A bill to facilitate the provision of assistance by the Department of Housing and Urban Development for the cleanup and economic redevelopment of brownfields.

Summary: Brownfields Redevelopment Enhancement Act - Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to make competitive grants only to eligible public entities and Indian tribes for carrying out projects and activities to assist the development and redevelopment of brownfield sites, including mine-scarred lands.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Brownfields Redevelopment 
Enhancement Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
            (1) grants under the Brownfields Economic Development 
        Initiative of the Department of Housing and Urban Development 
        provide local governments with a flexible source of funding to 
        pursue brownfields redevelopment through land acquisition, site 
        preparation, economic development, and other activities;
            (2) to be eligible for such grant funds, a community must 
        be willing to pledge community development block grant funds as 
        partial collateral for a loan guarantee under section 108 of 
        the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, and this 
        requirement is a barrier to many local communities that are 
        unable or unwilling to pledge such block grant funds as 
        collateral; and
            (3) by providing grants for the economic development of 
        brownfield sites independent from section 108 loan guarantees 
        and the related pledge of community development block grant 
        funds, more communities will have access to funding for 
        redevelopment of brownfield sites.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to provide units of 
general local government and Indian tribes with increased accessibility 
to brownfields redevelopment funds by permitting the Secretary of 
Housing and Urban Development to make grants for brownfields 
development independent from section 108 loan guarantees.

SEC. 3. BROWNFIELDS DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE.

    Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 
U.S.C. 5301 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
section:

``SEC. 123. BROWNFIELDS DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVE.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary may make grants under this 
section, on a competitive basis as specified in section 102 of the 
Department of Housing and Urban Development Reform Act of 1989 (42 
U.S.C. 3545), only to eligible public entities (as such term is defined 
in section 108(o) of this title) and Indian tribes for carrying out 
projects and activities to assist the development and redevelopment of 
brownfield sites, which shall include mine-scarred lands.
    ``(b) Use of Grant Amounts.--Amounts from grants under this 
section--
            ``(1) shall be used, as provided in subsection (a) of this 
        section, only for activities specified in section 105(a) in 
        connection with a brownfield site;
            ``(2) shall be subject to the same requirements that, under 
        section 101(c) and paragraphs (2) and (3) of section 104(b), 
        apply to grants under section 106; and
            ``(3) shall not be provided or used in a manner that 
        reduces the financial responsibility of any nongovernmental 
        party that is responsible or potentially responsible for 
        contamination on any real property and the provision of 
        assistance pursuant to this section shall not in any way 
        relieve any party of liability with respect to such 
        contamination, including liability for removal and remediation 
        costs.
    ``(c) Availability of Assistance.--The Secretary shall not require, 
for eligibility for a grant under this section, that such grant amounts 
be used only in connection or conjunction with projects and activities 
assisted with a loan guaranteed under section 108.
    ``(d) Applications.--Applications for assistance under this 
subsection shall be in the form and in accordance with the procedures 
established by the Secretary.
    ``(e) Selection Criteria.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish criteria 
        for awarding assistance under this subsection.
            ``(2) Criteria.--The criteria established under paragraph 
        (1) shall include--
                    ``(A) the extent of need for such assistance;
                    ``(B) the level of distress in the community to be 
                served and in the jurisdiction applying for assistance;
                    ``(C) the quality of the plan proposed and the 
                capacity or potential capacity of the applicant to 
                successfully carry out the plan; and
                    ``(D) such other factors as the Secretary 
                determines to be appropriate.
    ``(f) Definition of Brownfield Site.--For purposes of this section, 
the term `brownfield site'--
            ``(1) has the meaning given such term in section 101(39) of 
        the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and 
        Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9601(39)); and
            ``(2) includes a site that meets the requirements under 
        subparagraph (D) of such section for inclusion as a brownfield 
        site for purposes of section 104(k) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 
        9604(k)).
    ``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated for grants under this section $50,000,000, for each of 
fiscal years 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011.''.

SEC. 4. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT TO ALLOW USE OF CDBG FUNDS TO ADMINISTER 
              RENEWAL COMMUNITIES.

    Section 105(a)(13) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 
1974 (42 U.S.C. 5305(a)(13)) is amended by inserting ``and renewal 
communities'' after ``enterprise zones''.

SEC. 5. APPLICABILITY.

    The amendments made by this Act shall apply only with respect to 
amounts made available for fiscal year 2007 and fiscal years thereafter 
for use under the provisions of law amended by this Act.