Emergency Family Stabilization Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 7950 To provide emergency relief to youth, children, and families experiencing homelessness, in light of the health and economic consequences of COVID–19. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AUGUST 7, 2020 Mr. YARMUTH (for himself, Mr. BACON, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, and Mr. YOUNG) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com- mittee on Financial Services A BILL To provide emergency relief to youth, children, and families experiencing homelessness, in light of the health and economic consequences of COVID–19. 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 ‘‘Emergency Family 4 Stabilization Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 6 In this Act: 7 (1) CURRENT ACF GRANT OR SUBGRANT RE- 8 CIPIENT.—The term ‘‘current ACF grant or 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 7950 IH subgrant recipient’’ means an Indian Tribe, Tribal 1 organization, local educational agency, or a local 2 public, private, or Indian nonprofit agency or organi- 3 zation (including culturally specific community-based 4 and faith-based organizations) that, as of the date of 5 application for a grant under section 3, is also re- 6 ceiving another grant or subgrant administered by 7 the Administration for Children and Families. 8 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 9 the Director of the Office of Community Services of 10 the Department of Health and Human Services. 11 (3) DIRECT SERVICES.— 12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 13 subparagraph (B), the term ‘‘direct services’’ 14 does not include providing referrals or oper- 15 ating a coordinated entry system or homeless 16 management information system, by itself. 17 (B) INDIAN TRIBES OR TRIBAL ORGANIZA- 18 TIONS.—An Indian Tribe or Tribal organization 19 that provides referrals or assists other service 20 providers with direct services shall be consid- 21 ered as providing direct services for purposes of 22 this Act. 23 (4) FAMILY STABILIZATION AGENCY.—The 24 term ‘‘family stabilization agency’’ means— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 7950 IH (A) a current ACF grant or subgrant re- 1 cipient; 2 (B) an Indian Tribe or Tribal organiza- 3 tion; 4 (C) an urban Indian organization; 5 (D) a local educational agency; or 6 (E) a local public, private, or Indian non- 7 profit agency or organization (including com- 8 munity-based, culturally specific, and faith- 9 based organizations), with expertise and dem- 10 onstrated experience providing direct services to 11 1 or more of the following populations: 12 (i) Children experiencing homeless- 13 ness, including children under age 6. 14 (ii) Unaccompanied homeless youth 15 under the age of 18. 16 (iii) Unaccompanied homeless youth 17 between the ages of 18 and 25. 18 (iv) Pregnant women, and pregnant or 19 parenting youth, experiencing homeless- 20 ness. 21 (v) Families experiencing homeless- 22 ness. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 7950 IH (vi) Survivors of dating violence, do- 1 mestic violence, sexual assault, family vio- 2 lence, or trafficking. 3 (5) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’ 4 means an Indian tribe, as defined in section 4 of the 5 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance 6 Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 7 (6) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term 8 ‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given 9 the term in section 8101 of the Elementary and Sec- 10 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 11 (7) RURAL.—The term ‘‘rural’’ means a unit of 12 local government with a population of less than 13 50,000. 14 (8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 15 the Secretary of Health and Human Services. 16 (9) TRIBAL ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘Tribal 17 organization’’ means a tribal organization, as de- 18 fined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 19 and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304). 20 (10) URBAN INDIAN ORGANIZATION.—The term 21 ‘‘urban Indian organization’’ has the meaning given 22 the term ‘‘Urban Indian organization’’ in section 4 23 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 24 U.S.C. 1603). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 7950 IH (11) YOUTH, CHILD, OR FAMILY EXPERIENCING 1 HOMELESSNESS.—The term ‘‘youth, child, or family 2 experiencing homelessness’’ means— 3 (A) a homeless child or youth, as defined 4 in section 725(2) of the McKinney-Vento 5 Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 6 11434a(2)), who is under the age of 25; 7 (B) an unaccompanied youth, as defined in 8 section 725(6) of the McKinney-Vento Home- 9 less Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11434a(6)), who 10 is under the age of 25; or 11 (C) a household of not less than 2 people 12 that includes not less than 1 person under age 13 22 who is a homeless child or youth, as defined 14 in section 725(2) of the McKinney-Vento 15 Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 16 11434a(2)). 17 (12) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 18 the several States, the District of Columbia, the Vir- 19 gin Islands of the United States, the Commonwealth 20 of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, or the 21 Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. 22 SEC. 3. GRANTS TO FAMILY STABILIZATION AGENCIES. 23 (a) GRANT PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 7950 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made avail- 1 able under section 4 and not reserved under sub- 2 section (b), the Secretary, acting through the Direc- 3 tor, shall, on a competitive basis in accordance with 4 subsection (d), award grants to family stabilization 5 agencies (including current ACF grant or subgrant 6 recipients and entities that have not previously re- 7 ceived grants from the Administration for Children 8 and Families) to enable the family stabilization 9 agencies to carry out the activities described in sub- 10 section (e). 11 (2) DISTRIBUTION TIMING.— 12 (A) CURRENT ACF GRANT OR SUBGRANT 13 RECIPIENTS.—The Secretary shall award grants 14 under this section, in accordance with sub- 15 section (d), to family stabilization agencies that 16 are current ACF grant or subgrant recipients 17 by not later than the date that is 45 days after 18 the date of enactment of this Act. 19 (B) ADDITIONAL GRANTEES.—The Sec- 20 retary shall award grants under this section, in 21 accordance with subsection (d), to family sta- 22 bilization agencies that are not current ACF 23 grant or subgrant recipients by not later than 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 7950 IH the date that is 130 days after the date of en- 1 actment of this Act. 2 (3) DISSEMINATION OF APPLICATIONS.