H.R. 3700 — what changed

“(A) Initial inspection

“(i) In general—For each dwelling unit for which a housing assistance payment contract is established under this subsection, the public housing agency (or other entity pursuant to paragraph (11)) shall inspect the unit before any assistance payment is made to determine whether the dwelling unit meets the housing quality standards under subparagraph (B), except as provided in clause (ii) or (iii) of this subparagraph.

“(ii) Correction of non-life-threatening conditions—In the case of any dwelling unit that is determined, pursuant to an inspection under clause (i), not to meet the housing quality standards under subparagraph (B), assistance payments may be made for the unit notwithstanding subparagraph (C) if failure to meet such standards is a result only of non-life-threatening conditions, as such conditions are established by the Secretary. A public housing agency making assistance payments pursuant to this clause for a dwelling unit shall, 30 days after the beginning of the period for which such payments are made, withhold any assistance payments for the unit if any deficiency resulting in noncompliance with the housing quality standards has not been corrected by such time. The public housing agency shall recommence assistance payments when such deficiency has been corrected, and may use any payments withheld to make assistance payments relating to the period during which payments were withheld.

changed “(iii) Use of alternative inspection method for interim period—In the case of any property that within the previous 24 months has met the requirements of an inspection that qualifies as an alternative inspection method pursuant to subparagraph (E), a public housing agency may authorize occupancy before the inspection under clause (i) has been completed, and may make assistance payments retroactive to the beginning of the lease term after the unit has been determined pursuant to an inspection under clause (i) to meet the housing quality standards under subparagraph (B).”(B). This clause may not be construed to exempt any dwelling unit from compliance with the requirements of subparagraph (D).”

“(G) Enforcement of housing quality standards

“(i) Determination of noncompliance—A dwelling unit that is covered by a housing assistance payments contract under this subsection shall be considered, for purposes of subparagraphs (D) and (F), to be in noncompliance with the housing quality standards under subparagraph (B) if—

“(I) the public housing agency or an inspector authorized by the State or unit of local government determines upon inspection of the unit that the unit fails to comply with such standards;

“(II) the agency or inspector notifies the owner of the unit in writing of such failure to comply; and

“(III) the failure to comply is not corrected—

“(aa) in the case of any such failure that is a result of life-threatening conditions, within 24 hours after such notice has been provided; and

“(bb) in the case of any such failure that is a result of non-life-threatening conditions, within 30 days after such notice has been provided or such other reasonable longer period as the public housing agency may establish.

“(ii) Withholding of assistance amounts during correction—The public housing agency may withhold assistance amounts under this subsection with respect to a dwelling unit for which a notice pursuant to clause (i)(II), of failure to comply with housing quality standards under subparagraph (B) as determined pursuant to an inspection conducted under subparagraph (D) or (F), has been provided. If the unit is brought into compliance with such housing quality standards during the periods referred to in clause (i)(III), the public housing agency shall recommence assistance payments and may use any amounts withheld during the correction period to make assistance payments relating to the period during which payments were withheld.

“(iii) Abatement of assistance amounts—The public housing agency shall abate all of the assistance amounts under this subsection with respect to a dwelling unit that is determined, pursuant to clause (i) of this subparagraph, to be in noncompliance with housing quality standards under subparagraph (B). Upon completion of repairs by the public housing agency or the owner sufficient so that the dwelling unit complies with such housing quality standards, the agency shall recommence payments under the housing assistance payments contract to the owner of the dwelling unit.

“(iv) Notification—If a public housing agency providing assistance under this subsection abates rental assistance payments pursuant to clause (iii) with respect to a dwelling unit, the agency shall, upon commencement of such abatement—

“(I) notify the tenant and the owner of the dwelling unit that—

“(aa) such abatement has commenced; and

“(bb) if the dwelling unit is not brought into compliance with housing quality standards within 60 days after the effective date of the determination of noncompliance under clause (i) or such reasonable longer period as the agency may establish, the tenant will have to move; and

“(II) issue the tenant the necessary forms to allow the tenant to move to another dwelling unit and transfer the rental assistance to that unit.

“(v) Protection of tenants—An owner of a dwelling unit may not terminate the tenancy of any tenant because of the withholding or abatement of assistance pursuant to this subparagraph. During the period that assistance is abated pursuant to this subparagraph, the tenant may terminate the tenancy by notifying the owner.

