I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2974 To establish a Federal Interagency Council on Housing Affordability and Preservation, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 27, 2023 Mr. SCHIFF (for himself, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CAR- TER of Louisiana, Mr. EVANS, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. NORTON, and Ms. ROSS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services A BILL To establish a Federal Interagency Council on Housing Affordability and Preservation, and for other purposes. 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 ‘‘Interagency Council 4 on Affordable Housing Act of 2023’’. 5 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT. 6 There is established in the executive branch an inde- 7 pendent establishment to be known as the United States 8 Interagency Council on Housing Affordability and Preser- 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2974 IH vation, whose mission shall be to develop Federal policy 1 designed to preserve and increase affordable housing sup- 2 ply and increase fairness in the rental market and further 3 the principles of fair housing and create a national part- 4 nership at every level of government and with the private 5 sector to carry out such purposes. 6 SEC. 3. MEMBERSHIP. 7 (a) MEMBERS.—The Council shall be composed of 8 the heads of the following agencies or offices, or the des- 9 ignee of such agency or office head: 10 (1) Department of Housing and Urban Devel- 11 opment. 12 (2) Department of Justice. 13 (3) Department of Labor. 14 (4) Department of the Treasury. 15 (5) Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. 16 (6) Department of Health and Human Services. 17 (7) Department of Education. 18 (8) Department of Veterans Affairs. 19 (9) Department of Agriculture. 20 (10) Department of Commerce. 21 (11) Department of Defense. 22 (12) Department of Energy. 23 (13) Department of Homeland Security. 24 (14) Department of Interior. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:47 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2974 IH (15) Department of Transportation. 1 (16) Corporation for National and Community 2 Service. 3 (17) General Services Administration. 4 (18) Office of Management and Budget. 5 (19) Social Security Administration. 6 (20) United States Postal Service. 7 (21) White House Office on Faith-Based and 8 Neighborhood Partnerships. 9 (b) CHAIRPERSON.—The Council shall elect a Chair- 10 person and a Vice Chairperson from among its members. 11 The positions of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson shall 12 rotate among its members on an annual basis. 13 (c) MEETINGS.—The Council shall meet at the call 14 of its Chairperson or a majority of its members, but not 15 less often than four times each year, and the rotation of 16 the positions of Chairperson and Vice Chairperson re- 17 quired under subsection (b) shall occur at the first meet- 18 ing of each year. 19 (d) PROHIBITION OF ADDITIONAL PAY.—Members of 20 the Council shall receive no additional pay, allowances, or 21 benefits by reason of their service on the Council. 22 (e) ADMINISTRATION.—The Executive Director of 23 the Council shall report to the Chairman of the Council. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:47 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2974 IH SEC. 4. FUNCTIONS. 1 (a) DUTIES.—The Council shall— 2 (1) not later than 12 months after the date of 3 the enactment of this Act, develop, make available 4 for public comment, and submit to the President 5 and to the Congress a National Strategic Plan to 6 Preserve Affordable Housing, and shall update such 7 plan annually; 8 (2) review all Federal activities and programs 9 relating to public housing, affordable housing pro- 10 duction, affordable housing programs, and housing 11 voucher programs; 12 (3) monitor, evaluate, and recommend improve- 13 ments in programs and activities to assist affordable 14 housing production conducted by Federal agencies, 15 State and local governments, and private voluntary 16 organizations; 17 (4) provide professional and technical assistance 18 (by not less than 5, but in no case more than 10, 19 regional coordinators employed by the Council, each 20 having responsibility for interaction and coordination 21 of the activities of the Council within the 10 stand- 22 ard Federal regions) to States, local governments, 23 and other public and private nonprofit organizations, 24 in order to enable such governments and organiza- 25 tions to— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2974 IH (A) interpret regulations and assist in the 1 application process for Federal assistance, in- 2 cluding grants; 3 (B) provide assistance on the ways in 4 which Federal programs may best be coordi- 5 nated to complement the objectives of this Act; 6 (C) develop recommendations and program 7 ideas based on regional specific issues in serv- 8 ing homeless and low-income populations; and 9 (D) establish a schedule for biennial re- 10 gional workshops to be held by the Council in 11 each of the 10 standard Federal regions to fur- 12 ther carry out and provide the assistance de- 13 scribed in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) and 14 other appropriate assistance as necessary; 15 (5) encourage the creation of State Interagency 16 Councils on Affordable Housing and the formulation 17 of jurisdictional 10-year plans to end homelessness 18 at State, city, and county levels; 19 (6) annually obtain from Federal agencies their 20 identification of consumer-oriented entitlement and 21 other resources for which individuals may be eligible 22 and the agencies’ identification of improvements to 23 ensure access; develop mechanisms to ensure access 24 by persons and families to all Federal, State, and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2974 IH local programs for which the persons are eligible, 1 and to verify collaboration among entities within a 2 community that receive Federal funding under pro- 3 grams targeted for persons experiencing homeless- 4 ness, and other affordable housing programs for 5 which persons and families are eligible; 6 (7) conduct research and evaluation related to 7 its functions as defined in this section; 8 (8) develop joint Federal agency and other ini- 9 tiatives to fulfill the goals of the agency; 10 (9) collect and disseminate information relating 11 to low-income individuals; 12 (10) prepare the annual reports required in 13 subsection (c)(2); 14 (11) prepare and distribute to States (including 15 State contact persons described in section 7(a)), 16 local governments, and other public and private non- 17 profit organizations, a bimonthly bulletin that de- 18 scribes the Federal resources available to them to 19 assist with affordable housing; and 20 (12) not later than 6 months after completion 21 of the report, convene a meeting of representatives 22 of all Federal agencies and committees of the House 23 of Representatives and the Senate having jurisdic- 24 tion over any Federal program to assist affordable 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2974 IH housing programs or production, local and State 1 governments, academic researchers who specialize in 2 homelessness, nonprofit housing and service pro- 3 viders that receive funding under any Federal pro- 4 gram to assist homeless individuals or families, orga- 5 nizations advocating on behalf of such nonprofit pro- 6 viders and persons receiving housing or services 7 under any such Federal affordable housing program, 8 and persons receiving housing or services under any 9 such Federal program, at which meeting such rep- 10 resentatives shall discuss all issues relevant to the 11 council’s jurisdiction. 