Housing Fairness Act of 2020

IB Union Calendar No. 548 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 149 [Report No. 116–664] To authorize funds to prevent housing discrimination through the use of nationwide testing, to increase funds for the Fair Housing Initiatives Program, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 3, 2019 Mr. GREEN of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services DECEMBER 17, 2020 Additional sponsors: Mr. PERLMUTTER, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CLEAVER, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. SAN NICO- LAS, Mr. HECK, Mr. BLUMENAUER, and Mr. DELGADO DECEMBER 17, 2020 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 3, 2019] VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 149 RH A BILL To authorize funds to prevent housing discrimination through the use of nationwide testing, to increase funds for the Fair Housing Initiatives Program, and for other pur- poses. VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 149 RH Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Housing Fairness Act 4 of 2020’’. 5 SEC. 2. TESTING FOR DISCRIMINATION. 6 (a) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITY UNDER FHIP.—Subsection 7 (a) of section 561 of the Housing and Community Develop- 8 ment Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a(a)) is amended— 9 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 10 inserting after ‘‘discriminatory housing practices’’ the 11 following: ‘‘or, in the case of grants or contracts for 12 activities under paragraph (3) with qualified private, 13 non-profit fair housing enforcement organizations 14 that have demonstrated expertise in managing and 15 implementing regional or national testing programs 16 to address systemic fair housing issues’’; 17 (2) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 18 end; 19 (3) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at 20 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 21 (4) by adding at the end the following: 22 ‘‘(3) programs of regional or national testing 23 and investigations to (i) detect and document dif- 24 ferences in the treatment of persons seeking to rent or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 149 RH purchase housing or obtain or refinance a home mort- 1 gage loan, and measure patterns of differential treat- 2 ment because of the status of a renter, home buyer, or 3 borrower as a member of the protected classes under 4 the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.), and 5 (ii) measure the prevalence, nature, and extent of dis- 6 criminatory practices covered under the Fair Housing 7 Act. 8 The results of any testing and investigations pursuant to 9 paragraph (3) may be used as the basis for the Secretary, 10 or any Federal agency authorized to bring such an enforce- 11 ment action, or any State or local government or agency, 12 public or private nonprofit organization or institution, or 13 other aggrieved parties as defined by title VIII of the Civil 14 Rights Act of 1968 or other substantially equivalent State 15 or local fair housing law, or other public or private entity 16 that the Secretary has entered into a contract or cooperative 17 agreement with under this section to commence, undertake, 18 or pursue any investigation or enforcement action to rem- 19 edy any discriminatory housing practice (as such term is 20 defined in section 802 of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 21 3602)) uncovered as a result of such testing and investiga- 22 tions. Testing conducted pursuant to paragraph (3) shall 23 not constitute a violation of any provision of criminal law 24 or the Truth in Lending Act (15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).’’. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 149 RH (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than the expiration of 1 the 180-day period beginning on the date of the enactment 2 of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop- 3 ment shall issue regulations that apply the minimum tester 4 training standards required under section 125.107 of title 5 24, Code of Federal Regulations, to organizations con- 6 ducting testing under section 561(a)(3) of the Housing and 7 Community Development Act of 1987, as added by the 8 amendment made by subsection (a)(4) of this section. Any 9 subsequent amendments, changes, and updates to such min- 10 imum standards shall apply to all activities under such sec- 11 tion 561. 12 SEC. 3. FAIR HOUSING INITIATIVES PROGRAM. 13 (a) AMENDMENTS TO PROGRAM.—Section 561 of the 14 Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 (42 15 U.S.C. 3616a) is amended— 16 (1) in subsection (b)— 17 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘quali- 18 fied’’ before ‘‘private nonprofit fair housing en- 19 forcement organizations,’’; and 20 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘quali- 21 fied’’ before ‘‘private nonprofit fair housing en- 22 forcement organizations,’’; 23 (2) in subsection (c), by adding at the end the 24 following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 149 RH ‘‘(3) PROGRAM-EARNED INCOME.—No restric- 1 tions on the use of program-earned income received by 2 qualified fair housing enforcement organizations shall 3 apply after the grant period for such organization 4 ends.’’; 5 (3) in subsection (d)— 6 (A) in paragraph (1)— 7 (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking 8 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 9 (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking 10 the period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 11 (iii) by adding after subparagraph (D) 12 the following: 13 ‘‘(E) websites and other media outlets.’’; 14 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘or other 15 public or private entities’’ and inserting ‘‘or 16 other public or private nonprofit entities’’; 17 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘or other 18 public or private entities’’ and inserting ‘‘or 19 other public or private nonprofit entities’’; and 20 (D) by adding at the end the following: 21 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding any other 22 provision of this section, a State or local agency cer- 23 tified by the Secretary under section 810(f) of the 24 Fair Housing Act may receive assistance under this 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 149 RH subsection only to carry out activities eligible for as- 1 sistance under this subsection in areas in which no 2 qualified fair housing enforcement organization is 3 available to carry out such activities. 4 ‘‘(5) ELIGIBILITY.