[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5512 Introduced in House (IH)]








109th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5512

 To direct the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish 
an urban blight demolition program to provide grants for the demolition 
          of condemned and tax-foreclosed residential housing.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 25, 2006

Mr. Ryan of Ohio (for himself and Mr. Kildee) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To direct the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish 
an urban blight demolition program to provide grants for the demolition 
          of condemned and tax-foreclosed residential housing.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Urban Development Act of 2006''.

SEC. 2. FINDING.

    Congress finds that there has been a decrease in the population of 
traditional manufacturing regions, often leaving a surplus of 
residential housing.

SEC. 3. URBAN BLIGHT DEMOLITION PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 
shall establish and carry out an urban blight demolition program in 
accordance with the requirements of this section.
    (b) Grants.--
            (1) In general.--Under the program, the Secretary may award 
        grants to eligible recipients for the purpose of demolishing 
        condemned or tax-foreclosed residential housing in urban areas.
            (2) Additional use of funds.--In addition to the purpose 
        specified in paragraph (1), amounts from grants awarded under 
        this section may be used for one or more of the following 
        purposes:
                    (A) Remediation of the demolition sites prior to 
                demolition.
                    (B) Rehabilitation of the demolition sites to 
                public use spaces.
    (c) Grant Eligibility.--To be eligible for a grant under the 
program, an applicant--
            (1) shall be a city or other municipality--
                    (A) with a population of more than 40,000, as 
                determined by the most recent report issued by the 
                Bureau of the Census; and
                    (B) that has experienced a decrease of 10 percent 
                in residential population over the course of the last 2 
                reports issued by the Bureau of the Census.
            (2) shall demonstrate that the demolition to be carried out 
        with funds from the grant will aid the health, safety, and 
        welfare of the residents of the city or municipality; and
            (3) shall demonstrate that such demolition is needed, in 
        part, to reduce crime, destroy a public hazard, or create a 
        public-use space such as a trail or park.
    (d) Application.--A city or other municipality seeking a grant 
under this section shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary 
may require.
    (e) Matching Funds.--The Federal share of the cost of an activity 
carried out using a grant awarded under this section may not exceed 50 
percent.
    (f) Grant Amounts.--The Secretary may not award more than $500,000 
in grants under this section to an eligible recipient in a fiscal year.
    (g) Relationship to Other Grant Programs.--Grants awarded under 
this section are intended to complement, and not take the place of, 
funding provided under the Community Development Block Grant program 
authorized by the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 
U.S.C. 5301 et seq.).
    (h) Community Participation and Input.--To the extent practicable, 
recipients of grants awarded under this section shall consult with 
community leaders, resident and citizen associations, law enforcement 
officials, and fire departments in determining which residential 
housing will be demolished.
    (i) Reporting Requirement.--The Secretary shall submit to Congress 
on an annual basis a report containing the following:
            (1) The number of demolitions that have been carried out 
        under the program in the preceding year.
            (2) The number of demolished properties that have been 
        rehabilitated to public-use spaces under the program in the 
        preceding year.
            (3) A description of the impact such demolitions and 
        rehabilitations have had on the health, safety, and welfare of 
        the residents in the affected areas.
    (j) Nondiscrimination, Labor Standards, and Remedies for 
Noncompliance.--Grants awarded under this section shall be subject to 
the terms and conditions set forth in sections 109, 110, and 111 of the 
Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5309, 5310, 
and 5311).

SEC. 4. RESIDENTIAL HOUSING DEFINED.

    The term ``residential housing'' includes single family and multi-
family units that were primarily used as dwelling accommodations.

SEC. 5. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary to carry out this Act.
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