months.
(c)(1)(A) An assistance contract entered into pursuant to
this section shall establish the maximum monthly rent
(including utilities and all maintenance and management
charges) which the owner is entitled to receive for each
dwelling unit with respect to which such assistance payments
are to be made. The maximum monthly rent shall not exceed by
more than 10 per centum the fair market rental established by
the Secretary periodically but not less than annually for
existing or newly constructed rental dwelling units of various
sizes and types in the market area suitable for occupancy by
persons assisted under this section, except that the maximum
monthly rent may exceed the fair market rental (A) by more than
10 but not more than 20 per centum where the Secretary
determines that special circumstances warrant such higher
maximum rent or that such higher rent is necessary to the
implementation of a housing strategy as defined in section 105
of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act, or
(B) by such higher amount as may be requested by a tenant and
approved by the public housing agency in accordance with
paragraph (3)(B). In the case of newly constructed and
substantially rehabilitated units, the exception in the
preceding sentence shall not apply to more than 20 per centum
of the total amount of authority to enter into annual
contributions contracts for such units which is allocated to an
area and obligated with respect to any fiscal year beginning on
or after October 1, 1980. Each fair market rental in effect
under this subsection shall be adjusted to be effective on
October 1 of each year to reflect changes, based on the most
recent available data trended so the rentals will be current
for the year to which they apply, of rents for existing or
newly constructed rental dwelling units, as the case may be, of
various sizes and types in the market area suitable for
occupancy by persons assisted under this section.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, after the
date of enactment of the Housing and Community Development Act
of 1977, the Secretary shall prohibit high-rise elevator
projects for families with children unless there is no
practical alternative. If units assisted under this section are
exempt from local rent control while they are so assisted or
otherwise, the maximum monthly rent for such units shall be
reasonable in comparison with other units in the market area
that are exempt from local rent control.
(B) Fair market rentals for an area shall be published not
less than annually by the Secretary on the site of the
Department on the World Wide Web and in any other manner
specified by the Secretary. Notice that such fair market
rentals are being published shall be published in the Federal
Register, and such fair market rentals shall become effective
no earlier than 30 days after the date of such publication. The
Secretary shall establish a procedure for public housing
agencies and other interested parties to comment on such fair
market rentals and to request, within a time specified by the
Secretary, reevaluation of the fair market rentals in a
jurisdiction before such rentals become effective. The
Secretary shall cause to be published for comment in the
Federal Register notices of proposed material changes in the
methodology for estimating fair market rentals and notices
specifying the final decisions regarding such proposed
substantial methodological changes and responses to public
comments.
(2)(A) The assistance contract shall provide for adjustment
annually or more frequently in the maximum monthly rents for
units covered by the contract to reflect changes in the fair
market rentals established in the housing area for similar
types and sizes of dwelling units or, if the Secretary
determines, on the basis of a reasonable formula. However,
where the maximum monthly rent, for a unit in a new
construction, substantial rehabilitation, or moderate
rehabilitation project, to be adjusted using an annual
adjustment factor exceeds the fair market rental for an
existing dwelling unit in the market area, the Secretary shall
adjust the rent only to the extent that the owner demonstrates
that the adjusted rent would not exceed the rent for an
unassisted unit of similar quality, type, and age in the same
market area, as determined by the Secretary. The immediately
foregoing sentence shall be effective only during fiscal year
1995, fiscal year 1996 prior to April 26, 1996, and fiscal
years 1997 and 1998, and during fiscal year 1999 and
thereafter. Except for assistance under the certificate
program, for any unit occupied by the same family at the time
of the last annual rental adjustment, where the assistance
contract provides for the adjustment of the maximum monthly
rent by applying an annual adjustment factor and where the rent
for a unit is otherwise eligible for an adjustment based on the
full amount of the factor, 0.01 shall be subtracted from the
amount of the factor, except that the factor shall not be
reduced to less than 1.0. In the case of assistance under the
certificate program, 0.01 shall be subtracted from the amount
of the annual adjustment factor (except that the factor shall
not be reduced to less than 1.0), and the adjusted rent shall
not exceed the rent for a comparable unassisted unit of similar
quality, type, and age in the market area. The immediately
foregoing two sentences shall be effective only during fiscal
year 1995, fiscal year 1996 prior to April 26, 1996, and fiscal
years 1997 and 1998, and during fiscal year 1999 and
thereafter. In establishing annual adjustment factors for units
in new construction and substantial rehabilitation projects,
the Secretary shall take into account the fact that debt
service is a fixed expense. The immediately foregoing sentence
shall be effective only during fiscal year 1998.
(B) The contract shall further provide for the Secretary to
make additional adjustments in the maximum monthly rent for
units under contract to the extent he determines such
adjustments are necessary to reflect increases in the actual
and necessary expenses of owning and maintaining the units
which have resulted from substantial general increases in real
property taxes, utility rates, or similar costs which are not
adequately compensated for by the adjustment in the maximum
monthly rent authorized by subparagraph (A). The Secretary
shall make additional adjustments in the maximum monthly rent
for units under contract (subject to the availability of
appropriations for contract amendments) to the extent the
Secretary determines such adjustments are necessary to reflect
increases in the actual and necessary expenses of owning and
maintaining the units that have resulted from the expiration of
a real property tax exemption. Where the Secretary determines
that a project assisted under this section is located in a
community where drug-related criminal activity is generally
prevalent and the project's operating, maintenance, and capital
repair expenses have been substantially increased primarily as
a result of the prevalence of such drug-related activity, the
Secretary may (at the discretion of the Secretary and subject
to the availability of appropriations for contract amendments
for this purpose), on a project by project basis, provide
adjustments to the maximum monthly rents, to a level no greater
than 120 percent of the project rents, to cover the costs of
maintenance, security, capital repairs, and reserves required
for the owner to carry out a strategy acceptable to the
Secretary for addressing the problem of drug-related criminal
activity. Any rent comparability standard required under this
paragraph may be waived by the Secretary to so implement the
preceding sentence. The Secretary may (at the discretion of the
Secretary and subject to the availability of appropriations for
contract amendments), on a project by project basis for
projects receiving project-based assistance, provide
adjustments to the maximum monthly rents to cover the costs of
evaluating and reducing lead-based paint hazards, as defined in
section 1004 of the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard
Reduction Act of 1992.
(C) Adjustments in the maximum rents under subparagraphs (A)
and (B) shall not result in material differences between the
rents charged for assisted units and unassisted units of
similar quality, type, and age in the same market area, as
determined by the Secretary. In implementing the limitation
established under the preceding sentence, the Secretary shall
establish regulations for conducting comparability studies for
projects where the Secretary has reason to believe that the
application of the formula adjustments under subparagraph (A)
would result in such material differences. The Secretary shall
conduct such studies upon the request of any owner of any
project, or as the Secretary determines to be appropriate by
establishing, to the extent practicable, a modified annual
adjustment factor for such market area, as the Secretary shall
designate, that is geographically smaller than the applicable
housing area used for the establishment of the annual
adjustment factor under subparagraph (A). The Secretary shall
establish such modified annual adjustment factor on the basis
of the results of a study conducted by the Secretary of the
rents charged, and any change in such rents over the previous
year, for assisted units and unassisted units of similar
quality, type, and age in the smaller market area. Where the
Secretary determines that such modified annual adjustment
factor cannot be established or that such factor when applied
to a particular project would result in material differences
between the rents charged for assisted units and unassisted
units of similar quality, type, and age in the same market
area, the Secretary may apply an alternative methodology for
conducting comparability studies in order to establish rents
that are not materially different from rents charged for
comparable unassisted units. If the Secretary or appropriate
State agency does not complete and submit to the project owner
a comparability study not later than 60 days before the
anniversary date of the assistance contract under this section,
the automatic annual adjustment factor shall be applied. The
Secretary may not reduce the contract rents in effect on or
after April 15, 1987, for newly constructed, substantially
rehabilitated, or moderately rehabilitated projects assisted
under this section (including projects assisted under this
section as in effect prior to November 30, 1983), unless the
project has been refinanced in a manner that reduces the
periodic payments of the owner. Any maximum monthly rent that
has been reduced by the Secretary after April 14, 1987, and
prior to the enactment of this sentence shall be restored to
the maximum monthly rent in effect on April 15, 1987. For any
project which has had its maximum monthly rents reduced after
April 14, 1987, the Secretary shall make assistance payments
(from amounts reserved for the original contract) to the owner
of such project in an amount equal to the difference between
the maximum monthly rents in effect on April 15, 1987, and the
reduced maximum monthly rents, multiplied by the number of
months that the reduced maximum monthly rents were in effect.
(3) The amount of the monthly assistance payment with respect
to any dwelling unit shall be the difference between the
maximum monthly rent which the contract provides that the owner
is to receive for the unit and the rent the family is required
to pay under section 3(a) of this Act.
(4) The assistance contract shall provide that assistance
payments may be made only with respect to a dwelling unit under
lease for occupancy by a family determined to be a lower income
family at the time it initially occupied such dwelling unit,
except that such payments may be made with respect to
unoccupied units for a period not exceeding sixty days (A) in
the event that a family vacates a dwelling unit before the
expiration date of the lease for occupancy or (B) where a good
faith effort is being made to fill an unoccupied unit, and,
subject to the provisions of the following sentence, such
payments may be made, in the case of a newly constructed or
substantially rehabilitated project, after such sixty-day
period in an amount equal to the debt service attributable to
such an unoccupied dwelling unit for a period not to exceed one
year, if a good faith effort is being made to fill the unit and
the unit provides decent, safe, and sanitary housing. No such
payment may be made after such sixty-day period if the
Secretary determines that the dwelling unit is in a project
which provides the owner with revenues exceeding the costs
incurred by such owner with respect to such project.
(5) The Secretary shall take such steps as may be necessary,
including the making of contracts for assistance payments in
amounts in excess of the amounts required at the time of the
initial renting of dwelling units, the reservation of annual
contributions authority for the purpose of amending housing
assistance contracts, or the allocation of a portion of new
authorizations for the purpose of amending housing assistance
contracts, to assure that assistance payments are increased on
a timely basis to cover increases in maximum monthly rents or
decreases in family incomes.
(8)(A) Not less than one year before termination of any
contract under which assistance payments are received under
this section, other than a contract for tenant-based assistance
under this section, an owner shall provide written notice to
the Secretary and the tenants involved of the proposed
termination. The notice shall also include a statement that, if
the Congress makes funds available, the owner and the Secretary
may agree to a renewal of the contract, thus avoiding
termination, and that in the event of termination the
Department of Housing and Urban Development will provide
tenant-based rental assistance to all eligible residents,
enabling them to choose the place they wish to rent, which is
likely to include the dwelling unit in which they currently
reside. Any contract covered by this paragraph that is renewed
may be renewed for a period of up to 1 year or any number or
years, with payments subject to the availability of
appropriations for any year.
(B) In the event the owner does not provide the notice
required, the owner may not evict the tenants or increase the
tenants' rent payment until such time as the owner has provided
the notice and 1 year has elapsed. The Secretary may allow the
owner to renew the terminating contract for a period of time
sufficient to give tenants 1 year of advance notice under such
terms and conditions as the Secretary may require.
(C) Any notice under this paragraph shall also comply with
any additional requirements established by the Secretary.
(D) For purposes of this paragraph, the term ``termination''
means the expiration of the assistance contract or an owner's
refusal to renew the assistance contract, and such term shall
include termination of the contract for business reasons.