—The 3 Secretary shall— 4 (A) ensure the application for grants under 5 this Act is broadly disseminated, including 6 through public posting on the website of the 7 Administration for Children and Families and 8 sharing with current ACF grant or subgrant re- 9 cipients; and 10 (B) make special dissemination efforts to 11 rural areas and among Indian Tribes and Trib- 12 al organizations. 13 (b) RESERVATION.—The Secretary shall reserve not 14 less than 1 percent and not more than 1.5 percent of the 15 amount appropriated under this Act to be used for admin- 16 istration, oversight, and technical assistance activities 17 through the Administration for Children and Families. 18 (c) APPLICATION.—A family stabilization agency that 19 desires to receive a grant under this Act shall submit an 20 application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, 21 and containing or accompanied by such information as the 22 Secretary may reasonably require. Such application shall 23 include the following: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 7950 IH (1) A description of the housing, education, 1 health, mental and behavioral health, employment, 2 and other needs of youth, children, and families ex- 3 periencing homelessness, in the area served by such 4 agency, specifically including youth, children, and 5 families who are sharing the housing of other per- 6 sons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, or 7 a similar reason. 8 (2) Available data on the extent of youth, child, 9 and family homelessness in the area served by such 10 agency, including data available from local edu- 11 cational agencies and data on child poverty in the 12 area. 13 (3) A description of barriers youth, children, 14 and families experiencing homelessness face in ac- 15 cessing services, including barriers related to dating 16 violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, family vi- 17 olence, poverty, lack of employment, lack of trans- 18 portation, lack of telephone and internet 19 connectivity, educational needs, and language acces- 20 sibility. 21 (4) A description of such agency’s direct service 22 expertise and experience with youth, child, or family 23 homelessness, specifically including youth, children, 24 and families who are sharing the housing of other 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 7950 IH persons due to loss of housing, economic hardship, 1 or a similar reason. 2 (5) A description of the area served by such 3 agency, including whether the service area is urban, 4 suburban, rural, or Tribal. If the applicant claims to 5 cover a Tribal service area but is not an Indian 6 Tribe or Tribal organization, the applicant shall pro- 7 vide evidence of having consulted with the Indian 8 Tribe or Tribal organization whose service area the 9 applicant claims to cover and provide proof that the 10 Indian Tribe or Tribal organization supports the ap- 11 plicant’s application. 12 (6) A description of such agency’s existing part- 13 nerships with other agencies or organizations with 14 experience serving youth, children, and families ex- 15 periencing homelessness. 16 (7) A description of how funds received under 17 the grant will be used to provide emergency relief to 18 youth, children, and families experiencing homeless- 19 ness, specifically including— 20 (A) youth, children, and families who are 21 sharing the housing of other persons due to loss 22 of housing, economic hardship, or a similar rea- 23 son; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 7950 IH (B) youth, children, and families experi- 1 encing homelessness who are not receiving serv- 2 ices through the Continuum of Care program 3 under subpart C of title IV of the McKinney- 4 Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5 11381 et seq.) as of the date of the application. 6 (d) AWARD BASIS.— 7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 8 grants under this section on the basis of— 9 (A) the need in the area served by each ap- 10 plicant; 11 (B) the quality of each application; and 12 (C) the distribution and priority require- 13 ments under paragraphs (4) and (5). 14 (2) NEED.—In determining need under para- 15 graph (1)(A), the Secretary shall consider— 16 (A) the extent of children, youth, and fam- 17 ilies experiencing homelessness in the area 18 served by the family stabilization agency, in- 19 cluding data available from local educational 20 agencies and data on child poverty; 21 (B) the extent to which the proposed uses 22 of funds will provide emergency relief to meet 23 unmet needs of youth, children, and families ex- 24 periencing homelessness, specifically including 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 7950 IH youth, children, and families who are sharing 1 the housing of other persons due to loss of 2 housing, economic hardship, or a similar rea- 3 son; 4 (C) the extent to which the proposed uses 5 of funds will provide emergency relief to youth, 6 children, and families experiencing homeless- 7 ness who are not currently receiving services 8 through the Continuum of Care program under 9 subpart C of title IV of the McKinney-Vento 10 Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11381 et 11 seq.); and 12 (D) the extent to which the application ad- 13 dresses the particular needs of pregnant 14 women, pregnant and parenting youth, Indian 15 women, children under age 6, children with dis- 16 abilities, families experiencing domestic vio- 17 lence, survivors of sexual assault or human traf- 18 ficking, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, 19 queer, questioning, intersex, or asexual 20 (LGBTQIA) individuals, or racial and ethnic 21 minority populations. 22 (3) QUALITY.—In determining quality under 23 paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall consider, for 24 both current ACF grant or subgrant recipients and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:42 Aug 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7950.IH H7950 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 7950 IH not current ACF grant or subgrant recipients, the 1 following: 2 (A) The family stabilization agency’s needs 3 assessment under subsection (c)(1) and the 4 likelihood that the program presented in the ap- 5 plication will meet such needs. 6 (B) The types, intensity, and coordination 7 of the emergency relief to be provided under the 8 program to youth, children, and families experi- 9 encing homelessness. 10 (C) The extent of the family stabilization 11 agency’s demonstrated expertise and experience 12 providing direct services to youth, children, and 13 families experiencing homelessness who are 14 sharing the housing of other persons due to loss 15 of housing, economic hardship, or a similar rea- 16 son. 17 (D) The robustness of such agency’s plan 18 to reach youth, children, and families experi- 19 encing homelessness who are sharing the hous- 20 ing of other persons due to loss of housing, eco- 21 nomic hardship, or a similar reason, including 22 those who have lost a caregiver or family mem- 23 ber to COVID-19. 24 VerDat [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]