“(vi) Termination of lease or assistance payments contract—If assistance amounts under this section for a dwelling unit are abated pursuant to clause (iii) and the owner does not correct the noncompliance within 60 days after the effective date of the determination of noncompliance under clause (i), or such other reasonable longer period as the public housing agency may establish, the agency shall terminate the housing assistance payments contract for the dwelling unit.

“(vii) Relocation

“(I) Lease of new unit—The agency shall provide the family residing in such a dwelling unit a period of 90 days or such longer period as the public housing agency determines is reasonably necessary to lease a new unit, beginning upon termination of the contract, to lease a new residence with tenant-based rental assistance under this section.

“(II) Availability of public housing units—If the family is unable to lease such a new residence during such period, the public housing agency shall, at the option of the family, provide such family a preference for occupancy in a dwelling unit of public housing that is owned or operated by the agency that first becomes available for occupancy after the expiration of such period.

“(III) Assistance in finding unit—The public housing agency may provide assistance to the family in finding a new residence, including use of up to two months of any assistance amounts withheld or abated pursuant to clause (ii) or (iii), respectively, for costs directly associated with relocation of the family to a new residence, which shall include security deposits as necessary and may include reimbursements for reasonable moving expenses incurred by the household, as established by the Secretary. The agency may require that a family receiving assistance for a security deposit shall remit, to the extent of such assistance, the amount of any security deposit refunds made by the owner of the dwelling unit for which the lease was terminated.

“(viii) Tenant-caused damages—If a public housing agency determines that any damage to a dwelling unit that results in a failure of the dwelling unit to comply with housing quality standards under subparagraph (B), other than any damage resulting from ordinary use, was caused by the tenant, any member of the tenant’s household, or any guest or other person under the tenant’s control, the agency may waive the applicability of this subparagraph, except that this clause shall not exonerate a tenant from any liability otherwise existing under applicable law for damages to the premises caused by such tenant.

“(ix) Applicability—This subparagraph shall apply to any dwelling unit for which a housing assistance payments contract is entered into or renewed after the date of the effectiveness of the regulations implementing this subparagraph.”

“(6) Reviews of family income

“(A) Frequency—Reviews of family income for purposes of this section shall be made—

“(i) in the case of all families, upon the initial provision of housing assistance for the family;

changed “(ii) annually thereafter, except as provided in subparagraph (B)(ii);paragraph (1) with respect to fixed-income families;

“(iii) upon the request of the family, at any time the income or deductions (under subsection (b)(5)) of the family change by an amount that is estimated to result in a decrease of 10 percent (or such lower amount as the Secretary may, by notice, establish, or permit the public housing agency or owner to establish) or more in annual adjusted income; and

“(iv) at any time the income or deductions (under subsection (b)(5)) of the family change by an amount that is estimated to result in an increase of 10 percent or more in annual adjusted income, or such other amount as the Secretary may by notice establish, except that any increase in the earned income of a family shall not be considered for purposes of this clause (except that earned income may be considered if the increase corresponds to previous decreases under clause (iii)), except that a public housing agency or owner may elect not to conduct such review in the last three months of a certification period.

changed “(B) Fixed-income familiesIn general—Reviews of family income for purposes of this section shall be subject to the provisions of section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 3544).

removed “(i) Definitions—For purposes of this subparagraph, the following definitions shall apply:

removed “(I) Eligible family—The term eligible family means a family who has an income, as of the most recent review conducted, of which 90 percent or more consists of fixed income.

removed “(II) Fixed income—The term fixed income means income from—

removed “(aa) the supplemental security income program under title XVI of the Social Security Act, including supplementary payments pursuant to an agreement for Federal administration under section 1616(a) of the Social Security Act and payments pursuant to an agreement entered into under section 212(b) of Public Law 93–66;

removed “(bb) any payment under title II of the Social Security Act;

removed “(cc) Federal, State, local, and private pension plans; and

removed “(dd) other periodic payments received from annuities, insurance policies, retirement funds, disability or death benefits, and other similar types of periodic receipts that are of substantially the same amounts from year to year.

removed “(ii) Self-certification and 3-year review for fixed-income families—A public housing agency or owner shall not be required to conduct a review of an eligible family's income pursuant to subparagraph (A)(ii) for any year in which such eligible family certifies, in accordance with such requirements as the Secretary shall establish, that the sources of such income have not changed since the previous year, except that the public housing agency or owner shall conduct a review of each such eligible family's income not less frequently than once every 3 years.

removed “(iii) Inflationary adjustment for fixed income families

removed “(I) In general—In any year in which a public housing agency or owner does not conduct a review of income for an eligible family pursuant to the authority under clause (ii) to waive such a review, the income determination of such eligible family for the previous year shall, subject to subclause (II) of this clause, be adjusted by applying an inflationary factor as the Secretary shall establish by regulation or notice.

removed “(II) Exemption from adjustment—A public housing agency or owner may exempt from an adjustment described in subclause (I) any income source for which income does not increase from year to year.

removed “(C) In general—Reviews of family income for purposes of this section shall be subject to the provisions of section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Amendments Act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 3544).