(d)(1) Contracts to make assistance payments entered into by
a public housing agency with an owner of existing housing units
shall provide (with respect to any unit) that--
(A) the selection of tenants shall be the
function of the owner, subject to the annual
contributions contract between the Secretary
and the agency, except that with respect to the
certificate and moderate rehabilitation
programs only, for the purpose of selecting
families to be assisted, the public housing
agency may establish local preferences,
consistent with the public housing agency plan
submitted under section 5A (42 U.S.C. 1437c-1)
by the public housing agency;
(B)(i) the lease between the tenant and the owner
shall be for at least one year or the term of such
contract, whichever is shorter, and shall contain other
terms and conditions specified by the Secretary;
(ii) during the term of the lease, the owner shall
not terminate the tenancy except for serious or
repeated violation of the terms and conditions of the
lease, for violation of applicable Federal, State, or
local law, or for other good cause;
(iii) during the term of the lease, any criminal
activity that threatens the health, safety, or right to
peaceful enjoyment of the premises by other tenants,
any criminal activity that threatens the health,
safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment of their
residences by persons residing in the immediate
vicinity of the premises, or any drug-related criminal
activity on or near such premises, engaged in by a
tenant of any unit, any member of the tenant's
household, or any guest or other person under the
tenant's control, shall be cause for termination of
tenancy;
(iv) any termination of tenancy shall be preceded by
the owner's provision of written notice to the tenant
specifying the grounds for such action; and
(v) it shall be cause for termination of the
tenancy of a tenant if such tenant--
(I) is fleeing to avoid prosecution,
or custody or confinement after
conviction, under the laws of the place
from which the individual flees, for a
crime, or attempt to commit a crime,
which is a felony under the laws of the
place from which the individual flees,
or which, in the case of the State of
New Jersey, is a high misdemeanor under
the laws of such State; or
(II) is violating a condition of
probation or parole imposed under
Federal or State law;
(C) maintenance and replacement (including
redecoration) shall be in accordance with the standard
practice for the building concerned as established by
the owner and agreed to by the agency; and
(D) the agency and the owner shall carry out such
other appropriate terms and conditions as may be
mutually agreed to by them.
(2)(A) Each contract for an existing structure entered into
under this section shall be for a term of not less than one
month nor more than one hundred and eighty months. The
Secretary shall permit public housing agencies to enter into
contracts for assistance payments of less than 12 months
duration in order to avoid disruption in assistance to eligible
families if the annual contributions contract is within 1 year
of its expiration date.
(B)(i) In determining the amount of assistance provided under
an assistance contract for project-based assistance under this
paragraph or a contract for assistance for housing constructed
or substantially rehabilitated pursuant to assistance provided
under section 8(b)(2) of this Act (as such section existed
immediately before October 1, 1983), the Secretary may consider
and annually adjust, with respect to such project, for the cost
of employing or otherwise retaining the services of one or more
service coordinators under section 661 of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1992 to coordinate the provision
of any services within the project for residents of the project
who are elderly or disabled families.
(ii) The budget authority available under section 5(c) for
assistance under this section is authorized to be increased by
$15,000,000 on or after October 1, 1992, and by $15,000,000 on
or after October 1, 1993. Amounts made available under this
subparagraph shall be used to provide additional amounts under
annual contributions contracts for assistance under this
section which shall be made available through assistance
contracts only for the purpose of providing service
coordinators under clause (i) for projects receiving project-
based assistance under this paragraph and to provide additional
amounts under contracts for assistance for projects constructed
or substantially rehabilitated pursuant to assistance provided
under section 8(b)(2) of this Act (as such section existed
immediately before October 1, 1983) only for such purpose.
(C) An assistance contract for project-based
assistance under this paragraph shall provide that the
owner shall ensure and maintain compliance with
subtitle C of title VI of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1992 and any regulations issued
under such subtitle.
(D) An owner of a covered section 8 housing project
(as such term is defined in section 659 of the Housing
and Community Development Act of 1992) may give
preference for occupancy of dwelling units in the
project, and reserve units for occupancy, in accordance
with subtitle D of title VI of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1992.
(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, with the
approval of the Secretary the public housing agency
administering a contract under this section with respect to
existing housing units may exercise all management and
maintenance responsibilities with respect to those units
pursuant to a contract between such agency and the owner of
such units.
(4) A public housing agency that serves more than one unit of
general local government may, at the discretion of the agency,
in allocating assistance under this section, give priority to
disabled families that are not elderly families.
(5) Calculation of limit.--Any contract entered into
under section 514 of the Multifamily Assisted Housing
Reform and Affordability Act of 1997 shall be excluded
in computing the limit on project-based assistance
under this subsection.
(6) Treatment of common areas.--The Secretary may not provide
any assistance amounts pursuant to an existing contract for
project-based assistance under this section for a housing
project and may not enter into a new or renewal contract for
such assistance for a project unless the owner of the project
provides consent, to such local law enforcement agencies as the
Secretary determines appropriate, for law enforcement officers
of such agencies to enter common areas of the project at any
time and without advance notice upon a determination of
probable cause by such officers that criminal activity is
taking place in such areas.
(e)(1) Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to prohibit an
owner from pledging, or offering as security for any loan or
obligation, a contract for assistance payments entered into
pursuant to this section: Provided, That such security is in
connection with a project constructed or rehabilitated pursuant
to authority granted in this section, and the terms of the
financing or any refinancing have been approved by the
Secretary.
(f) As used in this section--
(1) the term ``owner'' means any private person or
entity, including a cooperative, an agency of the
Federal Government, or a public housing agency, having
the legal right to lease or sublease dwelling units;
(2) the terms ``rent'' or ``rental'' mean, with
respect to members of a cooperative, the charges under
the occupancy agreements between such members and the
cooperative;
(3) the term ``debt service'' means the required
payments for principal and interest made with respect
to a mortgage secured by housing assisted under this
Act;
(4) the term ``participating jurisdiction'' means a
State or unit of general local government designated by
the Secretary to be a participating jurisdiction under
title II of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable
Housing Act;
(5) the term ``drug-related criminal activity'' means
the illegal manufacture, sale, distribution, use, or
possession with intent to manufacture, sell,
distribute, or use, of a controlled substance (as
defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act
(21 U.S.C. 802));
(6) the term ``project-based assistance'' means
rental assistance under subsection (b) that is attached
to the structure pursuant to subsection (d)(2) or
(o)(13); and
(7) the term ``tenant-based assistance'' means rental
assistance under subsection (o) that is not project-
based assistance and that provides for the eligible
family to select suitable housing and to move to other
suitable housing.
(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act,
assistance payments under this section may be provided, in
accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary, with
respect to some or all of the units in any project approved
pursuant to section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959.
(h) Sections 5(e) and 6 and any other provisions of this Act
which are inconsistent with the provisions of this section
shall not apply to contracts for assistance entered into under
this section.
(i) The Secretary may not consider the receipt by a public
housing agency of assistance under section 811(b)(1) of the
Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act, or the
amount received, in approving assistance for the agency under
this section or determining the amount of such assistance to be
provided.
(k) The Secretary shall establish procedures which are
appropriate and necessary to assure that income data provided
to public housing agencies and owners by families applying for
or receiving assistance under this section is complete and
accurate. In establishing such procedures, the Secretary shall
randomly, regularly, and periodically select a sample of
families to authorize the Secretary to obtain information on
these families for the purpose of income verification, or to
allow those families to provide such information themselves.
Such information may include, but is not limited to, data
concerning unemployment compensation and Federal income
taxation and data relating to benefits made available under the
Social Security Act, the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, or
title 38, United States Code. Any such information received
pursuant to this subsection shall remain confidential and shall
be used only for the purpose of verifying incomes in order to
determine eligibility of families for benefits (and the amount
of such benefits, if any) under this section.
(o) Voucher Program.--
(1) Authority.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary may provide
assistance to public housing agencies for
tenant-based assistance using a payment
standard established in accordance with
subparagraph (B). The payment standard shall be
used to determine the monthly assistance that
may be paid for any family, as provided in
paragraph (2).
(B) Establishment of payment standard.--
Except as provided under subparagraph (D), the
payment standard for each size of dwelling unit
in a market area shall not exceed 110 percent
of the fair market rental established under
subsection (c) for the same size of dwelling
unit in the same market area and shall be not
less than 90 percent of that fair market
rental, except that no public housing agency
shall be required as a result of a reduction in
the fair market rental to reduce the payment
standard applied to a family continuing to
reside in a unit for which the family was
receiving assistance under this section at the
time the fair market rental was reduced. The
Secretary shall allow public housing agencies
to request exception payment standards within
fair market rental areas subject to criteria
and procedures established by the Secretary.
(C) Set-aside.--The Secretary may set aside
not more than 5 percent of the budget authority
made available for assistance under this
subsection as an adjustment pool. The Secretary
shall use amounts in the adjustment pool to
make adjusted payments to public housing
agencies under subparagraph (A), to ensure
continued affordability, if the Secretary
determines that additional assistance for such
purpose is necessary, based on documentation
submitted by a public housing agency.
(D) Approval.--The Secretary may require a
public housing agency to submit the payment
standard of the public housing agency to the
Secretary for approval, if the payment standard
is less than 90 percent of the fair market
rental or exceeds 110 percent of the fair
market rental, except that a public housing
agency may establish a payment standard of not
more than 120 percent of the fair market rent
where necessary as a reasonable accommodation
for a person with a disability, without
approval of the Secretary. A public housing
agency may use a payment standard that is
greater than 120 percent of the fair market
rent as a reasonable accommodation for a person
with a disability, but only with the approval
of the Secretary. In connection with the use of
any increased payment standard established or
approved pursuant to either of the preceding
two sentences as a reasonable accommodation for
a person with a disability, the Secretary may
not establish additional requirements regarding
the amount of adjusted income paid by such
person for rent.
(E) Review.--The Secretary--
(i) shall monitor rent burdens and
review any payment standard that
results in a significant percentage of
the families occupying units of any
size paying more than 30 percent of
adjusted income for rent; and
(ii) may require a public housing
agency to modify the payment standard
of the public housing agency based on
the results of that review.
(2) Amount of monthly assistance payment.--Subject to
the requirement under section 3(a)(3) (relating to
minimum rental amount), the monthly assistance payment
for a family receiving assistance under this subsection
shall be determined as follows:
(A) Tenant-based assistance; rent not
exceeding payment standard.--For a family
receiving tenant-based assistance, if the rent
for the family (including the amount allowed
for tenant-paid utilities) does not exceed the
applicable payment standard established under
paragraph (1), the monthly assistance payment
for the family shall be equal to the amount by
which the rent (including the amount allowed
for tenant-paid utilities) exceeds the greatest
of the following amounts, rounded to the
nearest dollar:
(i) 30 percent of the monthly
adjusted income of the family.
(ii) 10 percent of the monthly income
of the family.
(iii) If the family is receiving
payments for welfare assistance from a
public agency and a part of those
payments, adjusted in accordance with
the actual housing costs of the family,
is specifically designated by that
agency to meet the housing costs of the
family, the portion of those payments
that is so designated.
(B) Tenant-based assistance; rent exceeding
payment standard.--For a family receiving
tenant-based assistance, if the rent for the
family (including the amount allowed for
tenant-paid utilities) exceeds the applicable
payment standard established under paragraph
(1), the monthly assistance payment for the
family shall be equal to the amount by which
the applicable payment standard exceeds the
greatest of amounts under clauses (i), (ii),
and (iii) of subparagraph (A).
(C) Families receiving project-based
assistance.--For a family receiving project-
based assistance, the rent that the family is
required to pay shall be determined in
accordance with section 3(a)(1), and the amount
of the housing assistance payment shall be
determined in accordance with subsection (c)(3)
of this section.
(D) Utility allowance.--
(i) General.--In determining the
monthly assistance payment for a family
under subparagraphs (A) and (B), the
amount allowed for tenant-paid
utilities shall not exceed the
appropriate utility allowance for the
family unit size as determined by the
public housing agency regardless of the
size of the dwelling unit leased by the
family.
(ii) Exception for families in
including persons with disabilities.--
Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), upon
request by a family that includes a
person with disabilities, the public
housing agency shall approve a utility
allowance that is higher than the
applicable amount on the utility
allowance schedule if a higher utility
allowance is needed as a reasonable
accommodation to make the program
accessible to and usable by the family
member with a disability.
