Sec. 101. Emergency rental assistance

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There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (referred to in this section as the Secretary ) $100,000,000,000 for an additional amount for grants under the Emergency Solutions Grants program under subtitle B of title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11371 et seq.), to remain available until expended (subject to subsections

(d)and

(n)of this section), to be used for providing short- or medium-term assistance with rent and rent-related costs (including tenant-paid utility costs, utility- and rent-arrears, fees charged for those arrears, and security and utility deposits) in accordance with paragraphs

(4)and

(5)of section 415(a) of such Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11374(a) ) and this section. Notwithstanding section 401(1) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11360(1) ), for purposes of assistance made available with amounts made available pursuant to subsection (a), the term at risk of homelessness means, with respect to an individual or family, that the individual or family— has an income below 80 percent of the median income for the area as determined by the Secretary; and has an inability to attain or maintain housing stability or has insufficient resources to pay for rent or utilities due to financial hardships. For purposes of assistance made available with amounts made available pursuant to subsection (a)— each recipient of such amounts shall use— not less than 40 percent of the amounts received only for providing assistance for individuals or families experiencing homelessness, or for persons or families at risk of homelessness who have incomes not exceeding 30 percent of the median income for the area as determined by the Secretary; not less than 70 percent of the amounts received only for providing assistance for individuals or families experiencing homelessness, or for persons or families at risk of homelessness who have incomes not exceeding 50 percent of the median income for the area as determined by the Secretary; and the remainder of the amounts received only for providing assistance to individuals or families experiencing homelessness, or for persons or families at risk of homelessness who have incomes not exceeding 80 percent of the median income for the area as determined by the Secretary, but such recipient may establish a higher percentage limit for purposes of subsection (b)(1), which shall not in any case exceed 120 percent of the area median income, if the recipient states that it will serve such population in its plan; and in determining the income of a household for homelessness prevention assistance— the calculation of income performed at the time of application for such assistance, including arrearages, shall consider only income that the household is currently receiving at such time and any income recently terminated shall not be included; any calculation of income performed with respect to households receiving ongoing assistance (such as medium-term rental assistance) 3 months after initial receipt of assistance shall consider only the income that the household is receiving at the time of such review; and the calculation of income performed with respect to households receiving assistance for arrearages shall consider only the income that the household was receiving at the time such arrearages were incurred. Each recipient of amounts made available pursuant to subsection

(a)shall— expend not less than 60 percent of such grant amounts within 2 years of the date that such funds became available to the recipient for obligation; and expend 100 percent of such grant amounts within 3 years of such date. The Secretary may recapture any amounts not expended in compliance with paragraph (1)(A) and reallocate such amounts to recipients in compliance with the formula referred to in subsection (h)(1)(A). Section 576.106(d) of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, shall not apply with respect to homelessness prevention assistance made available with amounts made available under subsection (a). In providing homelessness prevention assistance with amounts made available under subsection (a), the maximum amount of rental assistance that may be provided shall be the greater of— 120 percent of the higher of— the Fair Market Rent established by the Secretary for the metropolitan area or county; or the applicable Small Area Fair Market Rent established by the Secretary; or such higher amount as the Secretary shall determine is needed to cover market rents in the area. A recipient shall not be prohibited from providing assistance authorized under subsection

(a)with respect to subleases that are valid under State law. A recipient of amounts made available pursuant to subsection

(a)may expend up to 25 percent of its allocation for activities under section 415(a)(5) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11374(a)(5) ), except that notwithstanding such section, activities authorized under this subsection may be provided only for individuals or families who have incomes not exceeding 50 percent of the area median income and meet the criteria in subsection (b)(2) of this section or section 103 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11302 ). This subsection shall not apply to rent-related costs that are specifically authorized under subsection

(a)of this section. In allocating amounts made available pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall— for any purpose authorized in this section— allocate 2 percent of such amount for Indian tribes and tribally designated housing entities (as such terms are defined in section 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 ( 25 U.S.C. 4103 )) under the formula established pursuant to section 302 of such Act ( 25 U.S.C. 4152 ), except that 0.3 percent of the amount allocated under this clause shall be allocated for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands; and allocate 0.3 percent of such amount for the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands; not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, obligate and disburse the amounts allocated pursuant to clause

(i)in accordance with such allocations and provide such recipient with any necessary guidance for use of the funds; and not later than 7 days after the date of enactment of this Act and after setting aside amounts under subparagraph (A), allocate 50 percent of any such remaining amounts under the formula specified in subsections (a), (b), and

(e)of section 414 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11373 ) for, and notify, each State, metropolitan city, and urban county that is to receive a direct grant of such amounts; and not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, obligate and disburse the amounts allocated pursuant to clause

