I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3254 

To amend the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 to ensure 

access to employment opportunities for low-income persons. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 25, 2011 

Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Financial Services 

A BILL 

To amend the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 

to ensure access to employment opportunities for lowincome persons. 

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 Commu5 nities Employment Act of 2011’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOW-INCOME PER7 SONS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3 of the Housing and 

9 Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701u) is 

10 amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 3. OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOW- AND VERY LOW-IN2 COME PERSONS. 

3 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that— 

4 ‘‘(1) funds administered by the Department of 

5 Housing and Urban Development, particularly those 

6 intended for housing construction, rehabilitation, re7 pair, modernization, management, self-sufficiency, 

8 community development, and other public construc9 tion, provide State and local governments, housing 

10 providers, and other recipients of this Federal finan11 cial assistance with substantial funds for projects 

12 and activities that produce significant economic op13 portunities for the communities where the funds are 

14 expended; 

15 ‘‘(2) low- and very low-income persons, espe16 cially recipients of government assistance for hous17 ing, often face barriers to access training, employ18 ment, and contracting opportunities resulting from 

19 the expenditure of Federal funds in their commu20 nities; 

21 ‘‘(3) training, employment, and contracting op22 portunities generated by projects and activities that 

23 receive assistance from the Department of Housing 

24 and Urban Development offer an effective means of 

25 empowering low- and very low-income persons and 


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1 local businesses that provide training and job oppor2 tunities for them; 

3 ‘‘(4) prior Federal efforts to direct training, 

4 employment, and contracting opportunities gen5 erated by programs administered by the Secretary of 

6 Housing and Urban Development to low- and very 

7 low-income persons, and businesses that provide 

8 training and job opportunities for these persons, 

9 have not been fully effective and should be intensi10 fied; and 

11 ‘‘(5) funding provided to other Federal agencies 

12 may also produce significant employment and con13 tracting opportunities for the communities where the 

14 funds are expended; 

15 ‘‘(b) POLICY.—It is the policy of the Congress and 

16 the purpose of this section to ensure that training, employ17 ment, and contracting opportunities generated by Federal 

18 financial assistance administered by the Secretary of 

19 Housing and Urban Development and other Federal agen20 cies, when feasible, shall be directed to low- and very low21 income persons, particularly those who are recipients of 

22 government assistance for housing. 

23 ‘‘(c) ADMINISTRATION.—There is established, in the 

24 Department of Housing and Urban Development, an Of25 fice of Economic Opportunities, for carrying out this secVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:42 Oct 26, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3254.IH H3254

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1 tion. The Office of Economic Opportunities shall assume 

2 any functions and responsibilities relating to carrying out 

3 this section that, as of the date of enactment of the Af4 fordable Communities Employment Act of 2011, reside in 

5 the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. 

6 ‘‘(d) TRAINING.— 

7 ‘‘(1) RECIPIENTS.—If any recipient of funds 

8 administered by the Department provides on-the-job 

9 or job-related training to any employee, new hire, or 

10 business in relation to the project or projects funded 

11 by the Department, priority shall be given to persons 

12 and qualified businesses who are eligible for priority 

13 under paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively, of sub14 section (g). 

15 ‘‘(2) CONTRACTORS.—If any contractor that 

16 performs work connected to the expenditure of funds 

17 administered by the Department provides on-the-job 

18 training to any employee, new hire, or business in 

19 relation to the project or projects funded by the De20 partment, priority for such training should be given 

21 to persons and qualified businesses who are eligible 

22 for priority under paragraphs (1) and (2), respec23 tively of subsection (g). 

24 ‘‘(3) APPROVED TRAINING PROGRAMS.—All 

25 training provided pursuant to this subsection shall 


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1 be provided through a program approved by the 

2 Federal Government, by a State or local govern3 ment, or by an endorsed trade association, as such 

4 term is defined by the Secretary. Training in rela5 tion to the expenditure of funds received by the De6 partment may also refer to secondary, vocational, or 

7 higher education programs, as such terms are de8 fined by the Secretary of Education. Recipients and 

9 contractors shall be encouraged by the Secretary to 

10 provide training by providing performance incentives 

11 through the Department’s evaluation process. 