(3) 40 percent limit.--At the time a family
initially receives tenant-based assistance under this
section with respect to any dwelling unit, the total
amount that a family may be required to pay for rent
may not exceed 40 percent of the monthly adjusted
income of the family.
(4) Eligible families.--To be eligible to receive
assistance under this subsection, a family shall, at
the time a family initially receives assistance under
this subsection, be a low-income family that is--
(A) a very low-income family;
(B) a family previously assisted under this
title;
(C) a low-income family that meets
eligibility criteria specified by the public
housing agency;
(D) a family that qualifies to receive a
voucher in connection with a homeownership
program approved under title IV of the
Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing
Act; or
(E) a family that qualifies to receive a
voucher under section 223 or 226 of the Low-
Income Housing Preservation and Resident
Homeownership Act of 1990.
(5) Reviews of family income.--
(A) In general.--Reviews of family incomes
for purposes of this section shall be subject
to paragraphs (1), (6), and (7) of section 3(a)
and to section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney
Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of 1988.
(B) Procedures.--Each public housing agency
administering assistance under this subsection
shall establish procedures that are appropriate
and necessary to ensure that income data
provided to the agency and owners by families
applying for or receiving assistance from the
agency is complete and accurate.
(6) Selection of families and disapproval of
owners.--
(A) Preferences.--
(i) Authority to establish.--Each
public housing agency may establish a
system for making tenant-based
assistance under this subsection
available on behalf of eligible
families that provides preference for
such assistance to eligible families
having certain characteristics, which
may include a preference for families
residing in public housing who are
victims of a crime of violence (as such
term is defined in section 16 of title
18, United States Code) that has been
reported to an appropriate law
enforcement agency.
(ii) Content.--Each system of
preferences established pursuant to
this subparagraph shall be based upon
local housing needs and priorities, as
determined by the public housing agency
using generally accepted data sources,
including any information obtained
pursuant to an opportunity for public
comment as provided under section 5A(f)
and under the requirements applicable
to the comprehensive housing
affordability strategy for the relevant
jurisdiction.
(B) Selection of tenants.--Each housing
assistance payment contract entered into by the
public housing agency and the owner of a
dwelling unit) shall provide that the screening
and selection of families for those units shall
be the function of the owner. In addition, the
public housing agency may elect to screen
applicants for the program in accordance with
such requirements as the Secretary may
establish.
(C) PHA disapproval of owners.--In addition
to other grounds authorized by the Secretary, a
public housing agency may elect not to enter
into a housing assistance payments contract
under this subsection with an owner who
refuses, or has a history of refusing, to take
action to terminate tenancy for activity
engaged in by the tenant, any member of the
tenant's household, any guest, or any other
person under the control of any member of the
household that--
(i) threatens the health or safety
of, or right to peaceful enjoyment of
the premises by, other tenants or
employees of the public housing agency,
owner, or other manager of the housing;
(ii) threatens the health or safety
of, or right to peaceful enjoyment of
the residences by, persons residing in
the immediate vicinity of the premises;
or
(iii) is drug-related or violent
criminal activity.
(7) Leases and tenancy.--Each housing assistance
payment contract entered into by the public housing
agency and the owner of a dwelling unit--
(A) shall provide that the lease between the
tenant and the owner shall be for a term of not
less than 1 year, except that the public
housing agency may approve a shorter term for
an initial lease between the tenant and the
dwelling unit owner if the public housing
agency determines that such shorter term would
improve housing opportunities for the tenant
and if such shorter term is considered to be a
prevailing local market practice;
(B) shall provide that the dwelling unit
owner shall offer leases to tenants assisted
under this subsection that--
(i) are in a standard form used in
the locality by the dwelling unit
owner; and
(ii) contain terms and conditions
that--
(I) are consistent with State
and local law; and
(II) apply generally to
tenants in the property who are
not assisted under this
section;
(C) shall provide that during the term of the
lease, the owner shall not terminate the
tenancy except for serious or repeated
violation of the terms and conditions of the
lease, for violation of applicable Federal,
State, or local law, or for other good cause,;
(D) shall provide that during the term of the
lease, any criminal activity that threatens the
health, safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment
of the premises by other tenants, any criminal
activity that threatens the health, safety, or
right to peaceful enjoyment of their residences
by persons residing in the immediate vicinity
of the premises, or any violent or drug-related
criminal activity on or near such premises,
engaged in by a tenant of any unit, any member
of the tenant's household, or any guest or
other person under the tenant's control, shall
be cause for termination of tenancy;
(E) shall provide that any termination of
tenancy under this subsection shall be preceded
by the provision of written notice by the owner
to the tenant specifying the grounds for that
action, and any relief shall be consistent with
applicable State and local law; and
(F) may include any addenda required by the
Secretary to set forth the provisions of this
subsection.
(8) Inspection of units by pha's.--
(A) Initial inspection.--
(i) In general.--For each dwelling
unit for which a housing assistance
payment contract is established under
this subsection, the public housing
agency (or other entity pursuant to
paragraph (11)) shall inspect the unit
before any assistance payment is made
to determine whether the dwelling unit
meets the housing quality standards
under subparagraph (B), except as
provided in clause (ii) or (iii) of
this subparagraph.
(ii) Correction of non-life-
threatening conditions.--In the case of
any dwelling unit that is determined,
pursuant to an inspection under clause
(i), not to meet the housing quality
standards under subparagraph (B),
assistance payments may be made for the
unit notwithstanding subparagraph (C)
if failure to meet such standards is a
result only of non-life-threatening
conditions, as such conditions are
established by the Secretary. A public
housing agency making assistance
payments pursuant to this clause for a
dwelling unit shall, 30 days after the
beginning of the period for which such
payments are made, withhold any
assistance payments for the unit if any
deficiency resulting in noncompliance
with the housing quality standards has
not been corrected by such time. The
public housing agency shall recommence
assistance payments when such
deficiency has been corrected, and may
use any payments withheld to make
assistance payments relating to the
period during which payments were
withheld.
(iii) Use of alternative inspection
method for interim period.--In the case
of any property that within the
previous 24 months has met the
requirements of an inspection that
qualifies as an alternative inspection
method pursuant to subparagraph (E), a
public housing agency may authorize
occupancy before the inspection under
clause (i) has been completed, and may
make assistance payments retroactive to
the beginning of the lease term after
the unit has been determined pursuant
to an inspection under clause (i) to
meet the housing quality standards
under subparagraph (B). This clause may
not be construed to exempt any dwelling
unit from compliance with the
requirements of subparagraph (D).
(B) Housing quality standards.--The housing
quality standards under this subparagraph are
standards for safe and habitable housing
established--
(i) by the Secretary for purposes of
this subsection; or
(ii) by local housing codes or by
codes adopted by public housing
agencies that--
(I) meet or exceed housing
quality standards, except that
the Secretary may waive the
requirement under this
subclause to significantly
increase access to affordable
housing and to expand housing
opportunities for families
assisted under this subsection,
except where such waiver could
adversely affect the health or
safety of families assisted
under this subsection; and
(II) do not severely restrict
housing choice
(C) Inspection.--The determination required
under subparagraph (A) shall be made by the
public housing agency (or other entity, as
provided in paragraph (11)) pursuant to an
inspection of the dwelling unit conducted
before any assistance payment is made for the
unit. Inspections of dwelling units under this
subparagraph shall be made before the
expiration of the 15-day period beginning upon
a request by the resident or landlord to the
public housing agency or, in the case of any
public housing agency that provides assistance
under this subsection on behalf of more than
1250 families, before the expiration of a
reasonable period beginning upon such request.
The performance of the agency in meeting the
15-day inspection deadline shall be taken into
consideration in assessing the performance of
the agency.
(D) Biennial inspections.--
(i) Requirement.--Each public housing
agency providing assistance under this
subsection (or other entity, as
provided in paragraph (11)) shall, for
each assisted dwelling unit, make
inspections not less often than
biennially during the term of the
housing assistance payments contract
for the unit to determine whether the
unit is maintained in accordance with
the requirements under subparagraph
(A).
(ii) Use of alternative inspection
method.--The requirements under clause
(i) may be complied with by use of
inspections that qualify as an
alternative inspection method pursuant
to subparagraph (E).
(iii) Records.--The public housing
agency (or other entity) shall retain
the records of the inspection for a
reasonable time, as determined by the
Secretary, and shall make the records
available upon request to the
Secretary, the Inspector General for
the Department of Housing and Urban
Development, and any auditor conducting
an audit under section 5(h).
(iv) Mixed-finance properties.--The
Secretary may adjust the frequency of
inspections for mixed-finance
properties assisted with vouchers under
paragraph (13) to facilitate the use of
the alternative inspections in
subparagraph (E).
(E) Alternative inspection method.--An
inspection of a property shall qualify as an
alternative inspection method for purposes of
this subparagraph if--
(i) the inspection was conducted
pursuant to requirements under a
Federal, State, or local housing
program (including the Home investment
partnership program under title II of
the Cranston-Gonzalez National
Affordable Housing Act and the low-
income housing tax credit program under
section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986); and
(ii) pursuant to such inspection, the
property was determined to meet the
standards or requirements regarding
housing quality or safety applicable to
properties assisted under such program,
and, if a non-Federal standard or
requirement was used, the public
housing agency has certified to the
Secretary that such standard or
requirement provides the same (or
greater) protection to occupants of
dwelling units meeting such standard or
requirement as would the housing
quality standards under subparagraph
(B).
(F) Interim inspections.--Upon notification
to the public housing agency, by a family (on
whose behalf tenant-based rental assistance is
provided under this subsection) or by a
government official, that the dwelling unit for
which such assistance is provided does not
comply with the housing quality standards under
subparagraph (B), the public housing agency
shall inspect the dwelling unit--
(i) in the case of any condition that
is life-threatening, within 24 hours
after the agency's receipt of such
notification, unless waived by the
Secretary in extraordinary
circumstances; and
(ii) in the case of any condition
that is not life-threatening, within a
reasonable time frame, as determined by
the Secretary.
(G) Enforcement of housing quality
standards.--
(i) Determination of noncompliance.--
A dwelling unit that is covered by a
housing assistance payments contract
under this subsection shall be
considered, for purposes of
subparagraphs (D) and (F), to be in
noncompliance with the housing quality
standards under subparagraph (B) if--
(I) the public housing agency
or an inspector authorized by
the State or unit of local
government determines upon
inspection of the unit that the
unit fails to comply with such
standards;
(II) the agency or inspector
notifies the owner of the unit
in writing of such failure to
comply; and
(III) the failure to comply
is not corrected--
(aa) in the case of
any such failure that
is a result of life-
threatening conditions,
within 24 hours after
such notice has been
provided; and
(bb) in the case of
any such failure that
is a result of non-
life-threatening
conditions, within 30
days after such notice
has been provided or
such other reasonable
longer period as the
public housing agency
may establish.
(ii) Withholding of assistance
amounts during correction.--The public
housing agency may withhold assistance
amounts under this subsection with
respect to a dwelling unit for which a
notice pursuant to clause (i)(II), of
failure to comply with housing quality
standards under subparagraph (B) as
determined pursuant to an inspection
conducted under subparagraph (D) or
(F), has been provided. If the unit is
brought into compliance with such
housing quality standards during the
periods referred to in clause (i)(III),
the public housing agency shall
recommence assistance payments and may
use any amounts withheld during the
correction period to make assistance
payments relating to the period during
which payments were withheld.
(iii) Abatement of assistance
amounts.--The public housing agency
shall abate all of the assistance
amounts under this subsection with
respect to a dwelling unit that is
determined, pursuant to clause (i) of
this subparagraph, to be in
noncompliance with housing quality
standards under subparagraph (B). Upon
completion of repairs by the public
housing agency or the owner sufficient
so that the dwelling unit complies with
such housing quality standards, the
agency shall recommence payments under
the housing assistance payments
contract to the owner of the dwelling
unit.