“(7) Calculation of income

“(A) Use of current year income—In determining family income for initial occupancy or provision of housing assistance pursuant to clause (i) of paragraph (6)(A) or pursuant to reviews pursuant to clause (iii) or (iv) of such paragraph, a public housing agency or owner shall use the income of the family as estimated by the agency or owner for the upcoming year.

added “(B) Use of prior year income—In determining family income for annual reviews pursuant to paragraph (6)(A)(ii), a public housing agency or owner shall, except as otherwise provided in this paragraph and paragraph (1), use the income of the family as determined by the agency or owner for the preceding year, taking into consideration any redetermination of income during such prior year pursuant to clause (iii) or (iv) of paragraph (6)(A).

removed “(B) Use of prior year income—In determining family income for annual reviews pursuant to paragraph (6)(A)(ii), a public housing agency or owner shall, except as otherwise provided in this paragraph and paragraph (6)(B), use the income of the family as determined by the agency or owner for the preceding year, taking into consideration any redetermination of income during such prior year pursuant to clause (iii) or (iv) of paragraph (6)(A).

“(C) Other income—In determining the income for any family based on the prior year’s income, with respect to prior year calculations of income not subject to subparagraph (B), a public housing agency or owner may make other adjustments as it considers appropriate to reflect current income.

added “(D) Safe harbor—A public housing agency or owner may, to the extent such information is available to the public housing agency or owner, determine the family’s income prior to the application of any deductions based on timely income determinations made for purposes of other means-tested Federal public assistance programs (including the program for block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act, a program for Medicaid assistance under a State plan approved under title XIX of the Social Security Act, and the supplemental nutrition assistance program (as such term is defined in section 3 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2012))). The Secretary shall, in consultation with other appropriate Federal agencies, develop procedures to enable public housing agencies and owners to have access to such income determinations made by other means-tested Federal programs that the Secretary determines to have comparable reliability. Exchanges of such information shall be subject to the same limitations and tenant protections provided under section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act Amendments of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 3544) with respect to information obtained under the requirements of section 303(i) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 503(i)).

removed “(D) Safe harbor—A public housing agency or owner may, to the extent such information is available to the public housing agency or owner, determine the family’s income prior to the application of any deductions based on timely income determinations made for purposes of other means-tested Federal public assistance programs (including the program for block grants to States for temporary assistance for needy families under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act, a program for Medicaid assistance under a State plan approved under title XIX of the Social Security Act, and the supplemental nutrition assistance program (as such term is defined in section 3 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 2012)). The Secretary shall, in consultation with other appropriate Federal agencies, develop procedures to enable public housing agencies and owners to have access to such income determinations made by other means-tested Federal programs that the Secretary determines to have comparable reliability. Exchanges of such information shall be subject to the same limitations and tenant protections provided under section 904 of the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act Amendments of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 3544) with respect to information obtained under the requirements of section 303(i) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 503(i)).

“(E) PHA and owner compliance—A public housing agency or owner may not be considered to fail to comply with this paragraph or paragraph (6) due solely to any de minimis errors made by the agency or owner in calculating family incomes.”

“(4) Income—The term income means, with respect to a family, income received from all sources by each member of the household who is 18 years of age or older or is the head of household or spouse of the head of the household, plus unearned income by or on behalf of each dependent who is less than 18 years of age, as determined in accordance with criteria prescribed by the Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, subject to the following requirements:

“(A) Included amounts—Such term includes recurring gifts and receipts, actual income from assets, and profit or loss from a business.

“(B) Excluded amounts—Such term does not include—

“(i) any imputed return on assets, except to the extent that net family assets exceed $50,000, except that such amount (as it may have been previously adjusted) shall be adjusted for inflation annually by the Secretary in accordance with an inflationary index selected by the Secretary;

“(ii) any amounts that would be eligible for exclusion under section 1613(a)(7) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1382b(a)(7));

“(iii) deferred disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs that are received in a lump sum amount or in prospective monthly amounts;

“(iv) any expenses related to aid and attendance under section 1521 of title 38, United States Code, to veterans who are in need of regular aid and attendance; and

“(v) exclusions from income as established by the Secretary by regulation or notice, or any amount required by Federal law to be excluded from consideration as income.