12 ‘‘(4) PERFORMANCE INCENTIVES.—To encour13 age establishment of exemplary training programs 

14 for training provided pursuant to this subsection, 

15 the Secretary shall establish and award performance 

16 incentives, including through the Department’s eval17 uation process, to recipients and contractors estab18 lishing such exemplary training programs, including 

19 programs providing training that promotes career 

20 advancement for persons that receive priority under 

21 subsection (g). 

22 ‘‘(e) EMPLOYMENT.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require 

24 that recipients of funds administered by the Depart25 ment, and their contractors and subcontractors, conVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:42 Oct 26, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3254.IH H3254

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1 sistent with existing Federal, State, and local laws 

2 and regulations, give priority to low- and very low3 income persons for training and employment oppor4 tunities generated by such funds. To the extent that 

5 a recipient or contractor of funds awarded by the 

6 Department intends to enter into a project labor 

7 agreement, the project labor agreement shall include 

8 a strategy to comply with the requirements of this 

9 section. 

10 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT TO EMPLOY LOW- AND

11 VERY LOW-INCOME PERSONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) CONDITION OF ASSISTANCE.—It shall 

13 be a condition of any assistance provided by the 

14 Secretary to recipients and their contractors 

15 and subcontractors, except in the case of rental 

16 subsidies provided in accordance with section 

17 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 

18 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)) (but not excepting fund19 ing provided in accordance with paragraph (13) 

20 of such section 8(o)) or other funding streams 

21 as determined by the Secretary, for work to be 

22 performed in connection with such funds, 

23 that— 

24 ‘‘(i) for recipients, a minimum of 30 

25 percent of new hires in connection with 


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1 such funds shall be low- and very low-in2 come persons who qualify for a priority 

3 under subsection (g)(1); and 

4 ‘‘(ii) for contractors, 20 percent of all 

5 hours worked shall be performed by low6 and very low-income persons who qualify 

7 for a priority under subsection (g)(1). 

8 Special consideration shall be given to persons 

9 enrolled in State-approved apprenticeship pro10 grams. The conditions under this subparagraph 

11 shall be applicable to, but not limited to, work 

12 such as repair, modernization, management, ad13 ministrative, professional services, as well as 

14 work related to housing rehabilitation, housing 

15 construction, or other public construction 

16 projects. Recipients that exceed the percentage 

17 required under this subparagraph shall receive 

18 performance incentives, as the Secretary shall 

19 establish, to encourage them to exceed such re20 quirements. 

21 ‘‘(B) COMPLIANCE.—As a condition of any 

22 contract awarded for the work described in sub23 paragraph (A), any recipient, contractor, or 

24 subcontractor awarded such a contract shall— 


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1 ‘‘(i) ensure that all work in connection 

2 with their contract complies with the provi3 sions of this subsection; 

4 ‘‘(ii) submit evidence to its awarding 

5 agency that clearly describes how compli6 ance with the employment requirements 

7 will be achieved; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) submit evidence to its awarding 

9 agency that— 

10 ‘‘(I) clearly describes actual out11 comes produced in fulfillment of the 

12 employment requirements of this sec13 tion; or 

14 ‘‘(II)(aa) clearly shows that the 

15 recipient, contractor, or subcontractor 

16 used all feasible means to meet such 

17 employment requirements, including 

18 the specific actions taken to meet the 

19 employment requirements, and why 

20 such actions were not successful, and 

21 efforts to overcome deficiencies in 

22 such actions to meet the employment 

23 requirements, 

24 ‘‘(bb) shows why the low- and 

25 very low-income persons applying for 


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1 the employment opportunities could 

2 not feasibly be hired, or 

3 ‘‘(cc) is sufficient to show why 

4 the employment requirements could 

5 not be reached. 

6 ‘‘(3) FIRST-SOURCE CONTRACTS.—In meeting 

7 the requirements under this subsection, recipients of 

8 funds administered by the Department, and their 

9 contractors and subcontractors may enter into hiring 

10 agreements with organizations representing low- and 

11 very-low income persons that provide for such recipi12 ents, contractors, and subcontractors to make avail13 able employment opportunities to such persons rep14 resented by such organizations. 