(iv) Notification.--If a public
housing agency providing assistance
under this subsection abates rental
assistance payments pursuant to clause
(iii) with respect to a dwelling unit,
the agency shall, upon commencement of
such abatement--
(I) notify the tenant and the
owner of the dwelling unit
that--
(aa) such abatement
has commenced; and
(bb) if the dwelling
unit is not brought
into compliance with
housing quality
standards within 60
days after the
effective date of the
determination of
noncompliance under
clause (i) or such
reasonable longer
period as the agency
may establish, the
tenant will have to
move; and
(II) issue the tenant the
necessary forms to allow the
tenant to move to another
dwelling unit and transfer the
rental assistance to that unit.
(v) Protection of tenants.--An owner
of a dwelling unit may not terminate
the tenancy of any tenant because of
the withholding or abatement of
assistance pursuant to this
subparagraph. During the period that
assistance is abated pursuant to this
subparagraph, the tenant may terminate
the tenancy by notifying the owner.
(vi) Termination of lease or
assistance payments contract.--If
assistance amounts under this section
for a dwelling unit are abated pursuant
to clause (iii) and the owner does not
correct the noncompliance within 60
days after the effective date of the
determination of noncompliance under
clause (i), or such other reasonable
longer period as the public housing
agency may establish, the agency shall
terminate the housing assistance
payments contract for the dwelling
unit.
(vii) Relocation.--
(I) Lease of new unit.--The
agency shall provide the family
residing in such a dwelling
unit a period of 90 days or
such longer period as the
public housing agency
determines is reasonably
necessary to lease a new unit,
beginning upon termination of
the contract, to lease a new
residence with tenant-based
rental assistance under this
section.
(II) Availability of public
housing units.--If the family
is unable to lease such a new
residence during such period,
the public housing agency
shall, at the option of the
family, provide such family a
preference for occupancy in a
dwelling unit of public housing
that is owned or operated by
the agency that first becomes
available for occupancy after
the expiration of such period.
(III) Assistance in finding
unit.--The public housing
agency may provide assistance
to the family in finding a new
residence, including use of up
to two months of any assistance
amounts withheld or abated
pursuant to clause (ii) or
(iii), respectively, for costs
directly associated with
relocation of the family to a
new residence, which shall
include security deposits as
necessary and may include
reimbursements for reasonable
moving expenses incurred by the
household, as established by
the Secretary. The agency may
require that a family receiving
assistance for a security
deposit shall remit, to the
extent of such assistance, the
amount of any security deposit
refunds made by the owner of
the dwelling unit for which the
lease was terminated.
(viii) Tenant-caused damages.--If a
public housing agency determines that
any damage to a dwelling unit that
results in a failure of the dwelling
unit to comply with housing quality
standards under subparagraph (B), other
than any damage resulting from ordinary
use, was caused by the tenant, any
member of the tenant's household, or
any guest or other person under the
tenant's control, the agency may waive
the applicability of this subparagraph,
except that this clause shall not
exonerate a tenant from any liability
otherwise existing under applicable law
for damages to the premises caused by
such tenant.
(ix) Applicability.--This
subparagraph shall apply to any
dwelling unit for which a housing
assistance payments contract is entered
into or renewed after the date of the
effectiveness of the regulations
implementing this subparagraph.
(H) Inspection guidelines.--The Secretary
shall establish procedural guidelines and
performance standards to facilitate inspections
of dwelling units and conform such inspections
with practices utilized in the private housing
market. Such guidelines and standards shall
take into consideration variations in local
laws and practices of public housing agencies
and shall provide flexibility to authorities
appropriate to facilitate efficient provision
of assistance under this subsection.
(9) Vacated units.--If an assisted family vacates a
dwelling unit for which rental assistance is provided
under a housing assistance payment contract before the
expiration of the term of the lease for the unit,
rental assistance pursuant to such contract may not be
provided for the unit after the month during which the
unit was vacated.
(10) Rent.--
(A) Reasonableness.--The rent for dwelling
units for which a housing assistance payment
contract is established under this subsection
shall be reasonable in comparison with rents
charged for comparable dwelling units in the
private, unassisted local market.
(B) Negotiations.--A public housing agency
(or other entity, as provided in paragraph
(11)) shall, at the request of a family
receiving tenant-based assistance under this
subsection, assist that family in negotiating a
reasonable rent with a dwelling unit owner. A
public housing agency (or such other entity)
shall review the rent for a unit under
consideration by the family (and all rent
increases for units under lease by the family)
to determine whether the rent (or rent
increase) requested by the owner is reasonable.
If a public housing agency (or other such
entity) determines that the rent (or rent
increase) for a dwelling unit is not
reasonable, the public housing agency (or other
such entity) shall not make housing assistance
payments to the owner under this subsection
with respect to that unit.
(C) Units exempt from local rent control.--If
a dwelling unit for which a housing assistance
payment contract is established under this
subsection is exempt from local rent control
provisions during the term of that contract,
the rent for that unit shall be reasonable in
comparison with other units in the market area
that are exempt from local rent control
provisions.
(D) Timely payments.--Each public housing
agency shall make timely payment of any amounts
due to a dwelling unit owner under this
subsection. The housing assistance payment
contract between the owner and the public
housing agency may provide for penalties for
the late payment of amounts due under the
contract, which shall be imposed on the public
housing agency in accordance with generally
accepted practices in the local housing market.
(E) Penalties.--Unless otherwise authorized
by the Secretary, each public housing agency
shall pay any penalties from administrative
fees collected by the public housing agency,
except that no penalty shall be imposed if the
late payment is due to factors that the
Secretary determines are beyond the control of
the public housing agency.
(F) Tax credit projects.--In the case of a
dwelling unit receiving tax credits pursuant to
section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
or for which assistance is provided under
subtitle A of title II of the Cranston Gonzalez
National Affordable Housing Act of 1990, for
which a housing assistance contract not subject
to paragraph (13) of this subsection is
established, rent reasonableness shall be
determined as otherwise provided by this
paragraph, except that--
(i) comparison with rent for units in
the private, unassisted local market
shall not be required if the rent is
equal to or less than the rent for
other comparable units receiving such
tax credits or assistance in the
project that are not occupied by
families assisted with tenant-based
assistance under this subsection; and
(ii) the rent shall not be considered
reasonable for purposes of this
paragraph if it exceeds the greater
of--
(I) the rents charged for
other comparable units
receiving such tax credits or
assistance in the project that
are not occupied by families
assisted with tenant-based
assistance under this
subsection; and
(II) the payment standard
established by the public
housing agency for a unit of
the size involved.
(11) Leasing of units owned by pha.--
(A) Inspections and rent determinations.--If
an eligible family assisted under this
subsection leases a dwelling unit (other than a
public housing dwelling unit) that is owned by
a public housing agency administering
assistance under this subsection, the Secretary
shall require the unit of general local
government or another entity approved by the
Secretary, to make inspections required under
paragraph (8) and rent determinations required
under paragraph (10). The agency shall be
responsible for any expenses of such
inspections and determinations.
(B) Units owned by pha.--For purposes of this
subsection, the term ``owned by a public
housing agency'' means, with respect to a
dwelling unit, that the dwelling unit is in a
project that is owned by such agency, by an
entity wholly controlled by such agency, or by
a limited liability company or limited
partnership in which such agency (or an entity
wholly controlled by such agency) holds a
controlling interest in the managing member or
general partner. A dwelling unit shall not be
deemed to be owned by a public housing agency
for purposes of this subsection because the
agency holds a fee interest as ground lessor in
the property on which the unit is situated,
holds a security interest under a mortgage or
deed of trust on the unit, or holds a non-
controlling interest in an entity which owns
the unit or in the managing member or general
partner of an entity which owns the unit.
(12) Assistance for rental of manufactured
housing.--
(A) In general.--A public housing agency may
make assistance payments in accordance with
this subsection on behalf of a family that
utilizes a manufactured home as a principal
place of residenceand rents the real property
on which the manufactured home owned by any
such family is located.
(B) Rent calculation.--
(i) Charges included.--For assistance
pursuant to this paragraph, rent shall
mean the sum of the monthly payments
made by a family assisted under this
paragraph to amortize the cost of
purchasing the manufactured home,
including any required insurance and
property taxes, the monthly amount
allowed for tenant-paid utilities, and
the monthly rent charged for the real
property on which the manufactured home
is located, including monthly
management and maintenance charges.
(ii) Monthly assistance payment.--The
monthly assistance payment for a family
assisted under this paragraph shall be
determined in accordance with paragraph
(2). If the amount of the monthly
assistance payment for a family exceeds
the monthly rent charged for the real
property on which the manufactured home
is located, including monthly
management and maintenance charges, a
public housing agency may pay the
remainder to the family, lender or
utility company, or may choose to make
a single payment to the family for the
entire monthly assistance amount.
(13) PHA project-based assistance.--
(A) In general.--A public housing agency may
use amounts provided under an annual
contributions contract under this subsection to
enter into a housing assistance payment
contract with respect to an existing, newly
constructed, or rehabilitated project, that is
attached to the project, subject to the
limitations and requirements of this paragraph.
(B) Percentage limitation.--
(i) In general.--Subject to clause
(ii), a public housing agency may use
for project-based assistance under this
paragraph not more than 20 percent of
the authorized units for the agency.
(ii) Exception.--A public housing
agency may use up to an additional 10
percent of the authorized units for the
agency for project-based assistance
under this paragraph, to provide units
that house individuals and families
that meet the definition of homeless
under section 103 of the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.
11302), that house families with
veterans, that provide supportive
housing to persons with disabilities or
elderly persons, or that are located in
areas where vouchers under this
subsection are difficult to use, as
specified in subparagraph (D)(ii)(II).
Any units of project-based assistance
that are attached to units previously
subject to federally required rent
restrictions or receiving another type
of long-term housing subsidy provided
by the Secretary shall not count toward
the percentage limitation under clause
(i) of this subparagraph. The Secretary
may, by regulation, establish
additional categories for the exception
under this clause.
(C) Consistency with pha plan and other
goals.--A public housing agency may approve a
housing assistance payment contract pursuant to
this paragraph only if the contract is
consistent with--
(i) the public housing agency plan
for the agency approved under section
5A; and
(ii) the goal of deconcentrating
poverty and expanding housing and
economic opportunities.
(D) Income-mixing requirement.--
(i) In general.--Except as provided
in clause (ii), not more than the
greater of 25 dwelling units or 25
percent of the dwelling units in any
project may be assisted under a housing
assistance payment contract for
project-based assistance pursuant to
this paragraph. For purposes of this
subparagraph, the term ``project''
means a single building, multiple
contiguous buildings, or multiple
buildings on contiguous parcels of
land.
(ii) Exceptions.--
(I) Certain families.--The
limitation under clause (i)
shall not apply to dwelling
units assisted under a contract
that are exclusively made
available to elderly families
or to households eligible for
supportive services that are
made available to the assisted
residents of the project,
according to standards for such
services the Secretary may
establish.
(II) Certain areas.--With
respect to areas in which
tenant-based vouchers for
assistance under this
subsection are difficult to
use, as determined by the
Secretary, and with respect to
census tracts with a poverty
rate of 20 percent or less,
clause (i) shall be applied by
substituting ``40 percent'' for
``25 percent'', and the
Secretary may, by regulation,
establish additional
conditions.
(III) Certain contracts.--The
limitation under clause (i)
shall not apply with respect to
contracts or renewal of
contracts under which a greater
percentage of the dwelling
units in a project were
assisted under a housing
assistance payment contract for
project-based assistance
pursuant to this paragraph on
the date of the enactment of
the Housing Opportunity Through
Modernization Act of 2016.
(IV) Certain properties.--Any
units of project-based
assistance under this paragraph
that are attached to units
previously subject to federally
required rent restrictions or
receiving other project-based
assistance provided by the
Secretary shall not count
toward the percentage
limitation imposed by this
subparagraph (D).
