[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2455 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2455

  To provide $1,000,000,000 in emergency Community Development Block 
     Grant funding for necessary expenses related to the impact of 
                      foreclosures on communities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 12, 2007

Mr. Coleman (for himself and Mr. Leahy) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, 
                           and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide $1,000,000,000 in emergency Community Development Block 
     Grant funding for necessary expenses related to the impact of 
                      foreclosures on communities.

    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 ``Community Foreclosure Assistance Act 
of 2007''.

SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL EMERGENCY CDBG FUNDING.

    (a) Appropriation.--There are authorized to be appropriated, and 
shall be appropriated, $1,000,000,000, to remain available until 
expended, for assistance to States, metropolitan cities, and urban 
counties (as those terms are defined in section 102 of the Housing and 
Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5302)) in carrying out the 
community development block grant program under title I of the Housing 
and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.)--
            (1) for necessary expenses related to the impact of housing 
        foreclosures, and other related economic and community 
        development activities; and
            (2) to provide foreclosure-based rental assistance for 
        individual renters in the form of relocation assistance.
    (b) Limitation.--
            (1) In general.--Except for counseling services none of the 
        amounts appropriated under subsection (a) may be provided, 
        directly or indirectly, to an individual homeowner for 
        foreclosure prevention purposes, including for refinancing 
        assistance, loans, or any other form of financial assistance. 
        Such funds may be provided directly to a certified housing 
        counseling service, which shall be considered as a subrecipient 
        of such grant amounts.
            (2) Definition.--For purposes of paragraph (1), the term 
        ``certified housing counseling service'' means a housing 
        counseling agency approved by the Secretary of Housing and 
        Urban Development pursuant to section 106(d) of the Housing and 
        Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701x(d)).

SEC. 3. INCREASED PUBLIC SERVICES REQUIREMENT CAP.

    For purposes of this Act, paragraph (8) of section 105(a) of the 
Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5305(a)) shall 
apply to the use of all funds appropriated or otherwise made available 
under this Act by substituting--
            (1) ``25 per centum'' for ``15 per centum'' each place that 
        term appears; and
            (2) ``25 percent'' for ``15 percent'' each place that term 
        appears.

SEC. 4. LOW AND MODERATE INCOME REQUIREMENT.

    At least 50 percent of the funds appropriated or otherwise made 
available under this Act shall benefit primarily persons of low- and 
moderate-income.

SEC. 5. PLANS AND REPORTS.

    (a) Comprehensive Plan.--None of the funds appropriated or 
otherwise made available under this Act shall be used by any State, 
metropolitan city, or urban county until such time as that State, 
metropolitan city, or urban county submits to the Secretary of Housing 
and Urban Development, for approval by the Secretary, a comprehensive 
plan detailing the proposed use of all such funds.
    (b) Report on Use of Funds.--During the period of time that funds 
are being expended under this Act, each State, metropolitan city, or 
urban county receiving funds under this Act shall submit, on a 
quarterly basis, a report to the Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development describing and accounting for the use of all such funds 
expended during the applicable period.

SEC. 6. WAIVERS.

    (a) General Waiver.--In administering funds appropriated or 
otherwise made available under this Act, the Secretary of Housing and 
Urban Development shall waive, or specify alternative requirements for, 
any provision of any statute or regulation that the Secretary 
administers in connection with the obligation by the Secretary or the 
use by the recipient of such funds (except for requirements related to 
fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, and the environment), 
upon a request by a State, metropolitan city, or urban county that such 
waiver is required to facilitate the use of such funds, and a finding 
by the Secretary that such waiver would not be inconsistent with the 
overall purpose of the statute.
    (b) Low and Moderate Income Requirement Waiver.--The Secretary of 
Housing and Urban Development may waive, upon the request of a State, 
metropolitan city, or urban county, the 50 percent requirement 
described under section 4. Such waiver shall, in the discretion of the 
Secretary, only be granted if a compelling need is demonstrated.
    (c) Public Services Cap.--The Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development may waive, upon the request of a State, metropolitan city, 
or urban county, the public service requirement cap described under 
section 3. Such waiver shall, in the discretion of the Secretary, only 
be granted if a compelling need is demonstrated.
    (d) Other Waiver Provisions.--
            (1) Publication in the federal register.--The Secretary of 
        Housing and Urban Development shall publish in the Federal 
        Register any waiver of any statute or regulation authorized 
        under this section not later than 5 days before the effective 
        date of such waiver.
            (2) Review of waiver.--Each waiver granted under this 
        section by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall 
        be reconsidered, and if still necessary reauthorized by the 
        Secretary, not later than 2 years after the date on which such 
        waiver was first published in the Federal Register pursuant to 
        paragraph (1).
            (3) Notification of committees.--The Secretary of Housing 
        and Urban Development shall notify the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the House of Representatives of any waiver 
        granted or denied under this section not later than 5 days 
        before such waiver is granted or denied.

SEC. 7. NONCOMPLIANCE WITH COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT REQUIREMENTS.

    For purposes of this Act, the provisions of section 111 of the 
Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5311)(relating 
to noncompliance) shall apply to the use of all funds appropriated or 
otherwise made available under this Act.

SEC. 8. GAO AUDIT.

    The Comptroller General of the United States shall--
            (1) conduct an audit of the expenditure of all funds 
        appropriated under this Act in accordance with generally 
        accepted government auditing standards; and
            (2) submit a report detailing such audit to the Committee 
        on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the 
        Committee on Financial Services of the House of 
        Representatives.

SEC. 9. REPORTS.

    The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall report, on a 
quarterly basis, to the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and 
the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives on--
            (1) the use of funds appropriated or otherwise made 
        available under this Act, including--
                    (A) the number of households receiving counseling 
                and rental assistance;
                    (B) the outcomes of such assistance activities;
                    (C) the names of those certified housing counseling 
                service providing counseling assistance pursuant to 
                this Act; and
                    (D) such other information as the Secretary may 
                deem appropriate; and
            (2) all steps taken by the Secretary to prevent fraud and 
        abuse of such funds.
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