15 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY FOR RECIPIENTS AND CONTRAC16 TORS CREATING LONG-TERM EMPLOYMENT OPPOR17 TUNITIES.—In making available funds administered 

18 by the Department, the Secretary may give priority 

19 in the award of such funds to recipients of such 

20 funds who, or whose contractors or subcontractors, 

21 or both— 

22 ‘‘(A) have a demonstrated history of em23 ploying low- and very low-income persons for 

24 periods of 12 months or longer in connection 

25 with previous such funds; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) provide the Secretary with such as2 surances as the Secretary may require that 

3 among the employment opportunities generated 

4 by such funds awarded will be employment posi5 tions having a duration of 12 months or longer 

6 that will be filled only by low- and very-low in7 come persons. 

8 This paragraph may not be construed to preempt, 

9 alter, or otherwise affect any other provision of law 

10 establishing requirements for, or conditions prece11 dent to, award of funds administered by the Depart12 ment. 

13 ‘‘(f) CONTRACTING.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall require 

15 that recipients of funds administered by the Depart16 ment and their contractors and subcontractors, con17 sistent with existing Federal, State, and local laws 

18 and regulations, award contracts for work to be per19 formed in connection with such funds to businesses 

20 that provide or retain economic opportunities for 

21 low- and very low-income persons. To the extent that 

22 a recipient or contractor of funds awarded by the 

23 Department intends to enter into a project labor 

24 agreement, the project labor agreement shall include 


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1 a strategy to comply with the requirements of this 

2 section. 

3 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENT TO CONTRACT WITH QUALI4 FIED BUSINESSES.— 

5 ‘‘(A) CONDITION OF ASSISTANCE.—It shall 

6 be a condition of any assistance provided by the 

7 Department, that recipients, contractors, and 

8 subcontractors for work to be performed in con9 nection with such assistance award a minimum 

10 of 10 percent of the total dollar amount of all 

11 contracts to qualified businesses under sub12 section (g)(2)(A). Recipients that exceed such 

13 percentage shall receive performance incentives, 

14 as the Secretary shall establish, to encourage 

15 them to exceed such requirement. 

16 ‘‘(B) COMPLIANCE.—As a condition of any 

17 contract awarded for the work described in sub18 paragraph (A), any recipient, contractor, or 

19 subcontractor awarded such a contract shall— 

20 ‘‘(i)(I) immediately before beginning 

21 work under such contract, clearly dem22 onstrate to its awarding agency how com23 pliance with the contracting requirements 

24 of this section will be achieved; and 


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1 ‘‘(II) submit evidence to its awarding 

2 agency clearly showing actual outcomes 

3 produced in fulfillment of the contracting 

4 requirements of this section; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) if such recipient, contractor, or 

6 subcontractor cannot meet the require7 ments under subparagraph (A)— 

8 ‘‘(I) submit evidence to its 

9 awarding agency showing clearly that 

10 such contractor used all feasible 

11 means to meet such requirement; or 

12 ‘‘(II) provide its awarding agen13 cy, as the Secretary shall require by 

14 regulation, sufficient evidence to show 

15 why qualified businesses that sub16 mitted a bid in contracting opportuni17 ties could not feasibly have been 

18 awarded contracts. 

19 ‘‘(g) PRIORITY.— 

20 ‘‘(1) PRIORITY OF LOW- AND VERY LOW-IN21 COME PERSONS FOR TRAINING AND EMPLOYMENT.— 

22 The efforts required under subsections (d) and (e) 

23 (relating to training and employment) shall be di24 rected in the following order of priority: 


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1 ‘‘(A) First, to recipients of Federal rental 

2 assistance, including public housing residents, 

3 residents of other federally assisted subsidized 

4 properties, and participants in the program 

5 under section 8(o) of the United States Hous6 ing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)), who re7 side in the service area, and the metropolitan 

8 area or nonmetropolitan county, where the as9 sistance is being expended. 

10 ‘‘(B) Second, to low- and very low-income 

11 residents of the service area, and the metropoli12 tan area or nonmetropolitan county, where the 

13 assistance is being expended. 

14 ‘‘(C) Third, to other residents, as des15 ignated by the Secretary by regulation, of the 

16 service area, and the metropolitan area or non17 metropolitan county, where the assistance is 

18 being expended. 