(iii) Additional monitoring and
oversight requirements.--The Secretary
may establish additional requirements
for monitoring and oversight of
projects in which more than 40 percent
of the dwelling units are assisted
under a housing assistance payment
contract for project-based assistance
pursuant to this paragraph.
(E) Resident choice requirement.--A housing
assistance payment contract pursuant to this
paragraph shall provide as follows:
(i) Mobility.--Each low-income family
occupying a dwelling unit assisted
under the contract may move from the
housing at any time after the family
has occupied the dwelling unit for 12
months.
(ii) Continued assistance.--Upon such
a move, the public housing agency shall
provide the low-income family with
tenant-based rental assistance under
this section or such other tenant-based
rental assistance that is subject to
comparable income, assistance, rent
contribution, affordability, and other
requirements, as the Secretary shall
provide by regulation. If such rental
assistance is not immediately available
to fulfill the requirement under the
preceding sentence with respect to a
low-income family, such requirement may
be met by providing the family priority
to receive the next voucher or other
tenant-based rental assistance amounts
that become available under the program
used to fulfill such requirement.
(F) Contract term.--
(i) Term.--A housing assistance
payment contract pursuant to this
paragraph between a public housing
agency and the owner of a project may
have a term of up to 20 years, subject
to--
(I) the availability of
sufficient appropriated funds
for the purpose of renewing
expiring contracts for
assistance payments, as
provided in appropriation Acts
and in the agency's annual
contributions contract with the
Secretary, provided that in the
event of insufficient
appropriated funds, payments
due under contracts under this
paragraph shall take priority
if other cost-saving measures
that do not require the
termination of an existing
contract are available to the
agency; and
(II) compliance with the
inspection requirements under
paragraph (8), except that the
agency shall not be required to
make biennial inspections of
each assisted unit in the
development.
(ii) Addition of eligible units.--
Subject to the limitations of
subparagraphs (B) and (D), the agency
and the owner may add eligible units
within the same project to a housing
assistance payments contract at any
time during the term thereof without
being subject to any additional
competitive selection procedures.
(iii) Housing under construction or
recently constructed.--An agency may
enter into a housing assistance
payments contract with an owner for any
unit that does not qualify as existing
housing and is under construction or
recently has been constructed whether
or not the agency has executed an
agreement to enter into a contract with
the owner, provided that the owner
demonstrates compliance with applicable
requirements prior to execution of the
housing assistance payments contract.
This clause shall not subject a housing
assistance payments contract for
existing housing under this paragraph
to such requirements or otherwise limit
the extent to which a unit may be
assisted as existing housing.
(iv) Additional conditions.--The
contract may specify additional
conditions, including with respect to
continuation, termination, or
expiration, and shall specify that upon
termination or expiration of the
contract without extension, each
assisted family may elect to use its
assistance under this subsection to
remain in the same project if its unit
complies with the inspection
requirements under paragraph (8), the
rent for the unit is reasonable as
required by paragraph (10)(A), and the
family pays its required share of the
rent and the amount, if any, by which
the unit rent (including the amount
allowed for tenant-based utilities)
exceeds the applicable payment
standard.
(G) Extension of contract term.--A public
housing agency may enter into a contract with
the owner of a project assisted under a housing
assistance payment contract pursuant to this
paragraph to extend the term of the underlying
housing assistance payment contract for such
period as the agency determines to be
appropriate to achieve long-term affordability
of the housing or to expand housing
opportunities. Such contract may, at the
election of the public housing agency and the
owner of the project, specify that such
contract shall be extended for renewal terms of
up to 20 years each, if the agency makes the
determination required by this subparagraph and
the owner is in compliance with the terms of
the contract. Such a contract shall provide
that the extension of such term shall be
contingent upon the future availability of
appropriated funds for the purpose of renewing
expiring contracts for assistance payments, as
provided in appropriations Acts, and may
obligate the owner to have such extensions of
the underlying housing assistance payment
contract accepted by the owner and the
successors in interest of the owner. A public
housing agency may agree to enter into such a
contract at the time it enters into the initial
agreement for a housing assistance payment
contract or at any time thereafter that is
before the expiration of the housing assistance
payment contract.
(H) Rent calculation.--A housing assistance
payment contract pursuant to this paragraph
shall establish rents for each unit assisted in
an amount that does not exceed 110 percent of
the applicable fair market rental (or any
exception payment standard approved by the
Secretary pursuant to paragraph (1)(D)), except
that if a contract covers a dwelling unit that
has been allocated low-income housing tax
credits pursuant to section 42 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 42) and is not
located in a qualified census tract (as such
term is defined in subsection (d) of such
section 42), the rent for such unit may be
established at any level that does not exceed
the rent charged for comparable units in the
building that also receive the low-income
housing tax credit but do not have additional
rental assistance, except that in the case of a
contract unit that has been allocated low-
income housing tax credits and for which the
rent limitation pursuant to such section 42 is
less than the amount that would otherwise be
permitted under this subparagraph, the rent for
such unit may, in the sole discretion of a
public housing agency, be established at the
higher section 8 rent, subject only to
paragraph (10)(A). The rents established by
housing assistance payment contracts pursuant
to this paragraph may vary from the payment
standards established by the public housing
agency pursuant to paragraph (1)(B), but shall
be subject to paragraph (10)(A).
(I) Rent adjustments.--A housing assistance
payments contract pursuant to this paragraph
entered into after the date of the enactment of
the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization
Act of 2016 shall provide for annual rent
adjustments upon the request of the owner,
except that--
(i) by agreement of the parties, a
contract may allow a public housing
agency to adjust the rent for covered
units using an operating cost
adjustment factor established by the
Secretary pursuant to section 524(c) of
the Multifamily Assisted Housing Reform
and Affordability Act of 1997 (which
shall not result in a negative
adjustment), in which case the contract
may require an additional adjustment,
if requested, up to the reasonable rent
periodically during the term of the
contract, and shall require such an
adjustment, if requested, upon
extension pursuant to subparagraph (G);
(ii) the adjusted rent shall not
exceed the maximum rent permitted under
subparagraph (H);
(iii) the contract may provide that
the maximum rent permitted for a
dwelling unit shall not be less than
the initial rent for the dwelling unit
under the initial housing assistance
payments contract covering the units;
and
(iv) the provisions of subsection
(c)(2)(C) shall not apply.
(J) Tenant selection.--A public housing
agency may select families to receive project-
based assistance pursuant to this paragraph
from its waiting list for assistance under this
subsection or may permit owners to select
applicants from site-based waiting lists as
specified in this subparagraph. Eligibility for
such project-based assistance shall be subject
to the provisions of section 16(b) that apply
to tenant-based assistance. The agency or owner
may establish preferences or criteria for
selection for a unit assisted under this
paragraph that are consistent with the public
housing agency plan for the agency approved
under section 5A and that give preference to
families who qualify for voluntary services,
including disability-specific services, offered
in conjunction with assisted units. Any family
that rejects an offer of project-based
assistance under this paragraph or that is
rejected for admission to a project by the
owner or manager of a project assisted under
this paragraph shall retain its place on the
waiting list as if the offer had not been made.
A public housing agency may establish and
utilize procedures for owner-maintained site-
based waiting lists, under which applicants may
apply at, or otherwise designate to the public
housing agency, the project or projects in
which they seek to reside, except that all
eligible applicants on the waiting list of an
agency for assistance under this subsection
shall be permitted to place their names on such
separate list, subject to policies and
procedures established by the Secretary. All
such procedures shall comply with title VI of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Fair Housing
Act, section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973, and other applicable civil rights laws.
The owner or manager of a project assisted
under this paragraph shall not admit any family
to a dwelling unit assisted under a contract
pursuant to this paragraph other than a family
referred by the public housing agency from its
waiting list, or a family on a site-based
waiting list that complies with the
requirements of this subparagraph. A public
housing agency shall disclose to each applicant
all other options in the selection of a project
in which to reside that are provided by the
public housing agency and are available to the
applicant.
(K) Vacated units.--Notwithstanding paragraph
(9), a housing assistance payment contract
pursuant to this paragraph may provide as
follows:
(i) Payment for vacant units.--That
the public housing agency may, in its
discretion, continue to provide
assistance under the contract, for a
reasonable period not exceeding 60
days, for a dwelling unit that becomes
vacant, but only: (I) if the vacancy
was not the fault of the owner of the
dwelling unit; and (II) the agency and
the owner take every reasonable action
to minimize the likelihood and extent
of any such vacancy. Rental assistance
may not be provided for a vacant unit
after the expiration of such period.
(ii) Reduction of contract.--That, if
despite reasonable efforts of the
agency and the owner to fill a vacant
unit, no eligible family has agreed to
rent the unit within 120 days after the
owner has notified the agency of the
vacancy, the agency may reduce its
housing assistance payments contract
with the owner by the amount equivalent
to the remaining months of subsidy
attributable to the vacant unit.
Amounts deobligated pursuant to such a
contract provision shall be available
to the agency to provide assistance
under this subsection.
Eligible applicants for assistance under this
subsection may enforce provisions authorized by
this subparagraph.
(L) Use in cooperative housing and elevator
buildings.--A public housing agency may enter
into a housing assistance payments contract
under this paragraph with respect to--
(i) dwelling units in cooperative
housing; and
(ii) notwithstanding subsection (c),
dwelling units in a high-rise elevator
project, including such a project that
is occupied by families with children,
without review and approval of the
contract by the Secretary.
(M) Reviews.--
(i) Subsidy layering.--A subsidy
layering review in accordance with
section 102(d) of the Department of
Housing and Urban Development Reform
Act of 1989 (42 U.S.C. 3545(d)) shall
not be required for assistance under
this paragraph in the case of a housing
assistance payments contract for an
existing project, or if a subsidy
layering review has been conducted by
the applicable State or local agency.
(ii) Environmental review.--A public
housing agency shall not be required to
undertake any environmental review
before entering into a housing
assistance payments contract under this
paragraph for an existing project,
except to the extent such a review is
otherwise required by law or regulation
relating to funding other than housing
assistance payments.
(N) Structure owned by agency.--A public
housing agency engaged in an initiative to
improve, develop, or replace a public housing
property or site may attach assistance to an
existing, newly constructed, or rehabilitated
structure in which the agency has an ownership
interest or which the agency has control of
without following a competitive process,
provided that the agency has notified the
public of its intent through its public housing
agency plan and subject to the limitations and
requirements of this paragraph.
(O) Special purpose vouchers.--A public
housing agency that administers vouchers
authorized under subsection (o)(19) or (x) of
this section may provide such assistance in
accordance with the limitations and
requirements of this paragraph, without
additional requirements for approval by the
Secretary.
(14) Inapplicability to tenant-based assistance.--
Subsection (c) shall not apply to tenant-based
assistance under this subsection.
(15) Homeownership option.--
(A) In general.--A public housing agency
providing assistance under this subsection may,
at the option of the agency, provide assistance
for homeownership under subsection (y).
(B) Alternative administration.--A public
housing agency may contract with a nonprofit
organization to administer a homeownership
program under subsection (y).
(16) Rental vouchers for relocation of witnesses and
victims of crime.--
(A) Witnesses.--Of amounts made available for
assistance under this subsection in each fiscal
year, the Secretary, in consultation with the
Inspector General, shall make available such
sums as may be necessary for the relocation of
witnesses in connection with efforts to combat
crime in public and assisted housing pursuant
to requests from law enforcement or prosecution
agencies.
(B) Victims of crime.--
(i) In general.--Of amounts made
available for assistance under this
section in each fiscal year, the
Secretary shall make available such
sums as may be necessary for the
relocation of families residing in
public housing who are victims of a
crime of violence (as that term is
defined in section 16 of title 18,
United States Code) that has been
reported to an appropriate law
enforcement agency.
