Public Law 111-22/Division B/Title IV

TITLE IV—RURAL HOUSING STABILITY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

SEC. 1401. RURAL HOUSING STABILITY ASSISTANCE.

Subtitle G of title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11408 et seq.) is amended—

(1) by striking the subtitle heading and inserting the following:

``Subtitle G—Rural housing stability assistance program´´; and

(2) in section 491—

(A) by striking the section heading and inserting ``Rural housing stability grant program.´´;

(B) in subsection (a)—

(i) by striking ``rural homelessness grant program´´ and inserting ``rural housing stability grant program´´;

(ii) by inserting ``in lieu of grants under subtitle C´´ after ``eligible organizations´´; and

(iii) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), and (3), and inserting the following:

``(1) rehousing or improving the housing situations of individuals and families who are homeless or in the worst housing situations in the geographic area;

``(2) stabilizing the housing of individuals and families who are in imminent danger of losing housing; and

``(3) improving the ability of the lowest-income residents of the community to afford stable housing.´´;

(C) in subsection (b)(1)—

(i) by redesignating subparagraphs (E), (F), and (G) as subparagraphs (I), (J), and (K), respectively; and

(ii) by striking subparagraph (D) and inserting the following:

``(D) construction of new housing units to provide transitional or permanent housing to homeless individuals and families and individuals and families at risk of homelessness;

``(E) acquisition or rehabilitation of a structure to provide supportive services or to provide transitional or permanent housing, other than emergency shelter, to homeless individuals and families and individuals and families at risk of homelessness;

``(F) leasing of property, or portions of property, not owned by the recipient or project sponsor involved, for use in providing transitional or permanent housing to homeless individuals and families and individuals and families at risk of homelessness, or providing supportive services to such homeless and at-risk individuals and families;

``(G) provision of rental assistance to provide transitional or permanent housing to homeless individuals and families and individuals and families at risk of homelessness, such rental assistance may include tenant-based or project-based rental assistance;

``(H) payment of operating costs for housing units assisted under this title;´´;

(D) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``appropriated´´ and inserting ``transferred´´;

(E) in subsection (c)—

(i) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``appropriated´´ and inserting ``transferred´´; and

(ii) in paragraph (3), by striking ``appropriated´´ and inserting ``transferred´´;

(F) in subsection (d)—

(i) in paragraph (5), by striking ``; and´´ and inserting a semicolon;

(ii) in paragraph (6)—

(I) by striking ``an agreement´´ and all that follows through ``families´´ and inserting the following: ``a description of how individuals and families who are homeless or who have the lowest incomes in the community will be involved by the organization´´; and

(II) by striking the period at the end, and inserting a semicolon; and

(iii) by adding at the end the following:

``(7) a description of consultations that took place within the community to ascertain the most important uses for funding under this section, including the involvement of potential beneficiaries of the project; and

``(8) a description of the extent and nature of homelessness and of the worst housing situations in the community.´´;

(G) by striking subsections (f) and (g) and inserting the following:

``(f) Matching funding.—

``(1) In general.—An organization eligible to receive a grant under subsection (a) shall specify matching contributions from any source other than a grant awarded under this subtitle, that shall be made available in the geographic area in an amount equal to not less than 25 percent of the funds provided for the project or activity, except that grants for leasing shall not be subject to any match requirement.

``(2) Limitations on in-kind match.—The cash value of services provided to the beneficiaries or clients of an eligible organization by an entity other than the organization may count toward the contributions in paragraph (1) only when documented by a memorandum of understanding between the organization and the other entity that such services will be provided.

``(3) Countable activities.—The contributions required under paragraph (1) may consist of—

``(A) funding for any eligible activity described under subsection (b); and

``(B) subject to paragraph (2), in-kind provision of services of any eligible activity described under subsection (b).

``(g) Selection criteria.—The Secretary shall establish criteria for selecting recipients of grants under subsection (a), including—

``(1) the participation of potential beneficiaries of the project in assessing the need for, and importance of, the project in the community;

``(2) the degree to which the project addresses the most harmful housing situations present in the community;

``(3) the degree of collaboration with others in the community to meet the goals described in subsection (a);

``(4) the performance of the organization in improving housing situations, taking account of the severity of barriers of individuals and families served by the organization;

``(5) for organizations that have previously received funding under this section, the extent of improvement in homelessness and the worst housing situations in the community since such funding began;

``(6) the need for such funds, as determined by the formula established under section 427(b)(2); and

``(7) any other relevant criteria as determined by the Secretary.´´;

(H) in subsection (h)—

(i) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking ``The´´ and inserting ``Not later than 18 months after funding is first made available pursuant to the amendments made by title IV of the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act of 2009, the´´; and

(ii) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ``providing housing and other assistance to homeless persons´´ and inserting ``meeting the goals described in subsection (a)´´;

