[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 129 (Friday, October 4, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9997-S9998]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ASSISTANCE AND SELF-DETERMINATION 
                      REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2002

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to Calendar No. 609, S. 1210.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will report the bill by 
title.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 1210) to reauthorize the Native American Housing 
     Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill, 
which had been reported from the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 
Urban Affairs with an amendment to strike all after the enacting clause 
and insert in lieu thereof the following:
  [Matter to be omitted is shown in black brackets; matter to be added 
is shown in bold italic.]
       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 ``Native American Housing 
     Assistance and Self-Determination Reauthorization Act of 
     2001''.

     [SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING 
                   ASSISTANCE AND SELF-DETERMINATION ACT OF 1996.

       [(a) Block Grants.--Section 108 of the Native American 
     Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 
     U.S.C. 4117) is amended by striking ``, 1999, 2000, and 
     2001'' and inserting ``through 2006''.
       [(b) Federal Guarantees.--Subsections (a) and (b) of 
     section 605 of the Native American Housing Assistance and 
     Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4195) are each 
     amended by striking ``, 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001'' and 
     inserting ``through 2006''.
       [(c) Training and Technical Assistance.--Section 703 of the 
     Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act 
     of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4212) is amended by striking ``, 1998, 
     1999, 2000, and 2001'' and inserting ``through 2006''.]

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Native American Housing 
     Assistance and Self-Determination Reauthorization Act of 
     2002''.

     SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING 
                   ASSISTANCE AND SELF-DETERMINATION ACT OF 1996.

       (a) Block Grants.--Section 108 of the Native American 
     Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 
     U.S.C. 4117) is amended by striking ``1998, 1999, 2000, and 
     2001'' and inserting ``1998 through 2007''.
       (b) Federal Guarantees.--Section 605 of the Native American 
     Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 
     U.S.C. 4195) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by striking ``1997, 1998, 1999, 
     2000, and 2001'' and inserting ``1997 through 2007''; and
       (2) in subsection (b), by striking ``1997, 1998, 1999, 
     2000, and 2001'' and inserting ``1997 through 2007''.
       (c) Training and Technical Assistance.--Section 703 of the 
     Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act 
     of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4212) is amended by striking ``1997, 1998, 
     1999, 2000, and 2001'' and inserting ``1997 through 2007''.
       (d) Indian Housing Loan Guarantee Fund.--Section 184(i) of 
     the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 
     1715z-13a(i)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (5)(C), by striking ``each fiscal year'' 
     and inserting ``each of fiscal years 1997 through 2007''; and
       (2) in paragraph (7), by striking ``each fiscal year'' and 
     inserting ``each of fiscal years 1997 through 2007''.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

       Section 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance and 
     Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C 4103) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(22) Housing related community
     development.--
       ``(A) In general.--The term `housing related community 
     development' means any tribally-owned and operated facility, 
     business, activity, or infrastructure that--
       ``(i) is necessary to the direct construction of 
     reservation housing; and
       ``(ii) would help an Indian tribe or its tribally-
     designated housing authority reduce the cost of construction 
     of Indian housing or otherwise promote the findings of this 
     Act.
       ``(B) Exclusion.--The term `housing and community 
     development' does not include any activity conducted by any 
     Indian tribe under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 
     U.S.C. 2710 et seq.).''.

     SEC. 4. BLOCK GRANTS AND GRANT REQUIREMENTS.

       Section 101(h) of the Native American Housing Assistance 
     and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4111(h)) is 
     amended--
       (1) in the heading, by inserting ``and Planning'' after 
     ``Administrative''; and
       (2) by inserting after the word ``Act'' the first place 
     that term appears, the following: ``for comprehensive housing 
     and community development planning activities and''.

     SEC. 5. TREATMENT OF PROGRAM INCOME AND LABOR STANDARDS.

       Section 104 of the Native American Housing Assistance and 
     Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4114) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(1)--
       (A) by striking ``A recipient'' and inserting the 
     following: ``Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, 
     a recipient''; and
       (B) by striking subparagraph (B) and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(B) the recipient has agreed that it will utilize such 
     income for housing related activities in accordance with this 
     Act.''; and
       (2) in subsection (a)(2)--
       (A) in the heading, by inserting ``Restricted Access or'' 
     before the word ``Reduction'';
       (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (C) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; or''; and
       (D) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(D) whether the recipient has expended retained program 
     income for housing-related activities.''.

     SEC. 6. REGULATIONS.

       Section 106(b)(2)(A) of the Native American Housing 
     Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 
     4116(b)(2)(A)) is amended by inserting after ``required under 
     this Act'' the following: ``, including any regulations that 
     may be required pursuant to amendments made to this Act after 
     the date of enactment of this Act,''.

     SEC. 7. FEDERAL GUARANTEES FOR FINANCING FOR TRIBAL HOUSING 
                   ACTIVITIES.

       Section 601 of the Native American Housing Assistance and 
     Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4191) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a), by inserting after ``section 202'' 
     the following: ``and housing related community development 
     activity as consistent with the purposes of this Act'';
       (2) by striking subsection (b); and
       (3) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as subsections 
     (b) and (c), respectively.

     SEC. 8. FEASIBILITY STUDIES TO IMPROVE THE DELIVERY OF 
                   HOUSING ASSISTANCE IN NATIVE COMMUNITIES.

