I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4984 

To increase the supply of, and lower rents for, affordable housing and to 

adjust calculations of area median income for purposes of Federal lowincome housing assistance, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 5, 2019 

Ms. CLARKE of New York (for herself, Ms. MENG, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of 

Illinois, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. NORTON, Mr. NADLER, and Mr. ESPAILLAT) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 

for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 

for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 

committee concerned 

A BILL 

To increase the supply of, and lower rents for, affordable 

housing and to adjust calculations of area median income 

for purposes of Federal low-income housing assistance, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Affordable Housing 

5 and Area Median Income Fairness Act of 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. AREA MEDIAN INCOME FAIRNESS. 

2 Subparagraph (D) of section 3(b)(2) of the United 

3 States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(2)(D)) 

4 is amended— 

5 (1) in the second sentence, by inserting ‘‘(in 

6 this subparagraph referred to as the ‘covered juris7 dictions’)’’ before the fifth comma; 

8 (2) in the third sentence— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘Westchester or Rockland 

10 Counties’’ and inserting ‘‘the covered jurisdic11 tions’’; and 

12 (B) by striking ‘‘included Westchester and 

13 Rockland Counties’’ and inserting ‘‘does not in14 clude the covered jurisdictions’’; and 

15 (3) in the fourth sentence, by striking ‘‘include 

16 Westchester and Rockland Counties, New York, in’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘exclude the covered jurisdictions 

18 from’’. 

19 SEC. 3. HIGH HOUSING COST ADJUSTMENT FAIRNESS. 

20 Subparagraph (D) of section 3(b)(2) of the United 

21 States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)(2)(D)), 

22 as amended by the preceding provisions of this Act, is fur23 ther amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘For 

24 purposes of the low-income housing tax credit program 

25 under section 42 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

26 and the exempt facilities bond program under section 142 


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1 of such Code, the Secretary may not apply, for any city, 

2 county, and other such jurisdiction, for the purposes of 

3 calculating the area median income or any related metric, 

4 in the instances where it is used to derive the income limits 

5 or rent amounts for such programs for a given area, a 

6 high housing cost adjustment, unless such jurisdiction pe7 titions the Secretary to apply such adjustment to such 

8 city, county, or other such jurisdiction. The Secretary 

9 shall review and grant such petitions made by any legal 

10 and proper authority within the relevant jurisdiction, in11 cluding petitions enacted by popular referendum. The pre12 ceding two sentences may not be construed to affect hous13 ing vouchers under section 8 or to carry out any other 

14 purpose than those specifically stated in such sentences.’’. 

15 SEC. 4. LOW-INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT DISCLOSURES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 42 of the Internal Rev17 enue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the 

18 following new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(o) ANNUAL REPORTING.—No credit shall be al20 lowed under subsection (a) with respect to a qualified low21 income building for a taxable year unless the following in22 formation is submitted (in such manner and at such time 

23 as the Secretary requires) to the relevant housing credit 

24 agency: 


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1 ‘‘(1) All expenditures after the date of the allo2 cation under subsection (h) that substantially affect 

3 the basis of such building. 

4 ‘‘(2) The projected rents of the affordable units 

5 in such building during the 5-year period following 

6 such submission. 

7 ‘‘(3) The annual profits attributable to such 

8 building. 

9 ‘‘(4) The annual expenditures attributable to 

10 tax credit syndication. 

11 ‘‘(5) Any other information required by the Sec12 retary that is reasonably necessary to determine pro13 gram compliance.’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

15 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

17 SEC. 5. URGENT SUPPORT FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN18 FRASTRUCTURE. 

19 (a) HOME INVESTMENT PARTNERSHIPS PROGRAM.— 

20 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

21 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

22 title II of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Afford23 able Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 1721 et seq.) 

24 $2,500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 

25 through 2029. 


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1 (2) LIMITATION.—Any amounts appropriated 

2 pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be used only for as3 sistance for any area within a participating jurisdic4 tion for which the Secretary has applied, or would 

5 have applied prior to the enactment of this Act, a 

6 high housing cost adjustment. 

7 (b) COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANTS.— 

8 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

9 There is authorized to be appropriated for commu10 nity development block grant assistance under sec11 tion 106 of the Housing and Community Develop12 ment Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5306) $2,500,000,000 

13 for each of fiscal years 2020 through 2029. 

