II 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1802

To amend the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination 

Act of 1996 and other Acts to improve housing programs for Indians. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

OCTOBER 30, 2003

Mr. JOHNSON introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Indian Affairs with instructions that when the committee reports, the bill be referred pursuant to the order of May 27, 

1988, to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs for a 

period not to exceed 60 days 

A BILL

To amend the Native American Housing Assistance and SelfDetermination Act of 1996 and other Acts to improve 

housing programs for Indians.

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 ‘‘Native American 

5 Housing Enhancement Act of 2003’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds that—

8 (1) there exist—
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1 (A) a unique relationship between the Gov2 ernment of the United States and the govern3 ments of Indian tribes; and 

4 (B) a unique Federal trust responsibility 

5 to Indian people; 

6 (2) Native Americans experience some of the 

7 worst housing conditions in the country, with—

8 (A) 32.6 percent of Native homes being 

9 overcrowded; 

10 (B) 33 percent lacking adequate solid 

11 waste management systems; 

12 (C) 8 percent lacking a safe indoor water 

13 supply; and 

14 (D) approximately 90,000 Native families 

15 who are homeless or underhoused; 

16 (3) the poverty rate for Native Americans is 

17 twice that of the rest of the population of the United 

18 States; 

19 (4) the population growth of Native Americans 

20 that began in the latter part of the 20th century in21 creased the need for Federal housing services; 

22 (5) the Native American Housing Assistance 

23 and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

24 4101 et seq.) provides Indian tribes the ability to de-
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1 termine the amount of rental and homebuyer pay2 ments; 

3 (6) to fully recognize tribal self-determination, 

4 that Act should be amended to eliminate the manda5 tory rental and payment ceiling of 30 percent of ad6 justed income for the low-income participants and 

7 replace the ceiling with a fair market rent ceiling as 

8 a workable and simple method to ensure that par9 ticipants in the assisted program under the Act do 

10 not pay more for housing than the fair market rate; 

11 (7) elimination of the 30-percent ceiling re12 quirement will—

13 (A) discontinue the complex and unneces14 sary income disclosure, income verification, and 

15 deduction calculation procedures currently en16 gaged in by Indian tribes and tribally des17 ignated housing authorities; and 

18 (B) release tribal resources that may be 

19 used more productively for addressing the ur20 gent housing need in Indian country; 

21 (8)(A) the Act allows little or no opportunity 

22 for Indian tribes and tribally designated housing au23 thorities to establish a reasonable amount of re24 serves for efficient operation of housing programs or 
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1 projects and proper maintenance of housing units; 

2 and 

3 (B) the Act should be amended to allow Indian 

4 tribes and tribally designated housing authorities the 

5 opportunity to establish, manage, and administer a 

6 reasonable reserve account to ensure the professional 

7 operation of the necessary housing programs; 

8 (9)(A) under the requirements of the Act, mem9 bers of Indian tribes are given preference for hous10 ing programs; 

11 (B) a primary purpose of the Act is to allow In12 dian tribes to leverage funds with other Federal and 

13 private funds; 

14 (C) the Department of Agriculture has been a 

15 significant funding source for funding housing for 

16 Indian tribes; and 

17 (D) to allow assistance provided under the Act 

18 and assistance provided by the Secretary of Agri19 culture under other law to be combined to meet the 

20 severe housing needs of Indian tribes, the Housing 

21 Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 et seq.) should be 

22 amended to clearly state that the preference referred 

23 to in subparagraph (A) does not violate the Civil 

24 Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d); and
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1 (10) the Cranston-Gonzales National Affordable 

2 Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12899f(2)) should be 

3 amended to include Indian tribes, tribally designated 

4 housing entities, or other agencies that primarily 

5 serve Indians as eligible applicants for Youthbuild 

6 grants. 

