[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8186 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8186

To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish 
a grant and loan program that provides amounts to eligible entities to 
  use to develop, create, or preserve qualifying affordable dwelling 
                     units, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 30, 2024

 Ms. Stevens (for herself, Mrs. Gonzalez-Colon, and Mr. Torres of New 
    York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish 
a grant and loan program that provides amounts to eligible entities to 
  use to develop, create, or preserve qualifying affordable dwelling 
                     units, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Healthy Affordable Housing Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANT AND LOAN PROGRAM FOR AFFORDABLE DWELLING UNITS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development 
shall, not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 
section, establish a grant and loan program that provides amounts to 
eligible entities to use to develop, create, or preserve qualifying 
affordable dwelling units in neighborhoods that the Secretary has 
determined have shortages of affordable housing.
    (b) Application and Selection.--
            (1) In general.--To apply for a grant or loan under this 
        section, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the 
        Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may 
        reasonably require.
            (2) Location requirement.--
                    (A) In general.--Grants and loans may only be 
                awarded to applicants that propose to develop, create, 
                or preserve qualifying affordable dwelling units that 
                are in a neighborhood with--
                            (i) a Federally qualified health center;
                            (ii) a health care provider who, as 
                        determined by the Secretary accepts Medicaid 
                        and provides primary care services;
                            (iii) a grocery store that accepts 
                        Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or 
                        the Nutrition Assistance Program, benefits and 
                        Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for 
                        Women, Infants, and Children benefits;
                            (iv) a State licensed child care provider 
                        or an eligible child care provider under the 
                        Child Care and Development Block Grant Act that 
                        cares for at least one child to whom the 
                        provider is not related;
                            (v) a pharmacy; or
                            (vi) public transportation, as such term is 
                        defined in paragraph (15) of section 5302 of 
                        title 49, United States Code.
                    (B) Preference.--The Secretary shall give 
                preference to applicants that are--
                            (i) developing, creating, or preserving 
                        qualifying affordable dwelling units that are 
                        not more than a mile from 2 or more of the 
                        types of amenities listed in subparagraph (A); 
                        or
                            (ii) developing, creating, or preserving, 
                        with or without the assistance of a partnering 
                        entity, qualifying affordable dwelling units 
                        that are located in buildings that have or will 
                        contain any of the amenities listed in 
                        subparagraph (A).
                    (C) Selection criteria.--The Secretary, in 
                administering the grant and loan program, may establish 
                selection criteria relating to--
                            (i) how many qualifying affordable housing 
                        units will be developed, created, or preserved;
                            (ii) the boundaries of the neighborhood in 
                        which the qualifying affordable dwelling units 
                        are to be developed, created, or preserved; and
                            (iii) the area median income in the area in 
                        which the qualifying affordable housing units 
                        are to be developed, created, or preserved.
    (c) Survey.--
            (1) In general.--
                    (A) In general.--Two years after the date that any 
                qualifying affordable dwelling unit is first occupied 
                after being developed, created, or preserved using 
                amounts provided under this section, and every 2 years 
                thereafter for 10 years, the Secretary shall conduct a 
                voluntary survey of residents in such dwelling unit 
                about any benefits they perceive associated with being 
                physically near the amenities listed in subsection 
                (b)(2)(A).
                    (B) Control group permitted.--The Secretary may, if 
                the Secretary determines appropriate, survey persons 
                who are not residents in a qualifying affordable 
                dwelling unit that received amounts under this section 
                as part of a control group for the survey required 
                under subparagraph (A).
            (2) Report.--
                    (A) In general.--The Secretary shall, not later 
                than 1 year after the date on which the Secretary 
                completes a survey required under paragraph (1), 
                compile the results of each survey conducted under 
                paragraph (1) and submit a report about such results to 
                the Committees on Appropriations and Financial Services 
                of the House of Representatives and the Committees on 
                Appropriations and Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 
                of the Senate.
                    (B) Requirement.--Each report submitted under 
                subparagraph (A) shall evaluate, with respect to each 
                qualifying affordable dwelling unit developed, created, 
                or preserved using amounts provided under this section, 
                whether nearby the amenities identified in subsection 
                (b)(2)(A) have closed or changed location in the time 
                since the previous report submitted under subparagraph 
                (A).
    (d) Rules of Construction.--
            (1) In general.--Nothing in this section may be construed 
        to prohibit the Secretary from awarding a grant or loan under 
        this section to a person who has applied for another funding 
        opportunity administered by the Secretary relating to the 
        development, creation, or preservation of affordable housing 
        units.
            (2) Rental assistance.--Nothing in this section may be 
        construed to prohibit a qualifying affordable dwelling unit 
        that is developed, created, or preserved using amounts provided 
        under this section from receiving tenant-based assistance or 
        project-based assistance under section 8(o) of the United 
        States Housing Act of 1937.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary $100,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2024 
to 2028 carry out this section.
    (f) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
                    (A) a unit of general local government, including 
                county government;
                    (B) a tribe, tribal entity or tribally designated 
                housing entity;
                    (C) an owner or developer of a qualifying 
                affordable dwelling unit;
                    (D) a public housing agency;
                    (E) an organization with a mission that involves 
                the development, creation, preservation, renovation, 
                operation, or maintenance of affordable housing; or
                    (F) any combination of the entities described in 
                subparagraphs (A) through (E).
            (2) Federally qualified health center.--The term 
        ``Federally qualified health center'' has the meaning given the 
        term in section 1861(aa)(4) of the Social Security 22 Act (42 
        U.S.C. 1395x(aa)).
            (3) Qualifying affordable dwelling unit.--The term 
        ``qualifying affordable dwelling unit'' means a dwelling unit 
        that--
                    (A) qualifies as affordable housing under 215(a) of 
                the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act; 
                and
                    (B) meets the income targeting requirements 
                described in section 214(1) of such Act.
            (4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Housing and Urban Development.
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