II 

109TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2088 

To assist low-income families, displaced from their residences in the States 

of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi as a result of Hurricane Katrina, 

by establishing within the Department of Housing and Urban Development a homesteading initiative that offers displaced low-income families 

the opportunity to purchase a home owned by the Federal Government, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 13, 2005 

Mr. ALLARD (for himself and Mr. ENZI) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To assist low-income families, displaced from their residences 

in the States of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi 

as a result of Hurricane Katrina, by establishing within 

the Department of Housing and Urban Development a 

homesteading initiative that offers displaced low-income 

families the opportunity to purchase a home owned by 

the Federal Government, 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, 
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•S 2088 IS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Hurricane Katrina Re3 covery Homesteading Act of 2005’’. 

4 SEC. 2. PURPOSES. 

5 The purposes of this Act are— 

6 (1) to allow low-income families who were dis7 placed from their residences in a designated disaster 

8 area as a result of Hurricane Katrina to return to 

9 their States, areas, or communities by providing 

10 homeownership opportunities; 

11 (2) to assist in the rebuilding of neighborhoods 

12 in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi that were 

13 damaged by Hurricane Katrina, through strategies 

14 that promote homeownership opportunities; 

15 (3) to maximize the use of existing Federal re16 sources to assist State and local governments in pro17 viding homesteading and other homeownership op18 portunities in a designated disaster area; and 

19 (4) to promote the cooperation at all levels of 

20 government and the private sector, including non21 profit organizations, in providing homesteading op22 portunities and other homeownership opportunities 

23 that will facilitate the rebuilding of neighborhoods in 

24 a designated disaster area. 
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1 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

2 As used in this Act, the following definitions shall 

3 apply: 

4 (1) DESIGNATED DISASTER AREAS.—The term 

5 ‘‘designated disaster area’’ means any area in the 

6 States of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi that 

7 is the subject of a disaster declaration by the Presi8 dent under title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Dis9 aster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) in response to Hurricane 

11 Katrina. 

12 (2) FAMILY.—The term ‘‘family’’ includes a 

13 family, as such term is defined in section 3 of the 

14 United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 

15 1437a), of 1 or more persons. 

16 (3) LOW-INCOME FAMILY.—The term ‘‘low-in17 come family’’ means a family whose income does not 

18 exceed 80 percent of the median income for the 

19 area, as determined by the Secretary, with adjust20 ments for family size, except that the Secretary may 

21 establish an income ceiling higher or lower than 80 

22 percent of the median for the area if the Secretary 

23 finds that such a variation is necessary because of 

24 prevailing levels of construction costs or unusually 

25 high or low family incomes. 
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1 (4) PARTICIPATING FEDERAL AGENCY.—The 

2 term ‘‘participating Federal agency’’ means a Fed3 eral agency the head of which is referenced by title 

4 in section 4(b), and any other Federal agency that 

5 transfers or conveys property for the purposes of 

6 section 4. 

7 (5) RESPONSIBLE ADMINISTERING ENTITY.— 

8 The term ‘‘responsible administering entity’’ means 

9 a unit of general local government or a State in a 

10 designated disaster area, or a public agency or other 

11 entity designated by a unit of general local govern12 ment or a State that is charged with administering 

13 a homestead program approved under section 4(d). 

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

15 the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 

16 except as otherwise specified. 

17 SEC. 4. HOMESTEADING. 

18 (a) ELIGIBLE PROPERTY.—The Secretary is author19 ized to transfer, without payment, to a responsible admin20 istering entity, any real property— 

21 (1) which is either vacant or includes either a 

22 1, 2, 3, or 4-family residence or multifamily project; 

23 (2) to which the Secretary holds title, including 

24 property conveyed to the Secretary by any other par25 ticipating Federal agency; 
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1 (3) which is not occupied by a person legally 

2 entitled to reside there; 

3 (4) which is requested by a responsible admin4 istering entity for use in a homestead program; 

5 (5) which is not— 

6 (A) excess or surplus Federal property 

7 subject to property disposition under title V of 

8 the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act 

9 (42 U.S.C. 11411 et seq.); or 

10 (B) Federal property subject to disposition 

11 under a base closure law, as defined in section 

12 101(a)(17) of title 10, United States Code; and 

13 (6) which the Secretary determines is suitable 

14 for use in a homestead program that is approved 

15 under subsection (d). 

16 (b) ACQUISITIONS AND REIMBURSEMENTS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

18 provision of law, the Secretary of Agriculture, the 

19 Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Sec20 retary of Veterans Affairs, and the head of any 

21 other participating Federal agency are authorized to 

22 transfer property to the Secretary, and the Secretary 

23 is authorized to accept custody and accountability of 

24 such property, to carry out this Act. 

