[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 40 (Tuesday, March 3, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S765]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 4304. Mr. HAWLEY submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill H.R. 6644, a bill to increase the supply of housing in 
America, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; 
as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

     SEC. __. OVERSIGHT OF LANDLORD COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSING 
                   QUALITY STANDARDS.

       Section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 
     U.S.C. 1437f) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(ee) Housing Choice Voucher Landlord Database.--
       ``(1) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
     of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary shall, in 
     cooperation with all public housing agencies, create a 
     database of owners of properties receiving tenant-based 
     assistance, which shall include--
       ``(A) a comprehensive list of all properties owned by each 
     owner that are receiving or have previously received tenant-
     based assistance;
       ``(B) for each property listed under subparagraph (A), the 
     identity of any private individual or entity that has the 
     legal right to lease or sublease dwelling units within the 
     property;
       ``(C) a comprehensive list of all actions taken by the 
     Secretary and any public housing agency against an owner for 
     violations of the terms of a housing assistance payments 
     contract related to the property or of the housing quality 
     standards established under subsection (o)(8)(B);
       ``(D) a comprehensive list of all previous or ongoing 
     litigation related to the programs authorized under 
     subsection (o) between the owner and any public housing 
     agency; and
       ``(E) a mechanism for accepting consumer complaints from 
     tenants of properties receiving tenant-based assistance about 
     the owners of those properties, through which consumers may 
     submit complaints that shall include--
       ``(i) identifying information of the tenant, the owner, and 
     the property; and
       ``(ii) a detailed description of the complaint of the 
     tenant.
       ``(2) Public disclosures.--
       ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall maintain and make 
     available to the public a list, using information from the 
     database established under paragraph (1), of all owners of 
     properties receiving tenant-based assistance, which shall 
     include--
       ``(i) the identity of any private individual or entity that 
     has the legal right to lease or sublease dwelling units 
     within each property;
       ``(ii) all actions described to in paragraph (1)(C); and
       ``(iii) all litigation described in paragraph (1)(D).
       ``(B) Privacy.--Any information made available under 
     subparagraph (A)--
       ``(i) shall be made available in a manner that protects the 
     privacy of current and former tenants of the properties; and
       ``(ii) shall not include, and where appropriate shall 
     redact, the addresses of the properties and dwelling units 
     owned by the owners or other personally identifiable 
     information of tenants.
       ``(3) Review of complaints.--The Secretary shall--
       ``(A) complete an initial review of each complaint 
     submitted under paragraph (1)(E) not later than 60 days after 
     the date of submission; and
       ``(B) if a complaint submitted under paragraph (1)(E) 
     contains the information required under clauses (i) and (ii) 
     of such paragraph (1)(E), make the complaint publicly 
     available on the database established under paragraph (1).
       ``(4) Penalty.--Any property owner who knowingly provides 
     misleading or inconsistent information to the Secretary or 
     public housing agencies, or to units of general local 
     government or other entities approved by the Secretary to 
     conduct inspections under subsection (o)(11), relating to the 
     database established under paragraph (1) with the intent to 
     undermine transparency or avoid sanction, shall be guilty of 
     a violation of section 1012 of title 18, United States Code, 
     and shall be prohibited thereafter from being awarded any 
     contract by the Federal Government.
       ``(5) Inspector general.--
       ``(A) Investigations.--The Inspector General of the 
     Department of Housing and Urban Development may investigate 
     any suspected or alleged effort by an owner to circumvent the 
     data collection needs identified by the Secretary to carry 
     out this subsection by providing misleading or inconsistent 
     information.
       ``(B) Report.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
     enactment of this subsection, the Inspector General of the 
     Department of Housing and Urban Development shall issue a 
     report documenting obstacles to maintaining consistent 
     records within the database established under paragraph (1), 
     including--
       ``(i) deficiencies in information submissions by owners;
       ``(ii) inconsistent documentation by public housing 
     agencies; and
       ``(iii) legal restructuring or renaming of ownership 
     entities by owners with the intent to evade transparency.
       ``(6) Audits and assessments.--Not later than 2 years after 
     the date of enactment of this subsection, the Secretary 
     shall--
       ``(A) audit the performance of public housing agencies with 
     the requirements under this subsection; and
       ``(B) update the section 8 management assessment program of 
     the Department of Housing and Urban Development to consider 
     compliance with the requirements under this subsection.''.
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