       Section 202 of the Native American Housing Assistance and 
     Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4132) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) Community development demonstration project.--
       ``(A) In general.--Consistent with principles of Indian 
     self-determination and the findings of this Act, the 
     Secretary shall conduct and submit to Congress a study of the 
     feasibility of establishing a demonstration project in which 
     Indian tribes, tribal organizations, or tribal consortia are 
     authorized to expend amounts received pursuant to the Native 
     American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination 
     Reauthorization Act of 2002 in order to design, implement, 
     and operate community development demonstration projects.
       ``(B) Study.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
     Determination Reauthorization Act of 2002, the Secretary 
     shall submit the study conducted under subparagraph (A) to 
     the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the 
     Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate, and the Committee 
     on Financial Services and the Committee on Resources of the 
     House of Representatives.
       ``(8) Self-determination act demonstration project.--
       ``(A) In general.--Consistent with the provisions of the 
     Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 
     U.S.C. 450 et seq.), the Secretary shall conduct and submit 
     to Congress a study of the feasibility of establishing a 
     demonstration project in which Indian tribes and tribal 
     organizations are authorized to receive assistance in a 
     manner that maximizes tribal authority and decision-making in 
     the design and implementation of Federal housing and related 
     activity funding.
       ``(B) Study.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     enactment of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
     Determination Reauthorization Act of 2002, the Secretary 
     shall submit the study conducted under subparagraph (A) to 
     the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and the 
     Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate, and the Committee 
     on Financial Services and the Committee on Resources of the 
     House of Representatives.''.

[[Page S9998]]

     SEC. 9. BLACK MOLD INFESTATION STUDY.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall--
       (1) complete a study on the extent of black mold 
     infestation of Native American housing in the United States; 
     and
       (2) submit to Congress a report that describes 
     recommendations of the Secretary for means by which to 
     address the infestation.
  Mr. SARBANES. Mr. President, on September 12, 2002, the Committee on 
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs reported out favorably S. 1210, the 
Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination 
Reauthorization Act, NAHASDA. The Indian Affairs Committee referred 
NAHASDA to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on 
August 28, 2002. According to the Senate Rules, all legislation 
affecting HUD's Indian Housing programs must be considered in the 
Banking Committee. This is bipartisan legislation that has the support 
of the National American Indian Housing Council, NAIHC.
  The NAHASDA Reauthorization Act extends the program originally 
created in 1996. The bill makes very modest changes to update the 
legislation, including asking HUD to explore ways to increase tribal 
self-determination with regards to the NAHASDA block grant. It also 
asks HUD to do a study of black mold, which is apparently is a growing 
problem on reservations.
  In 1996, Congress passed NAHASDA in order to strengthen federal 
housing assistance for tribal communities. NAHASDA provides block 
grants to Indian tribes or their tribally designated housing entities, 
TDHEs, for affordable housing activities that were previously under 
general housing programs, including public housing, section 8, 
Youthbuild, and homeless programs. Consolidating these funds into a 
block grant helps to meet the goal of self-determination for Indian 
tribes.
  Since its passage, NAHASDA has achieved many successes. HUD reports 
that through NAHASDA, 25,000 new units of housing has been produced in 
Indian communities. In spite of NAHASDA's successes, many of the people 
in these communities still live in severely substandard housing. 
According to the NAIHC, Native American housing is said to be six to 
eight times more crowded than the national average. Furthermore, it is 
estimated that 1 out of every 5 Indian homes lacks complete plumbing; 
and 40 percent of homes on Indian lands are overcrowded. These figures 
demonstrate the need for affordable housing programs, like NAHASDA, 
that benefit Native American communities.
  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I am proud to be a cosponsor of the bill 
to reauthorize the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
Determination Act which is an important step in strengthening Federal 
housing assistance for tribal authorities. I urge prompt consideration 
of this legislation by the full Congress. I wish to thank Senators 
Inouye and Campbell for their work on this bill during deliberations in 
the Committee on Indian Affairs. Also, I wish to thank Senator Sarbanes 
for his leadership in moving this bill quickly through the Banking 
Committee.
  Throughout my 16 years in Congress, I have been dismayed by the 
living conditions of Native Americans. On numerous occasions, it has 
been documented that Native Americans have the worst housing conditions 
in the United States. Rampant overcrowding, homelessness, and a 
crumbling housing stock plague our tribal communities, and South Dakota 
has seen some of the worst conditions overall. Our tribes suffer from 
anywhere between 50 to 80 percent unemployment on Native American 
reservations. According to the Housing Assistance Council, South Dakota 
contains 10 counties that are inhabited by 30 to 65 percent of persons 
below poverty.
  NAHASDA was originally passed in 1996 to strengthen Federal housing 
assistance to tribal communities. NAHASDA provides block grants to 
Indian tribes for affordable housing activities that were previously 
under general housing programs, including public housing, section 8, 
Youthbuild, and homeless programs. I believe that consolidating these 
funds in a block grant to tribes helps meet the goal of self-
determination for Indian tribes.
  NAHASDA has proven to be a vast improvement over the previous way 
that housing assistance was provided to tribes. The Federal Government 
must end the practice of treating our first Americans as third class 
citizens. As this bill is considered by the full Senate, I will 
continue to press my colleagues for their full support.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Banking 
Committee substitute amendment be agreed to; that the bill, as amended, 
be read the third time and passed; that the motion to reconsider be 
laid upon the table, with no intervening action or debate; and that any 
statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  The bill (S. 1210), as amended, was read the third time and passed.

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