25 (2) REIMBURSEMENT.— 
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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is au2 thorized to reimburse the Federal Housing Ad3 ministration for property— 

4 (i) which the Secretary has acquired 

5 under the National Housing Act (12 

6 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) in the form of modi7 fication of subsidy costs, as authorized in 

8 the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 

9 U.S.C. 661 et seq.); and 

10 (ii) which the Secretary transfers for 

11 use in connection with a local homestead 

12 program approved by the Secretary under 

13 this section. 

14 (B) HOMESTEAD PROGRAM.—The Sec15 retary is authorized to reimburse a partici16 pating Federal agency in an amount to be 

17 agreed upon by the Secretary and such partici18 pating Federal agency for property that such 

19 participating Federal agency transferred for use 

20 in connection with a homestead program ap21 proved by the Secretary under this section. 

22 (C) DEPOSITS.—Amounts to be reim23 bursed under this paragraph shall be— 
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1 (i) deposited pursuant to the Federal 

2 Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661 

3 et seq.), as applicable; or 

4 (ii) made available to the agency to 

5 address real property capital asset needs. 

6 (3) DONATED PROPERTY.—The Secretary is 

7 authorized to accept, manage, and convey residential 

8 property donated to the Secretary by a nongovern9 mental entity for purposes of this Act. 

10 (4) REVERSAL OF TRANSFER OR CONVEY11 ANCE.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

13 other provision of law, any real property trans14 ferred to the Secretary by a participating Fed15 eral agency for purposes of this Act shall be 

16 transferred back to that participating Federal 

17 agency in the event that such property is not 

18 conveyed to a responsible administering entity 

19 under subsection (a). 

20 (B) REVERSIONS.—In the event of a con21 veyance to a responsible administering entity 

22 for purposes of this Act, if such responsible ad23 ministering entity does not dispose of such 

24 property within 18 months of the date of such 
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1 conveyance, such property and its proceeds 

2 shall revert— 

3 (i) to the Secretary; or 

4 (ii) in the case of property transferred 

5 by a participating Federal agency under 

6 paragraph (1), to such participating Fed7 eral agency. 

8 (c) SUITABLE PROPERTY FOR HOMESTEAD PRO9 GRAM.—In determining the suitability of a residential 

10 property for use in a homestead program, the Secretary 

11 shall consider— 

12 (1) the physical condition of the residential 

13 property, including whether, upon rebuilding, or if 

14 repairs or improvements are required, upon comple15 tion of such repairs or improvements, the property— 

16 (A) would meet local or applicable stand17 ards or codes for habitation or occupancy; 

18 (B) is likely to meet all Federal require19 ments for flood insurance; and 

20 (C) will otherwise not endanger the health 

21 or safety of individuals residing within or near22 by the residential property; 

23 (2) the estimated time for rebuilding or repair24 ing the property for residential use; 
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1 (3) the environment surrounding the property 

2 and the suitability of the surrounding structures and 

3 the neighborhood to be rebuilt and sustained as a 

4 viable community; 

5 (4) the value of any repairs and improvements 

6 required by the program; 

7 (5) the benefits to the community and the re8 duced administrative costs to the Federal Govern9 ment which would accrue from the expedited occu10 pancy of the unoccupied property; and 

11 (6) the possible financial loss to the Federal 

12 Government which may result from the transfer of 

13 the property without payment. 

14 (d) APPROVAL CRITERIA.—The Secretary may ap15 prove a homestead program carried out by a responsible 

16 administering entity, which provides for the following: 

17 (1) EQUITABLE SELECTION OF PARTICIPATING

18 FAMILIES.—The homestead program shall provide 

19 for an equitable procedure, as prescribed by the Sec20 retary, for selecting low-income families that have 

21 been displaced from residences in a designated dis22 aster area, which procedure shall— 

23 (A) give priority to low-income families 

24 who were displaced from their residences in a 

25 particular designated disaster area or who were 
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1 displaced as homeowners in a designated dis2 aster area, or other criteria as may be pre3 scribed by the Secretary; 

4 (B) take into account for each family de5 scribed under subparagraph (A), such fam6 ily’s— 

7 (i) capacity to obtain assistance for 

8 the rebuilding, repair, or maintenance of 

9 the housing from private sources, commu10 nity organizations, or other sources; or 

11 (ii) agreement to rebuild or repair the 

12 housing by participating in a self-help 

13 sweat equity housing program, or the fam14 ily’s contribution to the surrounding com15 munity; and 

16 (C) include such other criteria as the Sec17 retary determines appropriate. 