7 SEC. 3. FAIR MARKET RENT. 

8 (a) DEFINITION OF FAIR MARKET RENT.—Section 

9 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self10 Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103) is amend11 ed—

12 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through 

13 (22) as paragraphs (7) through (23), respectively; 

14 and 

15 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol16 lowing: 

17 ‘‘(6) FAIR MARKET RENT.—The term ‘fair mar18 ket rent’, with respect to a dwelling unit, means a 

19 fair market rent, determined by the Secretary not 

20 less than annually, for existing or newly constructed 

21 dwelling units of a size and type similar to, and lo22 cated in the same market area as, the dwelling 

23 unit.’’. 

24 (b) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—Section 203 of the 

25 Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determina-
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1 tion Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4133) is amended by striking 

2 subsection (a) and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(a) RENTS AND HOUSING PAYMENTS.—

4 ‘‘(1) POLICIES.—Each recipient shall develop 

5 written policies governing rents and homebuyer pay6 ments charged for dwelling units assisted under this 

7 Act, including the method by which the rents and 

8 homebuyer payments are determined. 

9 ‘‘(2) MAXIMUM RENTAL UNIT RENT.—In the 

10 case of a low-income family residing in a rental 

11 dwelling unit assisted with grant amounts under this 

12 Act, the monthly rent for the dwelling unit shall not 

13 exceed the fair market rent. 

14 ‘‘(3) MAXIMUM LEASE PURCHASE HOMEBUYER

15 PAYMENT.—In the case of a low-income family resid16 ing in a lease purchase dwelling unit assisted with 

17 grant amounts under this Act, the monthly home18 buyer payment for the dwelling unit shall not exceed, 

19 at the election of the recipient—

20 ‘‘(A) 30 percent of the monthly adjusted 

21 income of the low-income family; or 

22 ‘‘(B) the fair market rent. 

23 ‘‘(4) NO REQUIRED RECERTIFICATION.—The 

24 Secretary shall not require mandatory re-certifi25 cation of the incomes of families residing in rental 
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1 or lease purchase dwelling units assisted with grant 

2 amounts under this Act.’’. 

3 SEC. 4. RESERVE ACCOUNTS. 

4 Section 203(b) of the Native American Housing As5 sistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

6 4133(b)) is amended—

7 (1) in the first sentence—

8 (A) by striking ‘‘Each recipient’’ and in9 serting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each recipient’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘reserve’’ and all that fol12 lows and inserting the following: ‘‘maintain 

13 such amounts of reserves as are necessary to 

14 ensure the payment of—

15 ‘‘(A) principal and interest as it becomes 

16 due on any bonds or other obligations relating 

17 to the housing; and 

18 ‘‘(B) the costs of maintaining and oper19 ating the housing (including the costs of insur20 ance and administrative expenses).’’; and 

21 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘This 

22 subsection’’ and inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF SUBSECTION.—This sub24 section’’. 
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1 SEC. 5. TREATMENT OF PROGRAM INCOME. 

2 Section 104(a)(2) of the Native American Housing 

3 Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 

4 4114(a)(2)) is amended by inserting ‘‘restrict access to 

5 or’’ after ‘‘not’’. 

6 SEC. 6. CIVIL RIGHTS COMPLIANCE. 

7 Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1471 

8 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 543. INDIAN TRIBES. 

10 ‘‘The giving of a preference to members of an Indian 

11 tribe for the use of any dwelling or other building con12 structed, improved, altered, repaired, replaced, or other13 wise aided with assistance provided under this title to the 

14 Indian tribe shall not constitute a violation of section 601 

15 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d).’’. 

16 SEC. 7. ELIGIBILITY OF INDIAN TRIBES FOR YOUTHBUILD 

17 GRANTS. 

18 Section 457(2) of the Cranston-Gonzales National 

19 Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12899f(2)) is amend20 ed—

21 (1) in subparagraph (F), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

22 the end; 

23 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (G) as sub24 paragraph (H); and 

25 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the fol26 lowing: 
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1 ‘‘(G) an Indian tribe, tribally designated 

2 housing entity (as defined in section 4 of the 

3 Native American Housing Assistance and Self4 Determination Act (25 U.S.C. 4103)), or other 

5 agency primarily serving Indians; and’’.

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