—Notwithstanding any other 5 provision of this section, if an award of funding 6 under subsection (b) for multiple fiscal years has been 7 made to a qualified fair housing enforcement organi- 8 zation, such organization is, subject only to the avail- 9 ability of amounts provided in appropriation Acts, 10 eligible to receive funding under this subsection for 11 each fiscal year covered by such award under sub- 12 section (b).’’; 13 (4) in subsection (e)— 14 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘Banking, 15 Finance and Urban Affairs’’ and inserting ‘‘Fi- 16 nancial Services’’; and 17 (B) by adding at the end the following: 18 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY.—In providing assistance under 19 this section with respect to metropolitan statistical 20 areas for which there are multiple applications for 21 such assistance, the Secretary shall give priority to 22 applications submitted by qualified fair housing en- 23 forcement organizations that have experience in con- 24 ducting fair housing enforcement activities.’’; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 149 RH (5) by striking subsection (g) and inserting the 1 following: 2 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 4 appropriated to carry out this section— 5 ‘‘(A) $58,000,000 for each of fiscal years 6 2021 through 2025, of which— 7 ‘‘(i) $55,000,000 shall be available for 8 any activities under this section other than 9 programs under subsection (a)(3), of 10 which— 11 ‘‘(I) not less than $38,000,000 12 shall be for private enforcement initia- 13 tives authorized under subsection (b); 14 ‘‘(II) not less than $1,500,000 15 shall be for the fair housing organiza- 16 tions initiative under subsection (c); 17 ‘‘(III) not less than $10,000,000 18 shall be for the education and outreach 19 initiative under subsection (d), of 20 which— 21 ‘‘(aa) at least $8,000,000 22 shall be for local education and 23 outreach activities; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 149 RH ‘‘(bb) at least $2,000,000 1 shall be for national media activi- 2 ties; and 3 ‘‘(IV) any remaining amounts 4 shall be used for any program activi- 5 ties authorized under this section; and 6 ‘‘(ii) $3,000,000 shall be available only 7 for programs under subsection (a)(3); and 8 ‘‘(B) $70,000,000 for each of fiscal years 9 2026 through 2031, of which— 10 ‘‘(i) for each such fiscal year, 11 $65,000,000 shall be available for any ac- 12 tivities under this section other than pro- 13 grams under subsection (a)(3), of which— 14 ‘‘(I) not less than $44,000,000 15 shall be for private enforcement initia- 16 tives authorized under subsection (b); 17 ‘‘(II) not less than $1,500,000 18 shall be for the fair housing organiza- 19 tions initiative under subsection (c); 20 ‘‘(III) not less than $12,500,000 21 shall be for the education and outreach 22 initiative under subsection (d), of 23 which— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 149 RH ‘‘(aa) at least $10,000,000 1 shall be for local education and 2 outreach activities; and 3 ‘‘(bb) at least $2,500,000 4 shall be for national media activi- 5 ties; and 6 ‘‘(IV) any remaining amounts 7 shall be used for any program activi- 8 ties authorized under this section; and 9 ‘‘(ii) for each such fiscal year 10 $5,000,000 shall be available only for pro- 11 grams under subsection (a)(3). 12 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Any amount appropriated 13 under this section shall remain available until ex- 14 pended to carry out the provisions of this section. 15 ‘‘(3) AWARD OF FUNDING.—Within 90 days after 16 the date of the enactment of any Act making amounts 17 available to carry out this section, the Secretary shall 18 issue a Notice of Funding Availability with respect to 19 such amounts and, within 180 days after such date 20 of enactment, the Secretary shall award such 21 amounts.’’; 22 (6) in subsection (h)(1), in the matter following 23 subparagraph (C), by inserting ‘‘and meets the cri- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 149 RH teria described in subparagraphs (A) and (C)’’ before 1 the period at the end; and 2 (7) in subsection (j)— 3 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 4 by inserting ‘‘regarding such preceding fiscal 5 year,’’ after ‘‘comprehensive report’’; and 6 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and the 7 use of such funds during the preceding fiscal 8 year’’ and inserting ‘‘, the use of such funds dur- 9 ing the preceding fiscal year, and outcomes such 10 as the number of housing units made available 11 and accessible to protected classes under the Fair 12 Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.)’’. 13 (b) STUDY.—The Secretary of Housing and Urban De- 14 velopment shall conduct a study to determine the feasibility, 15 efficiency, and effectiveness of converting the Fair Housing 16 Initiatives Program under section 561 of the Housing and 17 Community Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a) 18 into a noncompetitive, entitlement program to provide gen- 19 eral operating funding to qualified fair housing organiza- 20 tions, the appropriate levels of funding for such a program 21 taking into consideration the number of such qualified 22 funding recipients, and what factors should be considered 23 in providing for an equitable distribution to qualified re- 24 cipients of funding. The Secretary shall submit a report to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 149 RH the Congress setting forth the results of the study under this 1 subsection not later than the expiration of the 12-month pe- 2 riod beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act, 3 which shall include any recommendations regarding such 4 conversion of the program. 5 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 6 It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of Hous- 7 ing and Urban Development should— 8 (1) fully comply with the requirements of section 9 561(d) of the Housing and Community Development 10 Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a(d)) to establish, design, 11 and maintain a national education and outreach pro- 12 gram to provide a centralized, coordinated effort for 13 the development and dissemination of— 14 (A) materials and information about the 15 fair housing rights of individuals who seek to 16 rent, purchase, sell, or facilitate the sale of a 17 home; and 18 (B) materials and information about the 19 fair housing responsibilities of industry profes- 20 sionals providing products and services covered 21 under the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et 22 seq.); 23 (2) expend for such education and outreach pro- 24 grams all amounts appropriated for such programs; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:23 Dec 17, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H149.RH H149 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •HR 149 RH (3) fully reinstate the regulations promulgated 1 on July 16, 2015 (80 Fed. Reg. 42271), regarding the 2 fair housing obligations of each recipient of Federal 3 housing and community development funds to affirm- 4 atively further fair housing, as that term i [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]