1.This Act may be cited as the &short-title1;
.
2.Improving utilization and success rates
(a)Increased payment standardSection 8(o)(1)(D) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)(1)(D)) is amended—
(1)by striking (D) Approval.—The
and inserting the following:
(D)Exception payment standards
(i)The; and
(2)by adding at the end the following:
(ii)Increased payment standardA public housing agency may establish a payment standard for the same size dwelling unit in a market area or portion of a market area between 110 and 150 percent of the fair market rent, if the payment standard for the market area or portion of a market area has been set at 110 percent or above for the 6 months prior to the establishment of the new payment standard and the public housing agency determines that it has—
(I)a voucher success rate (the proportion of families that are issued a voucher that succeed in leasing a unit within the timeframe provided by the public housing agency to search for housing) of not more than 80 percent or has provided an extended search time of not less than 90 days to a significant number of voucher recipients; or
(II)problems with concentration of the voucher holders in high-poverty areas.
(iii)A public housing agency may establish a payment standard of not more than 150 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 seek approval of the Secretary to use a payment standard greater than 150 percent of the fair market rent as a reasonable accommodation for a person with a disability.
(iv)A public housing agency may establish a payment standard in accordance with clause (ii) without approval of the Secretary, if the public housing agency includes in its annual plan that is submitted to the Secretary pursuant to section 5A(b)—
(I)the reasons for the increase in the payment standard;
(II)a description of how and why the public housing agency has determined that it meets the requirements of clause (ii); and
(III)a description of other steps the public housing agency is taking, in addition to increasing the payment standard, to address the problems of voucher utilization, voucher success rates (the proportion of families that are issued a voucher that succeed in leasing a unit within the timeframe provided by the public housing agency to search for housing), and concentration of voucher holders.
(v)Clauses (ii) through (iv) shall apply with respect only to amounts made available for rental assistance under this subsection for fiscal year 2005 and fiscal years thereafter..
(b)The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, not later than the expiration of the 12-month period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, issue regulations to implement the recommendations made by the Millenial Housing Commission in the report entitled Meeting Our Nation’s Challenges
, dated May 30, 2002, regarding improving the housing choice voucher program under section 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937. Such regulations shall provide that—
(1)the Secretary shall expand the resources devoted to rent surveys to ensure that published fair market rentals established under section 8(c) of such Act do not lag actual rents; and
(2)exception payment standards under section 8(o)(1)(D) of such Act (as amended by subsection (a) of this section) are more quickly approved when census data demonstrate that average area rents are at the level of the exception sought (subject to appropriate maximum limitations, as the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall provide).
3.Termination of housing assistance payments contractSection 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
(20)Each housing assistance payment contract for assistance under this subsection shall provide that it shall be breach of such contract for the owner to fail to pay State or local real estate taxes, fines, or assessments relating to a dwelling unit assisted under the contract or the building in which the unit is located..
4.Commission to study public and section 8 housing
(a)There is hereby established a commission to be known as the Commission to Revitalize Older Communities Through Housing Improvements (in this section referred to as the Commission
).
(b)
(1)The Commission shall be composed of 9 members, appointed not later than 90 days after amounts are appropriated pursuant to subsection (g) or are otherwise made available from non-Federal sources to carry out this section. Each member shall be appointed for the life of the Commission. The members shall be as follows:
(A)3 members appointed by the President.
(B)2 members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
(C)1 member appointed by the minority leader of the House of Representatives.
(D)2 members appointed by the majority leader of the Senate.
(E)1 member appointed by the minority leader of the Senate.
(2)The Commission shall elect a chairperson from among the members of the Commission.
(3)A majority of the members of the Commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
(4)Any vacancy on the Commission shall not affect its powers, but shall be filled in the manner in which the original appointment was made.
(5)Prohibition of additional payMembers of the Commission who are full-time officers or employees of the United States may not receive additional pay, allowances, or benefits by reason of their service on the Commission.
(6)Each member of the Commission shall receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of title 5, United States Code.
(c)
(1)The Commission shall conduct a study regarding the following topics:
(A)Public housing community service requirementThe Commission shall study the community service requirement under section 12(c) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437j(c)) to determine—
(i)the effectiveness of such requirement in producing community service contributions by residents of public housing, taking into consideration exemptions under law for certain individuals and the temporary suspension of the requirement and of funding for carrying out the requirement;
(ii)the best means of determining compliance with, and enforcing, the community service requirement;
(iii)the actual level of compliance with the community service requirement; and
(iv)whether applying the community service requirement to recipients of rental housing voucher assistance under section 8(o) of such Act would be feasible and effective, taking into consideration the large proportion of recipients of such assistance that are employed and the significant administrative burdens and costs public housing agencies would incur in implementing, administrating, and enforcing such requirement.
(B)Voucher concentration reductionThe Commission shall study—
(i)the effectiveness and feasibility, for purposes of reducing concentration of poverty, of authorizing public housing agencies to establish a limitation on the number of rental housing assistance vouchers under section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 that may be used for rental of dwelling units located within any single municipality or area, which limitation shall be based on the percentage of recipients of such assistance to the total population;
(ii) the consistency of such a limitation with, and effects on, the portability requirements under section 8(r) of such Act; and
(iii)various solutions to avoiding concentration of voucher recipients, including requiring, in a case where a limitation referred to in clause (i) prevents use of vouchers in a municipality or area, that the relevant public housing agency increase the amount of monthly assistance provided under a voucher to permit such voucher recipients to obtain housing in other areas having higher housing costs.
(2)The Commission shall submit a report to the Congress and the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development regarding the results of the study not later than 180 days after the completion of the appointment of the members of the Commission pursuant to subsection (b)(1).
(d)
(1)The Commission may, for the purpose of carrying out this section, hold such hearings, sit and act at times and places, take testimony, and receive evidence as the Commission considers appropriate.
(2)The Commission may adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary to establish its procedures and to govern the manner of its operations, organization, and personnel.
(3)The Commission may secure directly from any department or agency of the United States information necessary to enable it to carry out this section. Upon request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head of that department or agency shall furnish that information to the Commission. The Commission may require information directly from any public housing agency (as such term is defined in section 3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b))) to the same extent that the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may require such information.
(4)Administrative support servicesUpon the request of the Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall provide to the Commission, on a reimbursable basis, the administrative support services necessary for the Commission to carry out its responsibilities under this section.
(5)Upon request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, to the extent possible and subject to the discretion of the Secretary, detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the personnel of the Department to the Commission to assist it in carrying out its duties under this section.
(6)The Commission may use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as other departments and agencies of the United States.
(7)The Commission shall have a Director who shall be appointed by the Commission. To the extent or in the amounts provided in advance in appropriation Acts, the Director shall be paid at a rate fixed by the Commission, but not to exceed the rate of basic pay for level V of the Executive Schedule.
(8)The Commission may appoint and fix the pay of such personnel as it considers appropriate, in accordance with the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the competitive service, and the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of that title relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates.
(e)The Commission shall be considered an advisory committee within the meaning of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.).
(f)The Commission shall terminate 30 days after submitting the report pursuant to subsection (c)(2).
(g)Authorization of appropriationsThere are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section.