“(C) Earned income of students—Such term does not include—

“(i) earned income, up to an amount as the Secretary may by regulation establish, of any dependent earned during any period that such dependent is attending school or vocational training on a full-time basis; or

“(ii) any grant-in-aid or scholarship amounts related to such attendance used—

“(I) for the cost of tuition or books; or

“(II) in such amounts as the Secretary may allow, for the cost of room and board.

“(D) Educational savings accounts—Income shall be determined without regard to any amounts in or from, or any benefits from, any Coverdell education savings account under section 530 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or any qualified tuition program under section 529 of such Code.

“(E) Recordkeeping—The Secretary may not require a public housing agency or owner to maintain records of any amounts excluded from income pursuant to this subparagraph.

“(5) Adjusted income—The term adjusted income means, with respect to a family, the amount (as determined by the public housing agency or owner) of the income of the members of the family residing in a dwelling unit or the persons on a lease, after any deductions from income as follows:

changed “(A) Elderly and disabled families—$525 in the case of any family that is an elderly family or a disabled family, except that the amount specified in this subparagraph (as it may have been previously adjusted) shall be adjusted for inflation annually by the Secretary in accordance with an inflationary index selected by the Secretary.family.

“(B) Dependents—In the case of any family, $525 for each member who—

“(i) is less than 18 years of age or attending school or vocational training on a full-time basis; or

changed “(ii) is a person who is 18 years of age or older, resides in the household, and is certified as disabled and unable to work by the public housing agency of jurisdiction,jurisdiction.

“(C) Child care—The amount, if any, that exceeds 5 percent of annual family income that is used to pay for unreimbursed child care expenses, which shall include child care for preschool-age children, for before- and after-care for children in school, and for other child care necessary to enable a member of the family to be employed or further his or her education.

“(D) Health and medical expenses—The amount, if any, by which 10 percent of annual family income is exceeded by the sum of—

“(i) in the case of any elderly or disabled family, any unreimbursed health and medical care expenses; and

“(ii) any unreimbursed reasonable attendant care and auxiliary apparatus expenses for each handicapped member of the family, if determined necessary by the public housing agency or owner to enable any member of such family to be employed.

“(E) Permissive deductions—Such additional deductions as a public housing agency may, at its discretion, establish, except that the Secretary shall establish procedures to ensure that such deductions do not materially increase Federal expenditures.”

Subsection (a) of section 16 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437n(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

“(5) Limitations on tenancy for over-income families

changed “(A) Limitations—Except as provided in subparagraph (C), (D), in the case of any family residing in a dwelling unit of public housing whose income for the most recent two consecutive years has exceeded 120 percent of the median income for the area, years, as determined pursuant to an income review reviews conducted pursuant to section 3(a)(6), has exceeded the applicable income limitation under subparagraph (C), the public housing agency shall—

changed “(i) notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, charge such family as monthly rent for the unit occupied by such family an amount equal to the sum greater of—

changed “(I) the applicable fair market rental established under section 8(c) for a dwelling unit in the same market area of the same size; andor

“(II) the amount of the monthly subsidy provided under this Act for the dwelling unit, which shall include any amounts from the Operating Fund and Capital Fund under section 9 used for the unit, as determined by the agency in accordance with regulations that the Secretary shall issue to carry out this subclause; or

“(ii) terminate the tenancy of such family in public housing not later than 6 months after the income determination described in subparagraph (A).

changed “(B) Notice—In the case of any family residing in a dwelling unit of public housing whose income for a year has exceeded 120 percent of the median applicable income for the area, limitation under subparagraph (C), upon the conclusion of such year the public housing agency shall provide written notice to such family of the requirements under subparagraph (A).

changed “(C) Exception—Subparagraph (A) Income limitation—The income limitation under this subparagraph shall not apply to a family occupying a dwelling unit in public housing pursuant to paragraph (5) be 120 percent of section 3(a) (42 U.S.C. 1437a(a)(5)).”the median income for the area, as determined by the Secretary with adjustments for smaller and larger families, except that the Secretary may establish income limitations higher or lower than 120 percent of such median income on the basis of the Secretary’s findings that such variations are necessary because of prevailing levels of construction costs, or unusually high or low family incomes, vacancy rates, or rental costs.