12 (b) AUTHORITY.—In carrying out subsection (a), the 13 Council may— 14 (1) arrange national, regional, State, and local 15 conferences for the purpose of developing and co- 16 ordinating effective programs and activities to assist 17 in carrying out the mission described in section 2 18 and pay for expenses of attendance at meetings 19 which are concerned with the functions or activities 20 for which the appropriation is made; and 21 (2) publish a newsletter concerning Federal, 22 State, and local programs that are effective in car- 23 rying out such mission. 24 (c) REPORTS.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2974 IH (1) BY AGENCIES.—Within 90 days after the 1 date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 2 thereafter, the head of each Federal agency that is 3 a member of the Council shall prepare and transmit 4 to the Congress and the Council a report that de- 5 scribes— 6 (A) each affordable housing program ad- 7 ministered by such agency and the number of 8 individuals served by such program; 9 (B) impediments, including any statutory 10 and regulatory restrictions, to the use by indi- 11 viduals of each such program and to obtaining 12 services or benefits under each such program; 13 and 14 (C) efforts made by such agency to in- 15 crease the opportunities for individuals to ob- 16 tain permanent housing, supportive services, 17 and access to legal services in regards to hous- 18 ing matters. 19 (2) BY COUNCIL.—The Council shall prepare 20 and transmit to the President and the Congress an 21 annual report that— 22 (A) assesses the nature and extent of the 23 problems relating to affordable housing and the 24 needs of low-income individuals; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2974 IH (B) provides a comprehensive and detailed 1 description of the activities and accomplish- 2 ments of the Federal Government in resolving 3 the problems and meeting the needs assessed 4 pursuant to subparagraph (A); 5 (C) describes the accomplishments and ac- 6 tivities of the Council, in working with Federal, 7 State, and local agencies and public and private 8 organizations in order to preserve and expand 9 affordable housing; 10 (D) assesses the level of Federal assistance 11 necessary to adequately resolve the problems 12 and meet the needs assessed pursuant to sub- 13 paragraph (A); and 14 (E) specifies any recommendations of the 15 Council for appropriate and necessary legisla- 16 tive and administrative actions to resolve such 17 problems and meet such needs. 18 (d) NOTIFICATION OF OTHER FEDERAL AGEN- 19 CIES.—If, in monitoring and evaluating programs and ac- 20 tivities to assist in carrying out the mission described in 21 section 2 conducted by other Federal agencies, the Council 22 determines that any significant problem, abuse, or defi- 23 ciency exists in the administration of the program or activ- 24 ity of any Federal agency, the Council shall submit a no- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2974 IH tice of the determination of the Council to the Inspector 1 General of the Federal agency (or the head of the Federal 2 agency, in the case of a Federal agency that has no In- 3 spector General). 4 (e) PROGRAM TIMETABLES.— Not later than 90 days 5 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the head of 6 each Federal agency or office that is a member of the 7 Council and responsible for administering a program to 8 assist in carrying out the mission described in section 2 9 shall provide to the Council a timetable regarding program 10 funding availability and application deadlines. The Council 11 shall furnish such information to each State (including the 12 State contact person described in section 7(a)). 13 SEC. 5. DIRECTOR AND STAFF. 14 (a) DIRECTOR.—The Council shall appoint an Execu- 15 tive Director, who shall be compensated at a rate not to 16 exceed the rate of basic pay payable for level V of the Ex- 17 ecutive Schedule under section 5316 of title 5, United 18 States Code. The Council shall appoint an Executive Di- 19 rector at the first meeting of the Council held under sec- 20 tion 3(c). 21 (b) ADDITIONAL PERSONNEL.—With the approval of 22 the Council, the Executive Director of the Council may 23 appoint and fix the compensation of such additional per- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2974 IH sonnel as the Executive Director considers necessary to 1 carry out the duties of the Council. 2 (c) DETAILS FROM OTHER AGENCIES.—Upon re- 3 quest of the Council, the head of any Federal agency may 4 detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the personnel of 5 such agency to the Council to assist the Council in car- 6 rying out its duties under this Act. 7 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT.—The Secretary of 8 Housing and Urban Development shall provide the Coun- 9 cil with such administrative and support services as are 10 necessary to ensure that the Council carries out its func- 11 tions under this Act in an efficient and expeditious man- 12 ner. 13 (e) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—With the ap- 14 proval of the Council, the Executive Director of the Coun- 15 cil may procure temporary and intermittent services under 16 section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code. 17 SEC. 6. POWERS. 18 (a) MEETINGS.—For the purpose of carrying out this 19 Act, the Council may hold such meetings, and sit and act 20 at such times and places, as the Council considers appro- 21 priate. 22 (b) DELEGATION.—Any member or employee of the 23 Council may, if authorized by the Council, take any action 24 that the Council is authorized to take in this Act. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:46 May 09, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2974.IH H2974 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2974 IH (c) INFORMATION.—The Council may secure directly 1 from any Federal agency such information as may be nec- 2 essary to enable the Council to carry out this Act. Upon 3 request of the Chairperson of the Council, the head of such 4 agency sha [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]