(iii) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``address homelessness in rural areas´´ and inserting ``meet the goals described in subsection (a) in rural areas´´; and

(iv) in paragraph (2)—

(I) by striking ``The´´ and inserting ``Not later than 24 months after funding is first made available pursuant to the amendment made by title IV of the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act of 2009, the´´;

(II) by striking ``, not later than 18 months after the date on which the Secretary first makes grants under the program,´´; and

(III) by striking ``prevent and respond to homelessness´´ and inserting ``meet the goals described in subsection (a)´´;

(I) in subsection (k)—

(i) in paragraph (1), by striking ``rural homelessness grant program´´ and inserting ``rural housing stability grant program´´; and

(ii) in paragraph (2)—

(I) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; or´´ and inserting a semicolon;

(II) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ``rural census tract.´´ and inserting ``county where at least 75 percent of the population is rural; or´´; and

(III) by adding at the end the following:

``(C) any area or community, respectively, located in a State that has population density of less than 30 persons per square mile (as reported in the most recent decennial census), and of which at least 1.25 percent of the total acreage of such State is under Federal jurisdiction, provided that no metropolitan city (as such term is defined in section 102 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974) in such State is the sole beneficiary of the grant amounts awarded under this section.´´;

(J) in subsection (l)—

(i) by striking the subsection heading and inserting ``Program funding.—´´; and

(ii) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following:

``(1) In general.—The Secretary shall determine the total amount of funding attributable under section 427(b)(2) to meet the needs of any geographic area in the Nation that applies for funding under this section. The Secretary shall transfer any amounts determined under this subsection from the Community Homeless Assistance Program and consolidate such transferred amounts for grants under this section, except that the Secretary shall transfer an amount not less than 5 percent of the amount available under subtitle C for grants under this section. Any amounts so transferred and not used for grants under this section due to an insufficient number of applications shall be transferred to be used for grants under subtitle C.´´; and

(K) by adding at the end the following:

``(m) Determination of funding source.—For any fiscal year, in addition to funds awarded under subtitle B, funds under this title to be used in a city or county shall only be awarded under either subtitle C or subtitle D.´´.

SEC. 1402. GAO STUDY OF HOMELESSNESS AND HOMELESS ASSISTANCE IN RURAL AREAS.

(a) Study and report.—

Not later than the expiration of the 12-month period beginning on the date of the enactment of this division, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study to examine homelessness and homeless assistance in rural areas and rural communities and submit a report to the Congress on the findings and conclusion of the study. The report shall contain the following matters:

(1) A general description of homelessness, including the range of living situations among homeless individuals and homeless families, in rural areas and rural communities of the United States, including tribal lands and colonias.

(2) An estimate of the incidence and prevalence of homelessness among individuals and families in rural areas and rural communities of the United States.

(3) An estimate of the number of individuals and families from rural areas and rural communities who migrate annually to non-rural areas and non-rural communities for homeless assistance.

(4) A description of barriers that individuals and families in and from rural areas and rural communities encounter when seeking to access homeless assistance programs, and recommendations for removing such barriers.

(5) A comparison of the rate of homelessness among individuals and families in and from rural areas and rural communities compared to the rate of homelessness among individuals and families in and from non-rural areas and non-rural communities.

(6) A general description of homeless assistance for individuals and families in rural areas and rural communities of the United States.

(7) A description of barriers that homeless assistance providers serving rural areas and rural communities encounter when seeking to access Federal homeless assistance programs, and recommendations for removing such barriers.

(8) An assessment of the type and amount of Federal homeless assistance funds awarded to organizations serving rural areas and rural communities and a determination as to whether such amount is proportional to the distribution of homeless individuals and families in and from rural areas and rural communities compared to homeless individuals and families in non-rural areas and non-rural communities.

(9) An assessment of the current roles of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Agriculture, and other Federal departments and agencies in administering homeless assistance programs in rural areas and rural communities and recommendations for distributing Federal responsibilities, including homeless assistance program administration and grantmaking, among the departments and agencies so that service organizations in rural areas and rural communities are most effectively reached and supported.

(b) Acquisition of supporting information.—

In carrying out the study under this section, the Comptroller General shall seek to obtain views from the following persons:

(1) The Secretary of Agriculture.

(2) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.

(3) The Secretary of Health and Human Services.

(4) The Secretary of Education.

(5) The Secretary of Labor.

(6) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

(7) The Executive Director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.

(8) Project sponsors and recipients of homeless assistance grants serving rural areas and rural communities.

(9) Individuals and families in or from rural areas and rural communities who have sought or are seeking Federal homeless assistance services.

(10) National advocacy organizations concerned with homelessness, rural housing, and rural community development.

(c) Effective date.—

This section shall take effect on the date of the enactment of this division.