added “(D) Exception—Subparagraph (A) shall not apply to a family occupying a dwelling unit in public housing pursuant to paragraph (5) of section 3(a) (42 U.S.C. 1437a(a)(5)).

added “(E) Reports on over-income families and waiting lists—The Secretary shall require that each public housing agency shall—

added “(i) submit a report annually, in a format required by the Secretary, that specifies—

added “(I) the number of families residing, as of the end of the year for which the report is submitted, in public housing administered by the agency who had incomes exceeding the applicable income limitation under subparagraph (C); and

added “(II) the number of families, as of the end of such year, on the waiting lists for admission to public housing projects of the agency; and

added “(ii) make the information reported pursuant to clause (i) publicly available.”

“(B) Percentage limitation

“(i) In general—Subject to clause (ii), a public housing agency may use for project-based assistance under this paragraph not more than 20 percent of the authorized units for the agency.

“(ii) Exception—A public housing agency may use up to an additional 10 percent of the authorized units for the agency for project-based assistance under this paragraph, to provide units that house individuals and families that meet the definition of homeless under section 103 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11302), that house families with veterans, that provide supportive housing to persons with disabilities or elderly persons, or that are located in areas where vouchers under this subsection are difficult to use, as specified in subparagraph (D)(ii)(II). Any units of project-based assistance that are attached to units previously subject to federally required rent restrictions or receiving another type of long-term housing subsidy provided by the Secretary shall not count toward the percentage limitation under clause (i) of this subparagraph. The Secretary may, by regulation, establish additional categories for the exception under this clause.”

“(D) Income-mixing requirement

“(i) In general—Except as provided in clause (ii), not more than the greater of 25 dwelling units or 25 percent of the dwelling units in any project may be assisted under a housing assistance payment contract for project-based assistance pursuant to this paragraph. For purposes of this subparagraph, the term project means a single building, multiple contiguous buildings, or multiple buildings on contiguous parcels of land.

“(ii) Exceptions

“(I) Certain families—The limitation under clause (i) shall not apply to dwelling units assisted under a contract that are exclusively made available to elderly families or to households eligible for supportive services that are made available to the assisted residents of the project, according to standards for such services the Secretary may establish.

“(II) Certain areas—With respect to areas in which tenant-based vouchers for assistance under this subsection are difficult to use, as determined by the Secretary, and with respect to census tracts with a poverty rate of 20 percent or less, clause (i) shall be applied by substituting “40 percent” for “25 percent”, and the Secretary may, by regulation, establish additional conditions.

“(III) Certain contracts—The limitation under clause (i) shall not apply with respect to contracts or renewal of contracts under which a greater percentage of the dwelling units in a project were assisted under a housing assistance payment contract for project-based assistance pursuant to this paragraph on the date of the enactment of the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2015.

“(IV) Certain properties—Any units of project-based assistance under this paragraph that are attached to units previously subject to federally required rent restrictions or receiving other project-based assistance provided by the Secretary shall not count toward the percentage limitation imposed by this subparagraph (D).

“(iii) Additional monitoring and oversight requirements—The Secretary may establish additional requirements for monitoring and oversight of projects in which more than 40 percent of the dwelling units are assisted under a housing assistance payment contract for project-based assistance pursuant to this paragraph.”

“(F) Contract term

“(i) Term—A housing assistance payment contract pursuant to this paragraph between a public housing agency and the owner of a project may have a term of up to 20 years, subject to—

“(I) the availability of sufficient appropriated funds for the purpose of renewing expiring contracts for assistance payments, as provided in appropriation Acts and in the agency’s annual contributions contract with the Secretary, provided that in the event of insufficient appropriated funds, payments due under contracts under this paragraph shall take priority if other cost-saving measures that do not require the termination of an existing contract are available to the agency; and

“(II) compliance with the inspection requirements under paragraph (8), except that the agency shall not be required to make biennial inspections of each assisted unit in the development.

“(ii) Addition of eligible units—Subject to the limitations of subparagraphs (B) and (D), the agency and the owner may add eligible units within the same project to a housing assistance payments contract at any time during the term thereof without being subject to any additional competitive selection procedures.

“(iii) Housing under construction or recently constructed—An agency may enter into a housing assistance payments contract with an owner for any unit that does not qualify as existing housing and is under construction or recently has been constructed whether or not the agency has executed an agreement to enter into a contract with the owner, provided that the owner demonstrates compliance with applicable requirements prior to execution of the housing assistance payments contract. This clause shall not subject a housing assistance payments contract for existing housing under this paragraph to such requirements or otherwise limit the extent to which a unit may be assisted as existing housing.

