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HR 5894 IH

To provide funding for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for housing-related assistance needed to prevent homelessness of families in connection with foreclosures on their residences.

April 24, 2008

Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services

To provide funding for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for housing-related assistance needed to prevent homelessness of families in connection with foreclosures on their residences.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Emergency Housing Assistance Act of 2008'.

SEC. 2. FUNDING FOR EMERGENCY FOOD AND SHELTER PROGRAM.

(a) Authorization of Appropriations- There is authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 2008, $300,000,000 to remain available until expended, for grants under the Emergency Food and Shelter Program under title III of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11331 et seq.). Of any amounts made available pursuant to this section not more than 3.5 percent may be used for the costs of administration.

(b) Uses- Notwithstanding section 313(a) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11343(a))--

(1) grants to the Emergency Food and Shelter Program National Board (in this subsection referred to as the `National Board') made under this section, and any monies received by any private nonprofit organization or local government from the National Board from such amounts, may be used solely for housing-related assistance needed to prevent homelessness in connection with the foreclosure on a dwelling occupied by an eligible family, which shall include relocation expenses, security and utility deposits, mortgage payments, rent payments, utility payments, and other foreclosure or eviction prevention expenses;

(2) an eligible family may receive assistance under this section for no more than 3 months;

(3) assistance under this section shall be provided directly to mortgage servicers, property managers, utility companies, or other entities necessary to prevent the homelessness of the eligible family; no funds shall be provided directly to the eligible family; and

(4) to ensure that funds are only used for the purposes specified in paragraph (1), the National Board and any private nonprofit organization or local government receiving monies from the National Board shall maintain such monies in an account separate from other funds provided under the Emergency Food and Shelter Program.

(c) Definitions- For purposes of this section:

(1) ELIGIBLE FAMILY- The term `eligible family' means a family, including a single-person family, that--

(A) owns or rents a dwelling subject to foreclosure or a unit in a dwelling subject to foreclosure;

(B) is legally responsible for the rent or mortgage payment on the dwelling subject to foreclosure or a unit in the dwelling subject to foreclosure; and

(C) does not have the financial resources to avoid becoming homeless if the dwelling the family occupies is foreclosed upon.

(2) DWELLING- The term `dwelling' means a property consisting of from one to four dwelling units, a multifamily property consisting of five or more dwelling units, or a dwelling unit in such a multifamily property.