(ii) Notice.--A public housing agency
that receives amounts under this
subparagraph shall establish procedures
for providing notice of the
availability of that assistance to
families that may be eligible for that
assistance.
(17) Deed restrictions.--Assistance under this
subsection may not be used in any manner that abrogates
any local deed restriction that applies to any housing
consisting of 1 to 4 dwelling units. This paragraph may
not be construed to affect the provisions or
applicability of the Fair Housing Act.
(18) Rental assistance for assisted living
facilities.--
(A) In general.--A public housing agency may
make assistance payments on behalf of a family
that uses an assisted living facility as a
principal place of residence and that uses such
supportive services made available in the
facility as the agency may require. Such
payments may be made only for covering costs of
rental of the dwelling unit in the assisted
living facility and not for covering any
portion of the cost of residing in such
facility that is attributable to service
relating to assisted living.
(B) Rent calculation.--
(i) Charges included.--For assistance
pursuant to this paragraph, the rent of
the dwelling unit that is an assisted
living facility with respect to which
assistance payments are made shall
include maintenance and management
charges related to the dwelling unit
and tenant-paid utilities. Such rent
shall not include any charges
attributable to services relating to
assisted living.
(ii) Payment standard.--In
determining the monthly assistance that
may be paid under this paragraph on
behalf of any family residing in an
assisted living facility, the public
housing agency shall utilize the
payment standard established under
paragraph (1), for the market area in
which the assisted living facility is
located, for the applicable size
dwelling unit.
(iii) Monthly assistance payment.--
The monthly assistance payment for a
family assisted under this paragraph
shall be determined in accordance with
paragraph (2) (using the rent and
payment standard for the dwelling unit
as determined in accordance with this
subsection), except that a family may
be required at the time the family
initially receives such assistance to
pay rent in an amount exceeding 40
percent of the monthly adjusted income
of the family by such an amount or
percentage that is reasonable given the
services and amenities provided and as
the Secretary deems appropriate..
(C) Definition.--For the purposes of this
paragraph, the term ``assisted living
facility'' has the meaning given that term in
section 232(b) of the National Housing Act (12
U.S.C. 1715w(b)), except that such a facility
may be contained within a portion of a larger
multifamily housing project.
(19) Rental vouchers for veterans affairs supported
housing program.--
(A) Set aside.--Subject to subparagraph (C),
the Secretary shall set aside, from amounts
made available for rental assistance under this
subsection, the amounts specified in
subparagraph (B) for use only for providing
such assistance through a supported housing
program administered in conjunction with the
Department of Veterans Affairs. Such program
shall provide rental assistance on behalf of
homeless veterans who have chronic mental
illnesses or chronic substance use disorders,
shall require agreement of the veteran to
continued treatment for such mental illness or
substance use disorder as a condition of
receipt of such rental assistance, and shall
ensure such treatment and appropriate case
management for each veteran receiving such
rental assistance.
(B) Amount.--The amount specified in this
subparagraph is--
(i) for fiscal year 2007, the amount
necessary to provide 500 vouchers for
rental assistance under this
subsection;
(ii) for fiscal year 2008, the amount
necessary to provide 1,000 vouchers for
rental assistance under this
subsection;
(iii) for fiscal year 2009, the
amount necessary to provide 1,500
vouchers for rental assistance under
this subsection;
(iv) for fiscal year 2010, the amount
necessary to provide 2,000 vouchers for
rental assistance under this
subsection; and
(v) for fiscal year 2011, the amount
necessary to provide 2,500 vouchers for
rental assistance under this
subsection.
(C) Funding through incremental assistance.--
In any fiscal year, to the extent that this
paragraph requires the Secretary to set aside
rental assistance amounts for use under this
paragraph in an amount that exceeds the amount
set aside in the preceding fiscal year, such
requirement shall be effective only to such
extent or in such amounts as are or have been
provided in appropriation Acts for such fiscal
year for incremental rental assistance under
this subsection.
(20) Collection of utility data.--
(A) Publication.--The Secretary shall, to the
extent that data can be collected cost
effectively, regularly publish such data
regarding utility consumption and costs in
local areas as the Secretary determines will be
useful for the establishment of allowances for
tenant-paid utilities for families assisted
under this subsection.
(B) Use of data.--The Secretary shall provide
such data in a manner that--
(i) avoids unnecessary administrative
burdens for public housing agencies and
owners; and
(ii) protects families in various
unit sizes and building types, and
using various utilities, from high rent
and utility cost burdens relative to
income.
(21) Rental voucher demonstration program for
supportive and transitional housing for individuals
recovering from opioid use disorders or other substance
use disorders.--
(A) Establishment.--The Secretary shall
establish a demonstration program under which
the Secretary shall set aside, allocate, and
distribute directly to eligible entities, from
amounts made available for rental assistance
under this subsection, the amounts specified in
subparagraph (B) for an eligible entity to
provide a voucher for such assistance to a
covered individual through a supportive and
transitional housing program that provides
treatment for opioid use disorders or other
substance use disorders (as applicable), job
skills training, and such assistance for a
period of 12 to 24 months.
(B) Amount.--The amount specified in this
subparagraph is, for each of fiscal years 2019
through 2023, the amount necessary to provide
the lesser of--
(i) 0.5 percent of the total number
of vouchers allocated under this
subsection during the fiscal year
ending immediately before the date of
the enactment of this paragraph; or
(ii) 10,000 vouchers.
(C) Criteria for eligible entities.--And
eligible entity shall--
(i) provide an evidence-based
treatment program and a job skills
training program for individuals
recovering from an opioid use disorder
or other substance use disorder, as
applicable, that meet standards
established by the Secretary; and
(ii) demonstrate prior experience
administering rental assistance
vouchers, demonstrate prior experience
administering transitional housing
programs under the McKinney-Vento
Homeless Act, or demonstrate a
partnership with a public housing
agency or a housing program of a State,
unit of local government, or Indian
tribe (as such term is defined in
section 4 of the Native American
Housing and Self-Determination Act of
1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)) that ensures
effective administration of rental
assistance vouchers.
(D) Application.--To receive a rental
assistance voucher under this paragraph, an
eligible entity shall submit an application to
the Secretary that shall include--
(i) a description of the terms of
treatment program, job skills training,
and rental assistance to be provided to
a covered individual, and assurances
that such description shall be
communicated to covered individuals
that receive vouchers pursuant to the
demonstration program established under
this paragraph; and
(ii) a transitional plan that begins
on the date on which a covered
individual completes the treatment
program of the eligible entity that
includes information on additional
treatment, job skills training, and
housing resources and services
available to such covered individual.
(E) Selection.--In selecting eligible
entities to receive rental assistance vouchers
under this paragraph, the Secretary shall--
(i) ensure that such eligible
entities--
(I) are diverse;
(II) represent an appropriate
balance of eligible entities
located in urban and rural
areas; and
(III) provide supportive and
transitional housing programs
in diverse geographic regions
with high rates of mortality
due to opioid use disorders or
other substance use disorders,
as applicable, based on data of
the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention; and
(ii) consider--
(I) the success of each
recipient eligible entity at
helping individuals complete
the treatment program of the
eligible entity and refrain
from opioid or other substance
usage, as applicable;
(II) the type of job skills
training program provided by
the eligible entity;
(III) the percentage of
participants in the job skills
training program that gain and
maintain employment;
(IV) the percentage of
participants in the treatment
program of the eligible entity
that--
(aa) do not relapse
into opioid or other
substance usage, as
applicable; and
(bb) do not receive
Federal assistance for
treatment of an opioid
use disorder or other
substance use disorder,
as applicable, after
completion of the
program.
(F) Transfer of voucher.--Upon termination of
the provision of rental assistance through a
voucher to a covered individual, the eligible
entity that initially offered such voucher may
use such voucher to provide rental assistance
to another covered individual.
(G) Duration.--The Secretary shall not make
rental assistance available under this
paragraph after the expiration of the 5-year
period beginning on the date of the enactment
of this paragraph.
(H) Reports.--
(i) By the eligible entity.--An
eligible entity that receives a rental
assistance voucher under this paragraph
shall submit to the Secretary--
(I) annually, the
transitional plan described in
subparagraph (D)(ii) and
information on each covered
individual's housing upon
termination of the provision of
rental assistance through a
voucher to such covered
individual in a manner that
protects the privacy of such
covered individual; and
(II) not later than 4 years
after the date of the enactment
of this paragraph, a plan
describing the treatment and
housing options for any covered
individual assisted by such
voucher who will not have
completed the program before
the day that is 5 years after
such date of enactment.
(ii) By the secretary.--The Secretary
shall submit to Congress a report that
analyzes the impact of rental
assistance provided under this
paragraph--
(I) not later than 2 years
after the date of the enactment
of this paragraph; and
(II) not later than 4 years
after the date of the enactment
of this paragraph, that
includes recommendations for
the continuation or expansion
of the program established
under this paragraph and
improving the process for
providing such assistance.
(I) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
(i) Eligible entity.--The term
``eligible entity'' means a nonprofit
organization that meets the criteria
described under subparagraph (C).
(ii) Covered individual.--The term
``covered individual'' means an
individual recovering from an opioid
use disorder or other substance use
disorder.
(p) In order to assist elderly families (as defined in
section 3(b)(3)) who elect to live in a shared housing
arrangement in which they benefit as a result of sharing the
facilities of a dwelling with others in a manner that
effectively and efficiently meets their housing needs and
thereby reduces their costs of housing, the Secretary shall
permit assistance provided under the existing housing and
moderate rehabilitation programs to be used by such families in
such arrangements. In carrying out this subsection, the
Secretary shall issue minimum habitability standards for the
purpose of assuring decent, safe, and sanitary housing for such
families while taking into account the special circumstances of
shared housing.
(q) Administrative Fees.--
(1) Fee for ongoing costs of administration.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary shall
establish fees for the costs of administering
the tenant-based assistance, certificate,
voucher, and moderate rehabilitation programs
under this section.
(B) Fiscal year 1999.--
(i) Calculation.--For fiscal year
1999, the fee for each month for which
a dwelling unit is covered by an
assistance contract shall be--
(I) in the case of a public
housing agency that, on an
annual basis, is administering
a program for not more than 600
dwelling units, 7.65 percent of
the base amount; and
(II) in the case of an agency
that, on an annual basis, is
administering a program for
more than 600 dwelling units
(aa) for the first 600 units,
7.65 percent of the base
amount, and (bb) for any
additional dwelling units under
the program, 7.0 percent of the
base amount.
(ii) Base amount.--For purposes of
this subparagraph, the base amount
shall be the higher of--
(I) the fair market rental
established under section 8(c)
of this Act (as in effect
immediately before the
effective date under section
503(a) of the Quality Housing
and Work Responsibility Act of
1998) for fiscal year 1993 for
a 2-bedroom existing rental
dwelling unit in the market
area of the agency, and
(II) the amount that is the
lesser of (aa) such fair market
rental for fiscal year 1994, or
(bb) 103.5 percent of the
amount determined under clause
(i),
adjusted based on changes in wage data
or other objectively measurable data
that reflect the costs of administering
the program, as determined by the
Secretary. The Secretary may require
that the base amount be not less than a
minimum amount and not more than a
maximum amount.
(C) Subsequent fiscal years.--For subsequent
fiscal years, the Secretary shall publish a
notice in the Federal Register, for each
geographic area, establishing the amount of the
fee that would apply for public housing
agencies administering the program, based on
changes in wage data or other objectively
measurable data that reflect the costs of
administering the program, as determined by the
Secretary.
(D) Increase.--The Secretary may increase the
fee if necessary to reflect the higher costs of
administering small programs and programs
operating over large geographic areas.
(E) Decrease.--The Secretary may decrease the
fee for units owned by a public housing agency
to reflect reasonable costs of administration.
