(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti-
ty’’ means a State or a court thereof, a political sub-
division of a State or a court thereof, a Tribal gov-
ernment, or any other appropriate public or non-
profit entity as determined by the Secretary, that is 
formulating or carrying out a program that pri-
marily involves meditation between landlords and 
tenants. 
(3) IMPLEMENTATION GRANT.—The term ‘‘im-
plementation grant’’ means a grant awarded under 
section 5(b). 
(4) PROGRAM
EXPANSION
GRANT.—The term 
‘‘program expansion grant’’ means a grant awarded 
under section 5(c). 
(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 
(6) 
SMALL-DOLLAR
EVICTION.—The 
term 
‘‘small-dollar eviction’’ means an eviction resulting 
from an eviction case brought against a tenant for 
nonpayment of rent in which the unpaid amount is 
less than 1 month’s rent. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Landlords often make their largest profit 
margins in low-income neighborhoods. This is in 
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part due to the difference between the perceived risk 
of low-income tenants defaulting on their rent and 
the actual risk. 
(2) A significant proportion of eviction money 
judgments—in some jurisdictions, potentially more 
than 40 percent—are for less than 1 month’s rent, 
based on median rent per census tract. 
(3) According to the book ‘‘Evicted: Poverty 
and Profit in the American City’’ by Matthew 
Desmond, families and individuals who are evicted 
are more likely to experience a decline in mental and 
physical health, have poor attendance in school, and 
have more trouble holding a job. 
SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) landlord-tenant mediation is a valuable and 
cost-effective way to keep tenants in their homes, 
and more investment in that type of mediation is 
warranted; 
(2) there is a lack of research on the potential 
for certain types of insurance to be cost-effective 
interventions that keep tenants in their homes, 
which warrants future study; 
(3) eviction should be a last resort; and 
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(4) reducing the number of small-dollar evic-
tions will produce a substantial return on investment 
for individuals and families and for society as a 
whole. 
SEC. 
5. 
LANDLORD-TENANT 
MEDIATION 
COMPETITIVE 
GRANT PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award com-
petitive grants under subsections (b) and (c) to eligible 
entities to assist those entities in establishing and admin-
istering, or continuing, landlord-tenant mediation pro-
grams. 
(b) IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 
competitive grants to eligible entities to assist the 
entities in establishing and administering landlord- 
tenant mediation programs. 
(2) TERM.—The term of an implementation 
grant shall be 2 years. 
(3) AMOUNT.—The amount of an implementa-
tion grant shall be not more than $1,500,000. 
(4) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity may use 
an implementation grant to establish— 
(A) a statewide mediation program; or 
(B) a mediation program in a political sub-
division of a State or in the jurisdiction of an 
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Indian Tribe that demonstrates a high need for 
such a program due to— 
(i) the rate of evictions in the political 
subdivision or Tribal jurisdiction; or 
(ii) other characteristics of the polit-
ical subdivision or Indian Tribe that con-
tribute to the rate of evictions in the polit-
ical subdivision or Tribal jurisdiction. 
(5) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 
the cost of a mediation program established using an 
implementation grant may not exceed 50 percent. 
(c) PROGRAM EXPANSION GRANTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 
competitive grants to eligible entities to assist the 
entities in continuing activities related to landlord- 
tenant mediation. 
(2) TERM.—The term of a program expansion 
grant shall be 3 years. 
(3) AMOUNT.—The amount of a program ex-
pansion grant shall be not more than $1,000,000. 
(4) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subject to subpara-
graph (B), amounts made available to an eligi-
ble entity under a program expansion grant 
shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, 
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contributions made by the eligible entity for ex-
isting landlord-tenant mediation activities. 
(B) REDUCTION OF EXISTING FUNDING.— 
To the extent that amounts from a program ex-
pansion grant are used to replace funding for 
existing landlord-tenant mediation activities 
that is reduced for reasons beyond the control 
of the eligible entity, such use shall not be con-
sidered supplanting of amounts contributed by 
the eligible entity for purposes of subparagraph 
(A). 
(d) GENERAL RULES FOR COVERED GRANTS.— 
(1) USE OF FUNDS.—An eligible entity may use 
a covered grant to pay for operating costs, staff sal-
aries, mediator compensation, information tech-
nology, interpreters, outreach services, and recruit-
ment. 
(2) GOOD FAITH PARTICIPATION.—An eligible 
entity that receives a covered grant shall encourage 
each party participating in the landlord-tenant medi-
ation program funded by the grant to make a good 
faith effort to discuss potential resolutions. 
(3) GEOGRAPHIC
AND
POPULATION
DIVER-
SITY.—The Secretary shall ensure, to the maximum 
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