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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3098 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3098

  To establish the Brownfield Redevelopment and Economic Development 
 Innovative Financing program to promote urban renewal, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 16, 2015

   Ms. Hahn introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To establish the Brownfield Redevelopment and Economic Development 
 Innovative Financing program to promote urban renewal, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Brownfield Redevelopment and 
Economic Development Innovative Financing Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. BROWNFIELD REDEVELOPMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT INNOVATIVE 
              FINANCING PROGRAM.

    (a) Establishment and Purpose.--The Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury, shall 
establish a program, to be known as the Brownfield Redevelopment and 
Economic Development Innovative Financing program, under which the 
Secretary may guarantee, and make commitments to guarantee, the 
repayment of principal and interest on loans made by lenders to local 
governments, local redevelopment agencies, or BRAC redevelopment 
projects for the purposes of carrying out projects for redeveloping 
brownfields and promoting urban renewal.
    (b) Eligibility Requirements.--
            (1) Application.--A local government, local redevelopment 
        agency, or BRAC redevelopment project shall be eligible to 
        receive a loan guarantee under the Program only if such 
        government, agency, or project submits to the Secretary (at 
        such time and in such form as the Secretary may require)--
                    (A) a master plan that meets the requirements under 
                subsection (c);
                    (B) a certification from the Environmental 
                Protection Agency, or an entity designated by the 
                Environmental Protection Agency, that the brownfield to 
                be redeveloped under the master plan requires 
                environmental remediation; and
                    (C) any other information as the Secretary may 
                require.
            (2) Loan eligibility.--A loan may be guaranteed under the 
        Program only if the loan meets the following requirements:
                    (A) Use.--Such loan shall be used for costs of 
                carrying out a project to redevelop brownfields and 
                promote urban renewal, which may include--
                            (i) acquisition of a brownfield site;
                            (ii) remediation of a brownfield site;
                            (iii) relocation of existing facilities in 
                        operation on the redevelopment site; or
                            (iv) site preparation, including the 
                        installation of utilities, sewers, storm 
                        drains, and transportation facilities.
                    (B) Contamination.--A local government, local 
                redevelopment agency, or BRAC redevelopment project may 
                not receive a loan guarantee under the Program if the 
                applying agency was responsible for contaminating a 
                brownfield to be redeveloped using such loan.
                    (C) Number of loans.--A local government, local 
                redevelopment agency, or BRAC redevelopment project may 
                not at any time have more than one outstanding loan 
                that is guaranteed under the Program.
                    (D) Amount of principal.--The original principal 
                amount of such loan shall not--
                            (i) be less than $25,000,000; and
                            (ii) exceed the lesser of--
                                    (I) the total cost of the 
                                redevelopment project for which the 
                                loan is to be used; or
                                    (II) $150,000,000.
                    (E) Interest rate.--Such loan shall bear interest 
                at a rate negotiated between the lender and the 
                borrower, subject to any limitations that the Secretary 
                may establish.
                    (F) Duration.--The term to maturity of such loan 
                shall not be shorter than 20 years nor longer than 30 
                years.
                    (G) Repayment.--Such loan--
                            (i) shall not require any repayment of 
                        principal or interest within 10 years after the 
                        date that the lender makes the loan to the 
                        borrower; and
                            (ii) shall require that repayment shall 
                        begin not later than 15 years after the date 
                        that such loan is made.
    (c) Master Plan.--A master plan under this subsection shall 
describe the proposed brownfield redevelopment project for which the 
loan guarantee is to be made, and shall include--
            (1) a description of the project to be funded by the loan, 
        including a schedule of activities to be undertaken and a 
        budget for such project;
            (2) a demonstration that the brownfield redevelopment 
        project will result in major redevelopment, based on economic 
        development and environmental quality and restoration, in the 
        community in which such project is located, which shall include 
        information regarding--
                    (A) the extent of non-Federal funds committed to 
                the project;
                    (B) the number of long-term jobs created by the 
                project;
                    (C) the environmental remediation of brownfield 
                sites due to the project;
                    (D) a description of the environmental and economic 