19 ‘‘(2) PRIORITY OF QUALIFIED BUSINESSES FOR

20 CONTRACTING.—The efforts required under sub21 section (f) (relating to contracting) shall be directed 

22 in the following order of priority: 

23 ‘‘(A) First, to qualified businesses that are 

24 majority owned and controlled by low- and very25 low income persons who reside in the service 


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1 area, and the metropolitan area or nonmetro2 politan county, where the assistance is being ex3 pended. 

4 ‘‘(B) Second, to qualified businesses that 

5 provide significant training and job opportuni6 ties to low- and very low-income persons who 

7 reside in the service area, and the metropolitan 

8 area or nonmetropolitan county, where the as9 sistance is being expended. 

10 ‘‘(C) Third, to qualified businesses or to 

11 disadvantaged businesses, as defined by the 

12 Secretary by regulation, that are located in dis13 tressed communities that provide economic op14 portunities to low-income residents of the met15 ropolitan area or nonmetropolitan county where 

16 the assistance is being expended. 

17 ‘‘(D) Fourth, to small and disadvantaged 

18 qualified businesses as defined by the Small 

19 Business Administration. 

20 ‘‘(E) Fifth, to other qualified businesses, 

21 as determined by the Secretary by regulation, 

22 that are located in the metropolitan area or 

23 non-metropolitan county where the assistance is 

24 being expended. 


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1 ‘‘(h) REPORTING AND ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIRE2 MENTS.—All notices of funding availability issued by the 

3 Department shall include a provision that notifies appli4 cants of their requirement to comply with this section, the 

5 incentives associated with exceeding such requirements 

6 and the penalties associated with noncompliance. The De7 partment shall prioritize its funding decisions to recipients 

8 that demonstrate that their proposal was developed in con9 sultation with employers, local labor organizations, edu10 cation and training providers, low- and very low-income 

11 persons, especially those entitled to the highest priorities 

12 under this section in accordance with paragraph (1) of this 

13 subsection, elected bodies representing low- and very low14 income persons who live in developments where the assist15 ance is being expended, and community-based organiza16 tions that work with the targeted individuals and qualified 

17 businesses. Recipients shall be required to include infor18 mation regarding their compliance with this section in 

19 their 5-year plans, annual plans, or any alternative plans 

20 that provide for similar reporting. The Department shall 

21 make compliance with this section part of any perform22 ance standard for recipients and their contractors. 

23 ‘‘(i) PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY.—In order to permit 

24 public examination and appraisal of the program under 

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1 ents, contractors, and subcontractors, and to facilitate co2 ordination of activities with different stakeholders, each 

3 recipient shall in a timely manner— 

4 ‘‘(1) furnish citizens and, as appropriate, other 

5 interest groups information with reasonable notice 

6 concerning the amount of Federal funds available 

7 that are subject to the requirements of this section, 

8 by service area; 

9 ‘‘(2) hold annual community hearings to obtain 

10 the views of citizens on performance of the recipi11 ents, their contractors and subcontractors in com12 plying with this section, and such hearings shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) provide for and encourage citizen par14 ticipation, with particular emphasis on partici15 pation by low- and very low-income persons who 

16 are residents of the developments, service areas, 

17 or neighborhoods where funds are proposed to 

18 be used; and 

19 ‘‘(B) identify how the needs of limited 

20 English proficiency low- and very low-income 

21 persons will be met in the case of public hear22 ings where a significant number of such persons 

23 can be reasonably expected to participate; and 

24 ‘‘(3) provide citizens or, as appropriate, units of 

25 general local government or other interested parties 


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1 with reasonable access to records regarding its past 

2 compliance, and that of its contractors and sub3 contractors, with the program under this section. 

4 Recipients shall ensure that outreach efforts under 

5 this subsection are coordinated with available resi6 dent participation programs in the service area. The 

7 Secretary shall publish and make widely available 

8 compliance reports for all recipients for at least the 

9 last 5 years. 

10 ‘‘(j) REPORTS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) AGENCY REPORTS TO SECRETARY.— 

12 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT.—All recipients shall 

13 report annually to the Secretary on their em14 ployment and contracting requirements and on 

15 their contractors and subcontractors perform16 ance. Recipients shall ensure that their contrac17 tors and subcontractors provide them with the 

18 necessary information to furnish such reports. 