(2) Fee for preliminary expenses.--The Secretary
shall also establish reasonable fees (as determined by
the Secretary) for--
(A) the costs of preliminary expenses, in the
amount of $500, for a public housing agency,
except that such fee shall apply to an agency
only in the first year that the agency
administers a tenant-based assistance program
under this section, and only if, immediately
before the effective date under section 503(a)
of the Quality Housing and Work Responsibility
Act of 1998, the agency was not administering a
tenant-based assistance program under the
United States Housing Act of 1937 (as in effect
immediately before such effective date), in
connection with its initial increment of
assistance received;
(B) the costs incurred in assisting families
who experience difficulty (as determined by the
Secretary) in obtaining appropriate housing
under the programs; and
(C) extraordinary costs approved by the
Secretary.
(3) Transfer of fees in cases of concurrent
geographical jurisdiction.--In each fiscal year, if any
public housing agency provides tenant-based assistance
under this section on behalf of a family who uses such
assistance for a dwelling unit that is located within
the jurisdiction of such agency but is also within the
jurisdiction of another public housing agency, the
Secretary shall take such steps as may be necessary to
ensure that the public housing agency that provides the
services for a family receives all or part of the
administrative fee under this section (as appropriate).
(4) Applicability.--This subsection shall apply to
fiscal year 1999 and fiscal years thereafter.
(r) Portability.--(1) In general.--(A) Any family receiving
tenant-based assistance under subsection (o) may receive such
assistance to rent an eligible dwelling unit if the dwelling
unit to which the family moves is within any area in which a
program is being administered under this section.
(B)(i) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A) and subject to any
exceptions established under clause (ii) of this subparagraph,
a public housing agency may require that any family not living
within the jurisdiction of the public housing agency at the
time the family applies for assistance from the agency shall,
during the 12-month period beginning on the date of initial
receipt of housing assistance made available on behalf of the
family from such agency, lease and occupy an eligible dwelling
unit located within the jurisdiction served by the agency.
(ii) The Secretary may establish such exceptions to the
authority of public housing agencies established under clause
(i).
(2) The public housing agency having authority with respect
to the dwelling unit to which a family moves under this
subsection shall have the responsibility of carrying out the
provisions of this subsection with respect to the family.
(3) In providing assistance under subsection (o) for any
fiscal year, the Secretary shall give consideration to any
reduction in the number of resident families incurred by a
public housing agency in the preceding fiscal year as a result
of the provisions of this subsection. The Secretary shall
establish procedures for the compensation of public housing
agencies that issue vouchers to families that move into or out
of the jurisdiction of the public housing agency under
portability procedures. The Secretary may reserve amounts
available for assistance under subsection (o) to compensate
those public housing agencies.
(4) The provisions of this subsection may not be construed to
restrict any authority of the Secretary under any other
provision of law to provide for the portability of assistance
under this section.
(5) Lease violations.--A family may not receive a voucher
from a public housing agency and move to another jurisdiction
under the tenant-based assistance program if the family has
moved out of the assisted dwelling unit of the family in
violation of a lease, except that a family may receive a
voucher from a public housing agency and move to another
jurisdiction under the tenant-based assistance program if the
family has complied with all other obligations of the section 8
program and has moved out of the assisted dwelling unit in
order to protect the health or safety of an individual who is
or has been the victim of domestic violence, dating violence,
or stalking and who reasonably believed he or she was
imminently threatened by harm from further violence if he or
she remained in the assisted dwelling unit.
(s) In selecting families for the provision of assistance
under this section (including subsection (o)), a public housing
agency may not exclude or penalize a family solely because the
family resides in a public housing project.
(t) Enhanced Vouchers.--
(1) In general.--Enhanced voucher assistance under
this subsection for a family shall be voucher
assistance under subsection (o), except that under such
enhanced voucher assistance--
(A) subject only to subparagraph (D), the
assisted family shall pay as rent no less than
the amount the family was paying on the date of
the eligibility event for the project in which
the family was residing on such date;
(B) the assisted family may elect to remain
in the same project in which the family was
residing on the date of the eligibility event
for the project, and if, during any period the
family makes such an election and continues to
so reside, the rent for the dwelling unit of
the family in such project exceeds the
applicable payment standard established
pursuant to subsection (o) for the unit, the
amount of rental assistance provided on behalf
of the family shall be determined using a
payment standard that is equal to the rent for
the dwelling unit (as such rent may be
increased from time-to-time), subject to
paragraph (10)(A) of subsection (o) and any
other reasonable limit prescribed by the
Secretary, except that a limit shall not be
considered reasonable for purposes of this
subparagraph if it adversely affects such
assisted families;
(C) subparagraph (B) of this paragraph shall
not apply and the payment standard for the
dwelling unit occupied by the family shall be
determined in accordance with subsection (o)
if--
(i) the assisted family moves, at any
time, from such project; or
(ii) the voucher is made available
for use by any family other than the
original family on behalf of whom the
voucher was provided; and
(D) if the annual adjusted income of the
assisted family declines to a significant
extent, the percentage of annual adjusted
income paid by the family for rent shall not
exceed the greater of 30 percent or the
percentage of annual adjusted income paid at
the time of the eligibility event for the
project.
(2) Eligibility event.--For purposes of this
subsection, the term ``eligibility event'' means, with
respect to a multifamily housing project, the
prepayment of the mortgage on such housing project, the
voluntary termination of the insurance contract for the
mortgage for such housing project (including any such
mortgage prepayment during fiscal year 1996 or a fiscal
year thereafter or any insurance contract voluntary
termination during fiscal year 1996 or a fiscal year
thereafter), the termination or expiration of the
contract for rental assistance under section 8 of the
United States Housing Act of 1937 for such housing
project (including any such termination or expiration
during fiscal years after fiscal year 1994 prior to the
effective date of the Departments of Veterans Affairs
and Housing and Urban Development, and Independent
Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001), or the transaction
under which the project is preserved as affordable
housing, that, under paragraphs (3) and (4) of section
515(c), section 524(d) of the Multifamily Assisted
Housing Reform and Affordability Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C.
1437f note), section 223(f) of the Low-Income Housing
Preservation and Resident Homeownership Act of 1990 (12
U.S.C. 4113(f)), or section 201(p) of the Housing and
Community Development Amendments of 1978 (12 U.S.C.
1715z-1a(p)), results in tenants in such housing
project being eligible for enhanced voucher assistance
under this subsection.
(3) Treatment of enhanced vouchers provided under
other authority.--
(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, any enhanced voucher
assistance provided under any authority
specified in subparagraph (B) shall (regardless
of the date that the amounts for providing such
assistance were made available) be treated, and
subject to the same requirements, as enhanced
voucher assistance under this subsection.
(B) Identification of other authority.--The
authority specified in this subparagraph is the
authority under--
(i) the 10th, 11th, and 12th provisos
under the ``Preserving Existing Housing
Investment'' account in title II of the
Departments of Veterans Affairs and
Housing and Urban Development, and
Independent Agencies Appropriations
Act, 1997 (Public Law 104-204; 110
Stat. 2884), pursuant to such provisos,
the first proviso under the ``Housing
Certificate Fund'' account in title II
of the Departments of Veterans Affairs
and Housing and Urban Development, and
Independent Agencies Appropriations
Act, 1998 (Public Law 105-65; 111 Stat.
1351), or the first proviso under the
``Housing Certificate Fund'' account in
title II of the Departments of Veterans
Affairs and Housing and Urban
Development, and Independent Agencies
Appropriations Act, 1999 (Public Law
105-276; 112 Stat. 2469); and
(ii) paragraphs (3) and (4) of
section 515(c) of the Multifamily
Assisted Housing Reform and
Affordability Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C.
1437f note), as in effect before the
enactment of this Act.
(4) Authorization of appropriations.--There are
authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 such sums as may be
necessary for enhanced voucher assistance under this
subsection.
(u) In the case of low-income families living in rental
projects rehabilitated under section 17 of this Act or section
533 of the Housing Act of 1949 before rehabilitation--
(1) vouchers under this section shall be made for
families who are required to move out of their units
because of the physical rehabilitation activities or
because of overcrowding;
(2) at the discretion of each public housing agency
or other agency administering the allocation of
assistance or vouchers under this section may be made
for families who would have to pay more than 30 percent
of their adjusted income for rent after rehabilitation
whether they choose to remain in, or to move from, the
project; and
(3) the Secretary shall allocate assistance for
vouchers under this section to ensure that sufficient
resources are available to address the physical or
economic displacement, or potential economic
displacement, of existing tenants pursuant to
paragraphs (1) and (2).
(v) The Secretary may extend expiring contracts entered into
under this section for project-based loan management assistance
to the extent necessary to prevent displacement of low-income
families receiving such assistance as of September 30, 1996.
(x) Family Unification.--
(1) Increase in budget authority.--The budget
authority available under section 5(c) for assistance
under section 8(b) is authorized to be increased by
$100,000,000 on or after October 1, 1992, and by
$104,200,000 on or after October 1, 1993.
(2) Use of funds.--The amounts made available under
this subsection shall be used only in connection with
tenant-based assistance under section 8 on behalf of
(A) any family (i) who is otherwise eligible for such
assistance, and (ii) who the public child welfare
agency for the jurisdiction has certified is a family
for whom the lack of adequate housing is a primary
factor in the imminent placement of the family's child
or children in out-of-home care or the delayed
discharge of a child or children to the family from
out-of-home care and (B) for a period not to exceed 36
months, otherwise eligible youths who have attained at
least 18 years of age and not more than 24 years of age
and who have left foster care, or will leave foster
care within 90 days, in accordancewith a transition
plan described in section 475(5)(H)of the Social
Security Act, and is homeless or is at riskof becoming
homeless at age 16 or older.
(3) Allocation.--The amounts made available under
this subsection shall be allocated by the Secretary
through a national competition among applicants based
on demonstrated need for assistance under this
subsection. To be considered for assistance, an
applicant shall submit to the Secretary a written
proposal containing a report from the public child
welfare agency serving the jurisdiction of the
applicant that describes how a lack of adequate housing
in the jurisdiction is resulting in the initial or
prolonged separation of children from their families,
and how the applicant will coordinate with the public
child welfare agency to identify eligible families and
provide the families with assistance under this
subsection.
(4) Coordination between public housing agencies and
public child welfare agencies.--The Secretary shall,
not later than the expiration of the 180-day period
beginning on the date of the enactment of the Housing
Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2016 and after
consultation with other appropriate Federal agencies,
issue guidance to improve coordination between public
housing agencies and public child welfare agencies in
carrying out the program under this subsection, which
shall provide guidance on--
(A) identifying eligible recipients for
assistance under this subsection;
(B) coordinating with other local youth and
family providers in the community and
participating in the Continuum of Care program
established under subtitle C of title IV of the
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42
U.S.C. 11381 et seq.);
(C) implementing housing strategies to assist
eligible families and youth;
(D) aligning system goals to improve outcomes
for families and youth and reducing lapses in
housing for families and youth; and
(E) identifying resources that are available
to eligible families and youth to provide
supportive services available through parts B
and E of title IV of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 621 et seq.; 670 et seq.) or that
the head of household of a family or youth may
be entitled to receive under section 477 of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677).
(5) Definitions.--For purposes of this subsection:
(A) Applicant.--The term ``applicant'' means
a public housing agency or any other agency
responsible for administering assistance under
section 8.
(B) Public child welfare agency.--The term
``public child welfare agency'' means the
public agency responsible under applicable
State law for determining that a child is at
imminent risk of placement in out-of-home care
or that a child in out-of-home care under the
supervision of the public agency may be
returned to his or her family.