14 (2) LIMITATION.—Any amounts appropriated 

15 pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be used only for as16 sistance for any area within a metropolitan city or 

17 urban county for which the Secretary has applied, or 

18 would have applied prior to the enactment of this 

19 Act, a high housing cost adjustment. 

20 (c) HOUSING TRUST FUND.— 

21 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Hous23 ing Trust Fund established under section 1338(a) of 

24 the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety 

25 and Soundness Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 4568(a)) 


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1 $2,500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 

2 through 2029. 

3 (2) LIMITATION.—Any amounts appropriated 

4 pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be used only for as5 sistance to be used within any area within a unit of 

6 general local government for which the Secretary has 

7 applied, or would have applied prior to the enact8 ment of this Act, a high housing cost adjustment. 

9 SEC. 6. ASSESSMENT REGARDING OPTIMIZING USE OF 

10 AREA MEDIAN INCOME TO SUPPORT AFFORD11 ABLE HOUSING IN URBAN AREAS. 

12 (a) ASSESSMENT OF ALTERNATIVE CALCULATION

13 METHODS.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the 

14 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall commence an 

15 assessment of alternative methods for calculating area me16 dian income, and the use of alternative metrics, for pro17 grams administered by the Secretary that would make 

18 housing more affordable for low-income families residing 

19 in urban areas nationwide, which shall include analysis of 

20 the topics identified in subsection (b). 

21 (b) REPORT.—Not later than two years after the date 

22 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 

23 to the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 

24 Representatives and the Committee on Banking, Housing, 

25 and Urban Affairs of the Senate, and make publicly availVerDate Sep 11 2014 03:55 Nov 13, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4984.IH H4984

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1 able, a report setting forth the results of the assessment 

2 conducted pursuant to subsection (a), which shall in3 clude— 

4 (1) a review and summarization of significant 

5 findings and recommendations from any related pre6 vious reports regarding area median income; 

7 (2) an assessment of the extent and impacts of 

8 the affordable housing crisis in urban areas nation9 wide, particularly within jurisdictions for which the 

10 Secretary has applied a high housing cost adjust11 ment; 

12 (3) an analysis and assessment of the effects 

13 that high housing cost adjustments have had on in14 come limits and rent prices in jurisdictions for which 

15 the Secretary has applied such an adjustment; 

16 (4) an assessment of the potential impacts to 

17 affordable housing, particularly on income limits and 

18 rent prices, of calculating area median income on a 

19 zip-code level basis and using other localized meth20 odologies; 

21 (5) assess and propose a process through which 

22 State housing authorities may designate area me23 dian income jurisdictions within that State; 

24 (6) an assessment of alternative metrics to area 

25 median income for the purposes of setting income 


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1 levels and related thresholds for affordable housing 

2 programs administered by the Secretary; 

3 (7) recommendations for how the Secretary 

4 could reform or eliminate use of area median income 

5 for the purposes of making housing more affordable 

6 for low-income and middle class families in urban 

7 areas; and 

8 (8) any further recommendations for how the 

9 Secretary could make housing more affordable for 

10 low-income and middle class families in urban areas. 

11 (c) METHODOLOGY.—Not later than 90 days after 

12 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

13 submit a report to the Committee on Financial Services 

14 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

15 Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate de16 scribing the methodology that will be used to conduct the 

17 assessment under this section. 

18 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

19 For purposes of this Act, the following definitions 

20 shall apply: 

21 (1) AREA MEDIAN INCOME.—The term ‘‘area 

22 median income’’ means median income for an area, 

23 as such term is used in section 3(b) of the United 

24 States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)), 

25 median family income, and any other substantively 


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1 similar metric that the Secretary uses to refer to the 

2 median income level for a given area or jurisdiction 

3 for purposes of any program administered by the 

4 Secretary. 

5 (2) HIGH HOUSING COST ADJUSTMENT.—The 

6 term ‘‘high housing cost adjustment’’ means an ad7 justment for high housing costs or high construction 

8 costs, or any substantively similar adjustment that 

9 the Secretary may use to increase income limits for 

10 areas where the cost of housing is abnormally high 

11 compared to the median income for such area, for 

12 purposes of any program administered by the Sec13 retary. 

14 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

15 the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 

Æ 


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