                impact of the project on the community;
                    (E) the amount of affordable housing created by the 
                project;
                    (F) the reduction of vehicle congestion and 
                emissions expected to result from the project;
                    (G) the extent of integration of green technology 
                into developments and buildings created by the project;
                    (H) the extent of improvement in air quality 
                expected to result from the project; and
                    (I) the extent to which complete streets planning 
                and transit-oriented development is incorporated into 
                the project;
            (3) evidence of the commitments of investment from non-
        Federal entities, established through zoning or other 
        documentation; and
            (4) a remediation action plan that has been approved by the 
        Environmental Protection Agency, or its designee.
    (d) Selection Criteria.--The Secretary shall establish criteria for 
selecting local governments, local redevelopment agencies, and BRAC 
redevelopment projects to receive loan guarantees under the Program. 
Such criteria shall take into consideration the information required 
under subsection (c)(2). Such criteria shall provide that existing BRAC 
redevelopment projects having existing Federal grants, loans, or other 
assistance or commitments for Federal grants, loans, or other 
assistance, shall be given additional favorable consideration toward 
such selection.
    (e) Full Faith and Credit.--The full faith and credit of the United 
States is pledged to the payment of all guarantees made under this 
section. Any such guarantee made by the Secretary shall be conclusive 
evidence of the eligibility of the obligations for such guarantee with 
respect to principal and interest, and the validity of any such 
guarantee so made shall be incontestable in the hands of a holder of 
the guaranteed obligations.
    (f) Protection Against Liability for Environmental Remediation.--
The Federal Government shall not be liable under the Comprehensive 
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 
U.S.C. 9601 et seq.) or any other Federal, State, or local law as a 
result of a loan guarantee made under this section.
    (g) Processing; Repayment and Collateral; Congressional 
Oversight.--
            (1) Processing.--The Secretary shall consider, process, and 
        approve all requests for loan guarantees under this section 
        using an approval process that is substantially identical to 
        the approval process used for loan guarantees provided under 
        section 108 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 
        1974 (42 U.S.C. 5308).
            (2) Repayment schedule and collateralization.--To be 
        eligible for a loan guarantee under this section, an applicant 
        shall demonstrate a viable repayment schedule and shall provide 
        sufficient collateral to ensure repayment of loans so 
        guaranteed, which may be in the form of a pledge of grants for 
        which the applicant may become eligible under title I of the 
        Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 
        et seq.), except that the Secretary may not require a pledge of 
        such grants as collateral and shall provide for applicants to 
        provide collateral in other forms, at the option of the 
        applicant.
            (3) Congressional oversight.--Before final approval of any 
        loan guarantee under this section, the Secretary shall notify 
        the Committees on Financial Services and Appropriations of the 
        House of Representatives and Committees on Banking, Housing, 
        and Urban Affairs and Appropriations of the Senate of such 
        approval.
    (h) Definitions.--For purposes of this section the following 
definitions shall apply:
            (1) BRAC redevelopment project.--The term ``BRAC 
        redevelopment project'' means a project to redevelop a site 
        that has been designated as a Base Realignment and Closure Site 
        by the Secretary of Defense, through the Defense Base Closure 
        and Realignment Commission, and is listed on the website of the 
        Department of Defense as such a site.
            (2) Brownfield.--The term ``brownfield'' 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).
            (3) Local redevelopment agency.--The term ``local 
        redevelopment agency'' means any agency, office, or division of 
        a State government whose purpose includes improving blighted, 
        deteriorated, or otherwise economically depressed areas.
            (4) Remediation action plan.--The term ``remediation action 
        plan'' means, with respect to a brownfield redevelopment 
        project, a document that describes how the project site will be 
        remediated, what technology will be used to accomplish such 
        remediation, and when the remediation actions will take place.
            (5) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Brownfield 
        Redevelopment and Economic Development Innovative Financing 
        program established under this section.
            (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Housing and Urban Development.
    (i) Regulations.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
enactment of this section, the Secretary shall issue regulations as may 
be necessary to carry out the Program.
    (j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to the Secretary $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2016 for 
costs (as such term is defined in section 502 of the Federal Credit 
Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661a)) of loans guaranteed under this 
section, which amounts shall remain available through fiscal year 2020.
                                 <all>
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