19 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION REGARDING FAILURE

20 TO MEET EMPLOYMENT AND CONTRACTING RE21 QUIREMENT.—For any period in which the re22 cipient, or their contractor or subcontractor, did 

23 not meet their employment or contracting re24 quirement as provided for in subsection (e) or 

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1 tions that were taken to meet the requirement, 

2 including actions taken or that will be taken in 

3 future funding opportunities to address the de4 ficiencies in the actions that resulted in failure 

5 to meet employment and contracting require6 ments. 

7 ‘‘(C) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Each report 

8 pursuant to this paragraph shall be made avail9 able, in its entirety, to the general public not 

10 later than 15 business days after the end of the 

11 period covered by the report. 

12 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORTS TO CONGRESS.— 

13 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary shall 

14 report annually to the Congress a summary of 

15 information derived from the periodic reports 

16 required under paragraph (1) and shall provide 

17 information on the total amount of Federal 

18 funds that are subject to this section, by pro19 gram area and jurisdiction, and the outcomes 

20 produced, including specific information on the 

21 amount of training, jobs, and contracting op22 portunities generated by such funds. 

23 ‘‘(B) ASSESSMENT OF NONCOMPLIANCE.— 

24 Each report shall include an assessment of any 

25 noncompliance of any recipients with the reVerDate Mar 15 2010 00:42 Oct 26, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3254.IH H3254

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1 quirements of this section, by State, and spe2 cific recommendations regarding actions to re3 duce and eliminate such noncompliance. 

4 ‘‘(C) REVIEW OF EFFECTIVENESS.—Each 

5 report shall include a review of the effectiveness 

6 of the program in providing jobs for low- and 

7 very low-income persons, meeting unmet train8 ing and job readiness needs in the community, 

9 enabling low- and very low-income persons to 

10 hold a steady job, providing contracting oppor11 tunities for businesses that qualify for priority 

12 under subsection (g)(2), and any recommenda13 tions the Secretary determines appropriate re14 garding the program under this section. 

15 ‘‘(3) GAO REPORT.—Not later than the expira16 tion of the two-year period beginning on the date of 

17 the enactment of the Affordable Communities Em18 ployment Act of 2011, the Comptroller General of 

19 the United States shall submit a report to the Con20 gress on the implementation of this section, that 

21 specifically describes the extent of compliance with 

22 this section, amount of funds awarded that were cov23 ered by this section, and outcomes, and that makes 

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1 ness and a recommendation for when there should 

2 be a follow-up report. 

3 ‘‘(k) NONCOMPLIANCE.— 

4 ‘‘(1) INVESTIGATION AND ENFORCEMENT.—In 

5 carrying out this section, the Secretary shall develop 

6 and implement procedures to review complaints al7 leging noncompliance by any recipient or contractor 

8 with the requirements of this section, and to take 

9 such actions as provided in this subsection as the 

10 Secretary determines appropriate to ensure compli11 ance and prevent future noncompliance. 

12 ‘‘(2) SANCTIONS.—Recipient agencies and their 

13 contractors and subcontractors that do not comply 

14 with this section or the requirements established 

15 under the program under this section shall be sanc16 tioned by the Secretary, and such sanctions shall in17 clude reduction of future funds from the Depart18 ment, including any discretionary funds available 

19 under the HOPE VI program under section 24 of 

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

21 1437v), debarment, suspension, limited denial of 

22 participation in programs of the Department, or 

23 such other sanctions as determined by the Secretary 

24 to discourage noncompliance. 


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1 ‘‘(3) LIMITATIONS ON CONTRACTS.—Recipients 

2 shall refrain from entering into contracts with any 

3 contractor in any case in which the recipient has no4 tice or knowledge that the contractor has violated 

5 this section or the requirements of the program 

6 under this section. 

7 ‘‘(4) RELIEF AND RIGHT OF ACTION.—If an in8 vestigation by the Department results in conclusive 

9 findings of noncompliance, the Department may re10 quire the recipient or contractor to grant relief, such 

11 as compensation of costs or damages incurred or 

12 suffered, to the aggrieved party, as determined by 

13 the Secretary. The aggrieved party also shall have 

14 the right to bring a civil action against the recipient 

15 or contractor found to be in noncompliance by the 

16 Department to recover costs or damages incurred or 

17 suffered. 