(i)in accordance with such allocations and provide such recipient with any necessary guidance for use of the funds; and not later than 45 days after the date of enactment of this Act, allocate any remaining amounts for eligible recipients according to a formula to be developed by the Secretary that takes into consideration the formula referred to in subparagraph

(A)and the need for emergency rental assistance under this section, including the severe housing cost burden among extremely low- and very low-income renters and disruptions in housing and economic conditions, including unemployment; and not later than 30 days after the date of the allocation of such amounts pursuant to clause (i), obligate and disburse such amounts in accordance with such allocations. Notwithstanding subsection

(a)of section 414 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11373(a) ) and section 576.202(a) of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, a State recipient of an allocation under this section may elect to use up to 100 percent of its allocation to carry out activities eligible under this section directly. Any State recipient making an election described in subparagraph

(A)shall serve households throughout the entire State, including households in rural communities and small towns. If a recipient other than a State elects not to receive funds under this section, such funds shall be allocated to the State recipient in which the recipient is located. A recipient of a grant under this section may distribute funds through partnerships, subgrants, or contracts with an entity, such as a public housing agency (as such term is defined in section 3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 ( 42 U.S.C. 1437a(b) )), that is capable of carrying activities under this section. The Secretary shall revise section 576.3 of tile 24, Code of Federal Regulations, to change the set aside for allocation to the territories to exactly 0.3 percent. Subsection

(a)of section 416 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 11375(a) ) shall not apply to any amounts made available pursuant to subsection

(a)of this section. Amounts made available pursuant to subsection

(a)may be used by a recipient to reimburse expenditures incurred for eligible activities under this section after March 27, 2020. None of the funds made available pursuant to this section may be used to require any individual receiving assistance under the program under this section to receive treatment or perform any other prerequisite activities as a condition for receiving shelter, housing, or other services. In administering the amounts made available pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary may waive, or specify alternative requirements for, any provision of any statute or regulation that the Secretary administers in connection with the obligation by the Secretary or the use by the recipient of such amounts (except for requirements related to fair housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, prohibition on prerequisites, minimum data reporting, and the environment), if the Secretary finds that good cause exists for the waiver or alternative requirement and such waiver or alternative requirement is necessary to expedite the use of funds made available pursuant to this section, to respond to public health orders or conditions related to the COVID-19 emergency, or to ensure that eligible individuals can attain or maintain housing stability. The Secretary shall notify the public through the Federal Register or other appropriate means of any waiver or alternative requirement under this paragraph, and that such public notice shall be provided, at a minimum, on the internet at the appropriate Government website or through other electronic media, as determined by the Secretary. Eligibility for rental assistance or housing relocation and stabilization services shall not be restricted based upon the prior receipt of assistance under the program during the preceding three years. A recipient under this section shall not be required to hold in-person public hearings in connection with its citizen participation plan, but shall provide citizens with notice, including publication of its plan for carrying out this section on the internet, and a reasonable opportunity to comment of not less than 5 days. After the period beginning on the date of enactment of this Act and ending on the date of the termination by the Federal Emergency Management Agency of the emergency declared on March 13, 2020, by the President under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 4121 et seq.) relating to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, and after the period described in subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall direct recipients under this section to resume pre-crisis public hearing requirements. During the period that national or local health authorities recommend social distancing and limiting public gatherings for public health reasons, a recipient may fulfill applicable public hearing requirements for all grants from funds made available pursuant to this section by carrying out virtual public hearings. Any virtual hearings held under clause

(i)by a recipient under this section shall provide reasonable notification and access for citizens in accordance with the recipient’s certifications, timely responses from local officials to all citizen questions and issues, and public access to all questions and responses. In addition to any other citizen participation and consultation requirements, in developing and implementing a plan to carry out this section, each recipient of funds made available pursuant to this section shall consult with the applicable Continuum or Continuums of Care for the area served by the recipient and organizations representing underserved communities and populations and organizations with expertise in affordable housing, fair housing, and services for people with disabilities. Of any amounts made available pursuant to subsection (a)— not more than the lesser of 0.5 percent, or $15,000,000, may be used by the Secretary for staffing, training, technical assistance, technology, monitoring, research, and evaluation activities necessary to carry out the program carried out under this section, and such amounts shall remain available until September 30, 2024; and not more than $2,000,000 shall be available to the Office of the Inspector General for audits and investigations of the program authorized under this section. Notwithstanding section 576.108 of title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations, with respect to amounts made available pursuant to this section, a recipient may use up to 10 percent of the recipient’s grant for payment of administrative costs related to the planning and execution of activities.

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