“(iv) Additional conditions—The contract may specify additional conditions, including with respect to continuation, termination, or expiration, and shall specify that upon termination or expiration of the contract without extension, each assisted family may elect to use its assistance under this subsection to remain in the same project if its unit complies with the inspection requirements under paragraph (8), the rent for the unit is reasonable as required by paragraph (10)(A), and the family pays its required share of the rent and the amount, if any, by which the unit rent (including the amount allowed for tenant-based utilities) exceeds the applicable payment standard.”

“(I) Rent adjustments—A housing assistance payments contract pursuant to this paragraph entered into after the date of the enactment of the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2015 shall provide for annual rent adjustments upon the request of the owner, except that—

“(i) by agreement of the parties, a contract may allow a public housing agency to adjust the rent for covered units using an operating cost adjustment factor established by the Secretary pursuant to section 524(c) of the Multifamily Assisted Housing Reform and Affordability Act of 1997 (which shall not result in a negative adjustment), in which case the contract may require an additional adjustment, if requested, up to the reasonable rent periodically during the term of the contract, and shall require such an adjustment, if requested, upon extension pursuant to subparagraph (G);

“(ii) the adjusted rent shall not exceed the maximum rent permitted under subparagraph (H);

“(iii) the contract may provide that the maximum rent permitted for a dwelling unit shall not be less than the initial rent for the dwelling unit under the initial housing assistance payments contract covering the units; and

“(iv) the provisions of subsection (c)(2)(C) shall not apply.”

“(N) Structure owned by agency—A public housing agency engaged in an initiative to improve, develop, or replace a public housing property or site may attach assistance to an existing, newly constructed, or rehabilitated structure in which the agency has an ownership interest or which the agency has control of without following a competitive process, provided that the agency has notified the public of its intent through its public housing agency plan and subject to the limitations and requirements of this paragraph.

“(O) Special purpose vouchers—A public housing agency that administers vouchers authorized under subsection (o)(19) or (x) of this section may provide such assistance in accordance with the limitations and requirements of this paragraph, without additional requirements for approval by the Secretary.”

added Section 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

added “(20) Collection of utility data

added “(A) Publication—The Secretary shall, to the extent that data can be collected cost effectively, regularly publish such data regarding utility consumption and costs in local areas as the Secretary determines will be useful for the establishment of allowances for tenant-paid utilities for families assisted under this subsection.

added “(B) Use of data—The Secretary shall provide such data in a manner that—

added “(i) avoids unnecessary administrative burdens for public housing agencies and owners; and

added “(ii) protects families in various unit sizes and building types, and using various utilities, from high rent and utility cost burdens relative to income.”

removed “(iii) Prohibition on payments—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, no amount may be reimbursed or paid to, or credited for, any family assisted under this subsection by reason of any excess in the utility allowance for such family.”

removed “(20) Collection of utility data

removed “(A) Publication—The Secretary shall, to the extent that data can be collected cost effectively, regularly publish such data regarding utility consumption and costs in local areas as the Secretary determines will be useful for the establishment of allowances for tenant-paid utilities for families assisted under this subsection.

removed “(B) Use of data—The Secretary shall provide such data in a manner that—

removed “(i) avoids unnecessary administrative burdens for public housing agencies and owners; and

removed “(ii) protects families in various unit sizes and building types, and using various utilities, from high rent and utility cost burdens relative to income.”

removed “(8) Prohibition on utility reimbursements—Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, no amount may be reimbursed or paid to, or credited for, any family residing in a public housing dwelling unit or assisted under section 8 (other than under subsection (o)) by reason of any excess in the utility allowance for such family.”

Section 8(x) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(x)) is amended—

removed “(C) for a period not to exceed 36 months, otherwise eligible youths who have attained 16 or 17 years of age and who have left foster care, if the service provider signs the lease for the dwelling unit for which the voucher is used and provides on-site supportive services (as defined in section 401 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11360)) that are appropriate for the supervision of such youth within the housing community in which such dwelling unit is located.”

added “(4) Coordination between public housing agencies and public child welfare agencies—The Secretary shall, not later than the expiration of the 180-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2015 and after consultation with other appropriate Federal agencies, issue guidance to improve coordination between public housing agencies and public child welfare agencies in carrying out the program under this subsection, which shall provide guidance on—

added “(A) identifying eligible recipients for assistance under this subsection;

added “(B) coordinating with other local youth and family providers in the community and participating in the Continuum of Care program established under subtitle C of title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11381 et seq.);

added “(C) implementing housing strategies to assist eligible families and youth;

added “(D) aligning system goals to improve outcomes for families and youth and reducing lapses in housing for families and youth; and

added “(E) identifying resources that are available to eligible families and youth to provide supportive services available through parts B and E of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 621 et seq.; 670 et seq.) or that the head of household of a family or youth may be entitled to receive under section 477 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 677).”

removed “(C) Service provider—The term service provider shall have the meaning given such term by the Secretary.”