(y) Homeownership Option.--
(1) Use of assistance for homeownership.--A public
housing agency providing tenant-based assistance on
behalf of an eligible family under this section may
provide assistance for an eligible family that
purchases a dwelling unit (including a unit under a
lease-purchase agreement) that will be owned by 1 or
more members of the family, and will be occupied by the
family, if the family--
(A) is a first-time homeowner, or owns or is
acquiring shares in a cooperative;
(B) demonstrates that the family has income
from employment or other sources (other than
public assistance, except that the Secretary
may provide for the consideration of public
assistance in the case of an elderly family or
a disabled family), as determined in accordance
with requirements of the Secretary, that is not
less than twice the payment standard
established by the public housing agency (or
such other amount as may be established by the
Secretary);
(C) except as provided by the Secretary,
demonstrates at the time the family initially
receives tenant-based assistance under this
subsection that one or more adult members of
the family have achieved employment for the
period as the Secretary shall require;
(D) participates in a homeownership and
housing counseling program provided by the
agency; and
(E) meets any other initial or continuing
requirements established by the public housing
agency in accordance with requirements
established by the Secretary.
(2) Determination of amount of assistance.--
(A) Monthly expenses not exceeding payment
standard.--If the monthly homeownership
expenses, as determined in accordance with
requirements established by the Secretary, do
not exceed the payment standard, the monthly
assistance payment shall be the amount by which
the homeownership expenses exceed the highest
of the following amounts, rounded to the
nearest dollar:
(i) 30 percent of the monthly
adjusted income of the family.
(ii) 10 percent of the monthly income
of the family.
(iii) If the family is receiving
payments for welfare assistance from a
public agency, and a portion of those
payments, adjusted in accordance with
the actual housing costs of the family,
is specifically designated by that
agency to meet the housing costs of the
family, the portion of those payments
that is so designated.
(B) Monthly expenses exceed payment
standard.--If the monthly homeownership
expenses, as determined in accordance with
requirements established by the Secretary,
exceed the payment standard, the monthly
assistance payment shall be the amount by which
the applicable payment standard exceeds the
highest of the amounts under clauses (i), (ii),
and (iii) of subparagraph (A).
(3) Inspections and contract conditions.--
(A) In general.--Each contract for the
purchase of a unit to be assisted under this
section shall--
(i) provide for pre-purchase
inspection of the unit by an
independent professional; and
(ii) require that any cost of
necessary repairs be paid by the
seller.
(B) Annual inspections not required.--The
requirement under subsection (o)(8)(A)(ii) for
annual inspections shall not apply to units
assisted under this section.
(4) Other authority of the secretary.--The Secretary
may--
(A) limit the term of assistance for a family
assisted under this subsection; and
(B) modify the requirements of this
subsection as the Secretary determines to be
necessary to make appropriate adaptations for
lease-purchase agreements.
(5) Inapplicability of certain provisions.--
Assistance under this subsection shall not be subject
to the requirements of the following provisions:
(A) Subsection (c)(3)(B) of this section.
(B) Subsection (d)(1)(B)(i) of this section.
(C) Any other provisions of this section
governing maximum amounts payable to owners and
amounts payable by assisted families.
(D) Any other provisions of this section
concerning contracts between public housing
agencies and owners.
(E) Any other provisions of this Act that are
inconsistent with the provisions of this
subsection.
(6) Reversion to rental status.--
(A) FHA-insured mortgages.--If a family
receiving assistance under this subsection for
occupancy of a dwelling defaults under a
mortgage for the dwelling insured by the
Secretary under the National Housing Act, the
family may not continue to receive rental
assistance under this section unless the family
(i) transfers to the Secretary marketable title
to the dwelling, (ii) moves from the dwelling
within the period established or approved by
the Secretary, and (iii) agrees that any
amounts the family is required to pay to
reimburse the escrow account under section
23(d)(3) may be deducted by the public housing
agency from the assistance payment otherwise
payable on behalf of the family.
(B) Other mortgages.--If a family receiving
assistance under this subsection defaults under
a mortgage not insured under the National
Housing Act, the family may not continue to
receive rental assistance under this section
unless it complies with requirements
established by the Secretary.
(C) All mortgages.--A family receiving
assistance under this subsection that defaults
under a mortgage may not receive assistance
under this subsection for occupancy of another
dwelling owned by one or more members of the
family.
(7) Downpayment assistance.--
(A) Authority.--A public housing agency may,
in lieu of providing monthly assistance
payments under this subsection on behalf of a
family eligible for such assistance and at the
discretion of the public housing agency,
provide assistance for the family in the form
of a single grant to be used only as a
contribution toward the downpayment required in
connection with the purchase of a dwelling for
fiscal year 2000 and each fiscal year
thereafter to the extent provided in advance in
appropriations Acts.
(B) Amount.--The amount of a downpayment
grant on behalf of an assisted family may not
exceed the amount that is equal to the sum of
the assistance payments that would be made
during the first year of assistance on behalf
of the family, based upon the income of the
family at the time the grant is to be made.
(8) Definition of first-time homeowner.--For purposes
of this subsection, the term ``first-time homeowner''
means--
(A) a family, no member of which has had a
present ownership interest in a principal
residence during the 3 years preceding the date
on which the family initially receives
assistance for homeownership under this
subsection; and
(B) any other family, as the Secretary may
prescribe.
(z) Termination of Section 8 Contracts and Reuse of
Recaptured Budget Authority.--
(1) General authority.--The Secretary may reuse any
budget authority, in whole or part, that is recaptured
on account of expiration or termination of a housing
assistance payments contract only for one or more of
the following:
(A) Tenant-based assistance.--Pursuant to a
contract with a public housing agency, to
provide tenant-based assistance under this
section to families occupying units formerly
assisted under the terminated contract.
(B) Project-based assistance.--Pursuant to a
contract with an owner, to attach assistance to
one or more structures under this section, for
relocation of families occupying units formerly
assisted under the terminated contract.
(2) Families occupying units formerly assisted under
terminated contract.--Pursuant to paragraph (1), the
Secretary shall first make available tenant- or
project-based assistance to families occupying units
formerly assisted under the terminated contract. The
Secretary shall provide project-based assistance in
instances only where the use of tenant-based assistance
is determined to be infeasible by the Secretary.
(aa) Refinancing Incentive.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary may pay all or a part
of the up front costs of refinancing for each project
that--
(A) is constructed, substantially
rehabilitated, or moderately rehabilitated
under this section;
(B) is subject to an assistance contract
under this section; and
(C) was subject to a mortgage that has been
refinanced under section 223(a)(7) or section
223(f) of the National Housing Act to lower the
periodic debt service payments of the owner.
(2) Share from reduced assistance payments.--The
Secretary may pay the up front cost of refinancing
only--
(A) to the extent that funds accrue to the
Secretary from the reduced assistance payments
that results from the refinancing; and
(B) after the application of amounts in
accordance with section 1012 of the Stewart B.
McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of
1988.
(bb) Transfer, Reuse, and Rescission of Budget Authority.--
(1) Transfer of Budget Authority.--If an assistance
contract under this section, other than a contract for
tenant-based assistance, is terminated or is not
renewed, or if the contract expires, the Secretary
shall, in order to provide continued assistance to
eligible families, including eligible families
receiving the benefit of the project-based assistance
at the time of the termination, transfer any budget
authority remaining in the contract to another
contract. The transfer shall be under such terms as the
Secretary may prescribe.
(2) Reuse and rescission of certain recaptured budget
authority.--Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if a
project-based assistance contract for an eligible
multifamily housing project subject to actions
authorized under title I is terminated or amended as
part of restructuring under section 517 of the
Multifamily Assisted Housing Reform and Affordability
Act of 1997, the Secretary shall recapture the budget
authority not required for the terminated or amended
contract and use such amounts as are necessary to
provide housing assistance for the same number of
families covered by such contract for the remaining
term of such contract, under a contract providing for
project-based or tenant-based assistance. The amount of
budget authority saved as a result of the shift to
project-based or tenant-based assistance shall be
rescinded.
(cc) Law Enforcement and Security Personnel.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision
of this Act, in the case of assistance attached to a
structure, for the purpose of increasing security for
the residents of a project, an owner may admit, and
assistance under this section may be provided to,
police officers and other security personnel who are
not otherwise eligible for assistance under the Act.
(2) Rent requirements.--With respect to any
assistance provided by an owner under this subsection,
the Secretary may--
(A) permit the owner to establish such rent
requirements and other terms and conditions of
occupancy that the Secretary considers to be
appropriate; and
(B) require the owner to submit an
application for those rent requirements, which
application shall include such information as
the Secretary, in the discretion of the
Secretary, determines to be necessary.
(3) Applicability.--This subsection shall apply to
fiscal year 1999 and fiscal years thereafter.
(dd) Tenant-Based Contract Renewals.--Subject to amounts
provided in appropriation Acts, starting in fiscal year 1999,
the Secretary shall renew all expiring tenant-based annual
contribution contracts under this section by applying an
inflation factor based on local or regional factors to an
allocation baseline. The allocation baseline shall be
calculated by including, at a minimum, amounts sufficient to
ensure continued assistance for the actual number of families
assisted as of October 1, 1997, with appropriate upward
adjustments for incremental assistance and additional families
authorized subsequent to that date.
* * * * * * *
MINORITY VIEWS
H.R. 5735 is a well-intentioned yet harmful bill that would
attempt to provide assistance to individuals struggling with
substance abuse at the expense of other needy persons, such as
women fleeing domestic violence, persons experiencing
homelessness, and others in need of housing assistance.
Democrats agree that Federal resources are needed to house
people with substance use disorders so that these individuals
can more successfully recover and rebuild their lives. However,
rather than providing increased resources for new vouchers,
this bill would take a portion of existing Housing Choice
Vouchers (HCVs) away from families who have been waiting in
line for years to get a voucher, and redirect them to people
with substance use disorders. The effect of this bill could be
the permanent redistribution of vouchers from some communities
to those with high concentrations of individuals with substance
use disorders. H.R. 5735 would effectively allow one group of
people to cut the line in front of families--including those
with young children--elderly households, persons with
disabilities, veterans, victims of domestic abuse, and others
who are equally deserving and in dire need of housing
assistance.
Further, this bill would create several administrative
concerns by not only taking HCVs away from public housing
agencies (PHAs), but also by distributing them to non-profits
that would not necessarily have any experience with the HCV
program. Once the five-year demonstration concludes, it is
entirely unclear how the HCVs would be redistributed to the
PHAs, if at all, potentially resulting in the loss of
substantial numbers of vouchers from entire communities. The
Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD's) capacity
to adequately and effectively administer this demonstration is
also questionable as HUD does not necessarily have expertise in
the best practices for substance use disorder treatments, and
there is nothing in this bill requiring or encouraging
coordination with other agencies, such as the Department of
Health and Human Services, that do have such expertise.
Lastly, this bill would place arbitrary time limits of up
to two years on the individuals that receive vouchers through
this new demonstration, which may not be enough time for
individuals to fully recover from their substance use disorder,
let alone obtain employment that will allow them to afford
market rent. For this reason, existing supportive housing
programs that focus on substance use disorder treatment
generally do not impose time limits in order to ensure that
individuals are able to fully recover, and are not subject to
an eviction, which could trigger a relapse. Moreover, placing
any time limits on housing assistance for anyone, regardless of
their substance use, is cruel and allowing for time limits in
this context opens the door for time limits on other persons or
in other housing programs.
To address the shortcomings with H.R. 5735, Democrats
offered an amendment to fully fund 10,000 new vouchers and to
fix the administrative concerns with the bill. These amendments
were not adopted. In addition, Democrats offered two amendments
that were not adopted to: (1) ensure that eligible non-profits
would not discriminate against individuals, including employees
and voucher recipients, on the basic of their sexual
orientation or gender identity and expression; and (2) help
prevent individuals with substance abuse disorders from being
evicted from public housing units as a result of a minor drug
related offense.
In sum, despite the laudable goal of helping house people
with substance use disorders, H.R. 5735 would provide such
assistance at the expense of others in need, and would do so in
a way that would be administratively complicated and
counterproductive towards the goal of recovery. For these
reasons, we oppose H.R. 5735.
Maxine Waters.
Nydia M. Velazquez.
Wm. Lacy Clay.
Carolyn B. Maloney.
Stephen F. Lynch.
Michael E. Capuano.
[all]