18 (2) INITIAL OCCUPANCY AGREEMENT.—The 

19 homestead program shall provide for the initial occu20 pancy of unoccupied residential property pursuant to 

21 a written agreement whereby the family to whom 

22 such property is conveyed agrees— 

23 (A) to occupy such property as a principal 

24 residence for a period of not less than 5 years, 
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1 or such other time period as the Secretary may 

2 prescribe; 

3 (B) to repair, or cause to be repaired or 

4 improved, if housing is located on such prop5 erty, all defects in such housing that pose a 

6 substantial danger to health and safety within 

7 1 year of the date of such initial conveyance, or 

8 within such other time period as may be pre9 scribed by the Secretary; 

10 (C) to make, or cause to be made, such re11 pairs and improvements, if housing is located 

12 on such property, to such housing as may be 

13 necessary to meet applicable local standards for 

14 decent, safe, and sanitary housing within 3 

15 years after the date of initial occupancy, or 

16 within such other time period as may be pre17 scribed by the Secretary; 

18 (D) to build or cause to be built, if housing 

19 is not located on the property, single family 

20 housing that meets applicable local codes within 

21 3 years after the date of initial occupancy, or 

22 within such other time period as may be pre23 scribed by the Secretary; 

24 (E) to permit reasonable periodic inspec25 tions at reasonable times, and with notice rea-
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1 sonable in the circumstances, for the purpose of 

2 determining compliance with the agreement; 

3 (F) to the revocation of such agreement 

4 upon any material breach of the agreement, 

5 subject to penalties under section 5; and 

6 (G) to accept the conveyance from the re7 sponsible administering entity of fee simple title 

8 to such property without consideration upon 

9 compliance with the agreement. 

10 (3) OTHER CRITERIA DETERMINED BY THE

11 SECRETARY.—The homestead program shall meet 

12 such other criteria determined by the Secretary to be 

13 appropriate for the program in light of the location 

14 in which the program is to be administered, or fol15 lowing consultation with State and local government 

16 officials. 

17 (e) TECHNICAL SUPPORT.—The Secretary is author18 ized to provide technical assistance and other resources 

19 directly or indirectly for the administration of homestead 

20 programs that meet the requirements of subsection (d) 

21 and to families who are participants in such programs. 

22 SEC. 5. COMPLIANCE. 

23 (a) COMPLIANCE MONITORING.—The Secretary shall 

24 make such reviews and audits as may be necessary or ap25 propriate to determine whether activities authorized to be 
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1 carried out under this Act are carried out in accordance 

2 with the requirements of this Act and other applicable law. 

3 (b) COMPLIANCE ACTIONS.—In addition to any other 

4 actions authorized by applicable law, if the Secretary de5 termines that any property transferred for use under a 

6 homestead program approved under section 4 has been 

7 conveyed or used under the program in a manner contrary 

8 to the provisions of section 4, the Secretary may take such 

9 actions as the Secretary considers appropriate, includ10 ing— 

11 (1) imposing a civil money penalty on the re12 sponsible administering entity, or the transferee of 

13 such entity, or both, as appropriate, in an amount 

14 equal to not less than any profit realized with re15 spect to the conveyance or use of such property con16 trary to the provisions of this Act; 

17 (2) enforcing, revising, or releasing the restric18 tions contained in any instruments of conveyance; or 

19 (3) revoking the conveyance of the property to 

20 the responsible administering entity or requiring the 

21 responsible administering entity to revoke the con22 veyance of such property to the family in accordance 

23 with procedures prescribed by the Secretary. 

24 (c) JUDICIAL ENFORCEMENT.—The Attorney Gen25 eral of the United States, at the request of the Secretary, 
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1 may bring civil actions in any district court of the United 

2 States to enforce this Act, and such court shall have juris3 diction over such actions. 

4 SEC. 6. NONDISCRIMINATION. 

5 No person in the United States shall, on the grounds 

6 of race, color, national origin, religion, disability, or sex, 

7 be excluded from participation in the homestead program 

8 established under this Act. 

9 SEC. 7. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

11 (b), the National Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 

12 4321 et seq.) shall apply to all activities under this Act. 

13 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—The Secretary may, in consulta14 tion with Federal, Tribal, State, and local governmental 

15 entities, as appropriate, waive the requirements of the Na16 tional Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), 

17 if the Secretary determines that such a waiver— 

18 (1) will not frustrate the goals of the National 

19 Environmental Policy Act or any other provision of 

20 law that furthers the goals of that Act; and 

21 (2) does not threaten the health or safety of the 

22 community involved by posing an immediate or long23 term hazard to residents of that community. 
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1 SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

3 this Act a total of $300,000,000 for fiscal years 2006 

4 through 2010. 

5 SEC. 9. IMPLEMENTATION. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—To immediately implement this 

7 Act, the Secretary shall, by notice, establish such require8 ments as may be necessary to carry out this Act. 

9 (b) PROCEDURE FOR NOTICE.—The notice required 

10 under subsection (a) shall— 

11 (1) take effect upon issuance; and 

12 (2) provide the opportunity for public comment. 

13 (c) FINAL REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall issue 

14 final regulations based on the notice required under sub15 section (a). 

16 SEC. 10. SUNSET. 

17 The Secretary shall not accept, transfer, or convey 

18 property under this Act after 5 years from the date of 

19 enactment of this Act. 

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