Section 203 of the National Housing Act (12 U.S.C. 1709) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:

“(y) Requirements for mortgages for condominiums

“(1) Project recertification requirements—Notwithstanding any other law, regulation, or guideline of the Secretary, including chapter 2.4 of the Condominium Project Approval and Processing Guide of the FHA, the Secretary shall streamline the project certification requirements that are applicable to the insurance under this section for mortgages for condominium projects so that recertifications are substantially less burdensome than certifications. The Secretary shall consider lengthening the time between certifications for approved properties, and allowing updating of information rather than resubmission.

“(2) Commercial space requirements—Notwithstanding any other law, regulation, or guideline of the Secretary, including chapter 2.1.3 of the Condominium Project Approval and Processing Guide of the FHA, in providing for exceptions to the requirement for the insurance of a mortgage on a condominium property under this section regarding the percentage of the floor space of a condominium property that may be used for nonresidential or commercial purposes, the Secretary shall provide that—

“(A) any request for such an exception and the determination of the disposition of such request may be made, at the option of the requester, under the direct endorsement lender review and approval process or under the HUD review and approval process through the applicable field office of the Department; and

“(B) in determining whether to allow such an exception for a condominium property, factors relating to the economy for the locality in which such project is located or specific to project, including the total number of family units in the project, shall be considered.

changed “(3) Transfer fees—Notwithstanding any other law, regulation, or guideline of the Secretary, including chapter 1.8.8 of the Condominium Project Approval and Processing Guide of the FHA and section 203.41 of the Secretary’s regulations (24 C.F.R. 203.41), existing standards of the Federal Housing Finance Agency relating to encumbrances under private transfer fee covenants shall apply to the insurance of mortgages by the Secretary under this section to the same extent and in the same manner that such standards apply to the purchasing, investing in, and otherwise dealing in mortgages by the Federal National Mortgage Association and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation.Corporation. If the provisions of part 1228 of the Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s regulations (12 C.F.R. part 1228) are amended or otherwise changed after the date of the enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall adopt any such amendments or changes for purposes of this paragraph, unless the Secretary causes to be published in the Federal Register a notice explaining why the Secretary will disregard such amendments or changes within 90 days after the effective date of such amendments or changes.

“(4) Owner-occupancy requirement

changed “(A) Reduction to 35 percent—Except as provided in subparagraph (B) Establishment of this paragraph and notwithstanding any other law, regulation, or guideline percentage requirement—Not later than the expiration of the Secretary, in order for a condominium project to be acceptable to 90-day period beginning on the Secretary for insurance under date of the enactment of this section, at least 35 percent paragraph, the Secretary shall, by rule, notice, or mortgagee letter, issue guidance regarding the percentage of all family units (including units not covered by FHA-insured mortgages) that must be occupied by the owners as a principal residence or a secondary residence (as such terms are defined by the Secretary), or must have been sold to owners who intend to meet such occupancy requirement.requirements, including justifications for the percentage requirements, in order for a condominium project to be acceptable to the Secretary for insurance under this section of a mortgage within such condominium property.

changed “(B) Other considerations—The Secretary may increase Failure to act—If the percentage applicable pursuant Secretary fails to issue the guidance required under subparagraph (A) to a condominium project on a project-by-project basis, and in determining such percentage for a project shall consider factors relating to before the economy for expiration of the locality 90-day period specified in which such project is located or specific to project, including the total number of family units in clause, the project.”following provisions shall apply:

added “(i) 35 percent requirement—In order for a condominium project to be acceptable to the Secretary for insurance under this section, at least 35 percent of all family units (including units not covered by FHA-insured mortgages) must be occupied by the owners as a principal residence or a secondary residence (as such terms are defined by the Secretary), or must have been sold to owners who intend to meet such occupancy requirement.

added “(ii) Other considerations—The Secretary may increase the percentage applicable pursuant to clause (i) to a condominium project on a project-by-project or regional basis, and in determining such percentage for a project shall consider factors relating to the economy for the locality in which such project is located or specific to project, including the total number of family units in the project.”