18 ‘‘(5) EFFECT ON OTHER RIGHTS AND REM19 EDIES.—This subsection shall not be construed to 

20 interfere with judicial review regarding compliance 

21 with this section pursuant to chapter 7 of title 5, 

22 United States Code, or an action regarding such 

23 compliance under section 1979 of the Revised Stat24 utes of the United States (42 U.S.C. 1983), or any 

25 other rights or remedies of an aggrieved party and 


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1 shall not preempt and State or local laws that facili2 tate achieving the purposes of this section and pro3 vide additional protections to low- and very low-in4 come persons or qualified businesses, or both. 

5 ‘‘(l) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section, 

6 the following definitions shall apply: 

7 ‘‘(1) CONTRACTOR.—The term ‘contractor’ 

8 means any entity that contracts with a recipient to 

9 perform work generated by the expenditure of assist10 ance from the Department of Housing and Urban 

11 Development. 

12 ‘‘(2) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘Department’ 

13 means the Department of Housing and Urban De14 velopment. 

15 ‘‘(3) LOW- AND VERY LOW-INCOME PERSONS.— 

16 The terms ‘low-income persons’ and ‘very low-income 

17 persons’ have the same meanings given the terms 

18 ‘low-income families’ and ‘very low-income families’, 

19 respectively, in section 3(b)(2) of the United States 

20 Housing Act of 1937, or such other definitions as 

21 the Secretary may determine appropriate to facili22 tate the employment of a low- and very low-income 

23 persons in a designated area or areas, on a tem24 porary or permanent basis, based on a family’s re25 ceipt, in such area or areas of Federal, State, or 


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1 local government housing, income, food, or other 

2 subsidies, and on such other criteria as the Sec3 retary may establish through regulation. Notwith4 standing any provision of this paragraph, any person 

5 who qualifies for a priority under subsection (g)(1), 

6 and who was very low income shall, for purposes of 

7 this section, continue to qualify, as initially verified, 

8 for a period of 5 years, irrespective of any increase 

9 in the person’s income or other change in that per10 son’s priority status during such period. 

11 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED BUSINESS.—The term ‘quali12 fied business’ means a entity that meets such cri13 teria as the Secretary may establish, which may in14 clude a national certification process. 

15 ‘‘(5) RECIPIENT.—The term ‘recipient’ means 

16 any entity that receives assistance directly from the 

17 Department, and includes any State, unit of local 

18 government, public housing agency, Indian housing 

19 authority, Indian tribe, and any other public body, 

20 public or private nonprofit or for-profit organization, 

21 and private agency or institution. 

22 ‘‘(6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ 

23 means, except as specifically provided otherwise, the 

24 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 


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1 ‘‘(m) COORDINATION WITH OTHER FEDERAL AGEN2 CIES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) COLLABORATIVE AGREEMENTS.—Within 

4 180 days after the enactment of the Affordable 

5 Communities Employment Act of 2011, the Sec6 retary shall enter into formal collaborative agree7 ments regarding training, employment, contracting, 

8 or other areas as determined by the Secretary for 

9 low- and very low-income persons and qualified busi10 nesses with the Secretary of Labor, the Secretary of 

11 Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Com12 merce, the Administrator of the Small Business Ad13 ministration, the Secretary of Transportation, the 

14 Secretary of Education, and the heads of such other 

15 Federal agencies as the Secretary determines nec16 essary to carry out this section and to promote and 

17 maximize access to existing resources and programs. 

18 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Within 12 months after the en19 actment of the Affordable Communities Employment 

20 Act of 2011, the Secretary shall submit a report to 

21 the Congress on changes needed in the programs ad22 ministered by other agencies that interact with the 

23 program under this section to facilitate the effective 

24 implementation and outcomes of the program under 

25 this section.’’. 


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1 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 120 days after 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 

3 Housing and Urban Development shall issue regulations 

4 to implement the requirements of section 3 of the Housing 

5 and Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701u), 

6 as amended by subsection (a) of this section. 

Æ 


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