“432. Geographic areas

added “(a) Requirement to define—For purposes of this subtitle, the term geographic area shall have such meaning as the Secretary shall by notice provide.

removed “(a) Requirement To define—For purposes of this subtitle, the term geographic area shall have such meaning as the Secretary shall by notice provide.

“(b) Issuance of notice—Not later than the expiration of the 90-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2015, the Secretary shall issue a notice setting forth the definition required by subsection (a).”

added Section 11 of the Housing Opportunity Program Extension Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 12805 note) is amended by inserting after subsection (f) the following new subsection:

added “(g) Energy efficiency requirements—The Secretary may not require any dwelling developed using amounts from a grant made under this section to meet any energy efficiency standards other than the standards applicable at such time pursuant to section 109 of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12709) to housing specified in subsection (a) of such section.”

removed “(e) Distribution and residual receipts

removed “(1) Authority—After the date of the enactment of the Housing Opportunity Through Modernization Act of 2015, the owner of a property subject to a plan of action or use agreement pursuant to this section shall be entitled to distribute—

removed “(A) annually, all surplus cash generated by the property, but only if the owner is in material compliance with such use agreement including compliance with prevailing physical condition standards established by the Secretary; and

removed “(B) notwithstanding any conflicting provision in such use agreement, any funds accumulated in a residual receipts account, but only if the owner is in material compliance with such use agreement and has completed, or set aside sufficient funds for completion of, any capital repairs identified by the most recent third party capital needs assessment.

removed “(2) Operation of property—An owner that distributes any amounts pursuant to paragraph (1) shall—

removed “(A) continue to operate the property in accordance with the affordability provisions of the use agreement for the property for the remaining useful life of the property;

removed “(B) as required by the plan of action for the property, continue to renew or extend any project-based rental assistance contract for a term of not less than 20 years; and

removed “(C) if the owner has an existing multi-year project-based rental assistance contract for less than 20 years, have the option to extend the contract to a 20-year term.”

removed “(c) Future financing—Neither this section, nor any plan of action or use agreement implementing this section, shall restrict an owner from obtaining a new loan or refinancing an existing loan secured by the project, or from distributing the proceeds of such a loan; except that, in conjunction with such refinancing—

removed “(1) the owner shall provide for adequate rehabilitation pursuant to a capital needs assessment to ensure long-term sustainability of the property satisfactory to the lender or bond issuance agency;

removed “(2) any resulting budget-based rent increase shall include debt service on the new financing, commercially reasonable debt service coverage, and replacement reserves as required by the lender; and

removed “(3) for tenants of dwelling units not covered by a project- or tenant-based rental subsidy, any rent increases resulting from the refinancing transaction may not exceed 10 percent per year, except that—

removed “(A) any tenant occupying a dwelling unit as of time of the refinancing may not be required to pay for rent and utilities, for the duration of such tenancy, an amount that exceeds the greater of—

removed “(i) 30 percent of the tenant’s income; or

removed “(ii) the amount paid by the tenant for rent and utilities immediately before such refinancing; and

removed “(B) this paragraph shall not apply to any tenant who does not provide the owner with proof of income.”

added “37. Data exchange standards for improved interoperability

added “(a) Designation—The Secretary shall, in consultation with an interagency work group established by the Office of Management and Budget, and considering State government perspectives, designate data exchange standards to govern, under this Act—

added “(1) necessary categories of information that State agencies operating related programs are required under applicable law to electronically exchange with another State agency; and

added “(2) Federal reporting and data exchange required under applicable law.

added “(b) Requirements—The data exchange standards required by subsection (a) shall, to the maximum extent practicable—

added “(1) incorporate a widely accepted, nonproprietary, searchable, computer-readable format, such as the eXtensible Markup Language;

added “(2) contain interoperable standards developed and maintained by intergovernmental partnerships, such as the National Information Exchange Model;

added “(3) incorporate interoperable standards developed and maintained by Federal entities with authority over contracting and financial assistance;

added “(4) be consistent with and implement applicable accounting principles;

added “(5) be implemented in a manner that is cost- effective and improves program efficiency and effectiveness; and

added “(6) be capable of being continually upgraded as necessary.

added “(c) Rules of construction—Nothing in this section requires a change to existing data exchange standards for Federal reporting found to be effective and efficient.”