I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7847 
To create a database of eviction information, establish grant programs for 
eviction prevention and legal aid, and limit use of housing court-related 
records in consumer reports, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JULY 29, 2020 
Ms. PRESSLEY (for herself and Ms. DELAURO) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To create a database of eviction information, establish grant 
programs for eviction prevention and legal aid, and limit 
use of housing court-related records in consumer reports, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Housing Emergencies 
Lifeline Program Act of 2020’’ or the ‘‘HELP Act of 
2020’’. 
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 
The Congress finds that— 
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(1) housing is fundamentally an issue of eco-
nomic and racial justice and a critical determinant 
of health; 
(2) the 2008 financial crisis was a Great De-
pression-level event for Black Americans, wiping out 
decades of gains in Black homeownership, which has 
now fallen to its lowest rate since the passage of the 
Fair Housing Act in 1968; 
(3) Black borrowers were 76 percent more like-
ly to have lost their home to foreclosure than White 
borrowers during the foreclosure crisis; 
(4) Black and Hispanic households continue to 
be about twice as likely as White households to rent 
their homes; 
(5) in 2016, 58 percent of Black household 
heads and 54 percent of Hispanic household heads 
were renting their homes, compared with 28 percent 
of White household heads; 
(6) while cost burdens affect households of all 
races and ethnicities, Black and Brown renters are 
much more likely to be burdened, with 55 percent of 
Black renters considered to be rent burdened com-
pared to only 43 percent of White renters; 
(7) Black households account for 12 percent of 
all households in the United States, but 19 percent 
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of all renters and 26 of all renter households with 
extremely low incomes; 
(8) prior to the coronavirus pandemic, it was 
estimated that around 3.7 million evictions are filed 
every year, a rate of about 7 every minute; 
(9) across the United States, one in 20 renters 
faces an eviction every year, but for Black renters, 
the number is one in 11; 
(10) every day families are displaced by the 
eviction crisis, a reality that is only further exacer-
bated by the COVID-19 pandemic and that falls dis-
proportionately on Black renters, and particularly 
Black women renters; 
(11) the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development does not require the reporting or col-
lection of eviction data, including among households 
in federally assisted housing, and should be required 
to do so; 
(12) the American Civil Liberties Union’s anal-
ysis of Eviction Lab data found that, on average, 
‘‘Black renters had evictions filed against them at 
nearly twice the rate of White renters’’ and that 
Black women specifically were filed against for evic-
tion at ‘‘double the rate of White renters or higher 
in 17 of 36 [S]tates’’; 
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(13) right to counsel is a matter of racial jus-
tice, equity, and ensuring equal protection under the 
law; 
(14) nationally, it is estimated that more than 
90 percent of landlords are represented in housing 
court proceedings, compared to less than 10 percent 
of tenants in such proceedings; 
(15) a Massachusetts study found that tenants 
provided full representation were twice as likely to 
remain in their homes, saved 4 times as much rent, 
and paid $0 to their landlord as compared to those 
receiving limited or no legal assistance; and 
(16) a California study of the Shriver Civil 
Counsel Program found that 91 percent of Shriver 
cases ended with the eviction record sealed, 81 per-
cent with the eviction not reported to a credit agen-
cy, and 71 percent with a neutral reference provided 
by the landlord, tenants in such cases saved nearly 
$800 more in reduced rent and other fees while pay-
ing holdover damages or attorney’s fees only half as 
often, and 71 percent of represented clients that had 
been required to move had obtained a new rental 
unit, compared to 43 percent of unrepresented ten-
ants. 
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SEC. 3. DATABASE OF EVICTION INFORMATION. 
(a) REPORTS BY HOUSING PROVIDERS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Housing 
and Urban Development shall require each State 
and local entity that receives covered housing assist-
ance to submit to the Secretary annual reports 
under this section regarding evictions from assisted 
dwelling units of the covered housing occurring dur-
ing the preceding year. 
(2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted pursu-
ant to subsection (a) shall include— 
(A) for each household subject to an evic-
tion proceeding during the year which the re-
port covers— 
(i) the reason or reasons that the evic-
tion proceeding was undertaken and, in the 
case of any eviction proceeding undertaken 
in whole or in part based on an arrearage 
in rent owed, the amount of such arrear-
age and the amount of the tenant’s re-
quired contribution toward rent; 
(ii) the date on which the household 
was ordered to be evicted; 
(iii) the address of the dwelling unit 
from which the household was evicted; 
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(iv) whether the household was rep-
resented by legal counsel in any eviction 
proceeding, if such information is available; 
(v) the number of days the household 
was given to vacate the dwelling unit, if 
such information is available; and 
(vi) whether a writ of execution was 
issued in regards to the eviction; and 
(B) for each individual in any household 
subject to an eviction proceeding during the 
year which the report covers— 
(i) the name of the individual; 
(ii) the annual income of the indi-
vidual in the fiscal year prior to the year 
during which the individual was evicted, if 
available; 
(iii) the disability status of the indi-
vidual evicted, if available; 
(iv) any available demographic infor-
mation about the individual including race, 
ethnicity, age, and gender; 
(v) any foster care history for the in-
dividual, if available; 
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(vi) any serious physical health prob-
lems or serious mental illness of the indi-
vidual, if such information is available; 
(vii) any history of prior homelessness 
of the individual, if such information is 
available; and 
(viii) whether the individual has a 
criminal record, if such information is 
available. 
(3) DATA REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary of 
Housing and Urban Development shall develop re-
quirements for States and local entities that receive 
covered housing assistance that— 
(A) provide that the provision of the infor-
mation being collected under this subsection 
shall be voluntary on the part of any individual 
or household who is or was a tenant in an as-
sisted dwelling unit of covered housing; 
(B) provide limitations on how long the in-
formation described in paragraph (2) shall be 
retained; 
(C) establish data privacy and security re-
quirements for the information described in 
paragraph (2) that include appropriate meas-
ures to ensure that the privacy of the individ-
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uals and households is protected and that the 
information, including any personally identifi-
able information, is collected and used only for 
the purpose of submitting reports under para-
graph (1); and 
(D) confidentiality protections for data col-
lected about any individuals who are survivors 
of intimate partner violence, sexual assault, or 
stalking. 
(b) DATABASE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish 
a database for collecting and maintaining informa-
tion submitted in reports pursuant to subsection (a). 
(2) PRIVACY
PROTECTIONS.—The Secretary 
shall establish appropriate measures regarding infor-
mation in the database to ensure that the privacy of 
the individuals and households is protected and that 
any personally identifiable information is not dis-
closed. 
(3) DISAGGREGATION.—To the extent possible, 
such database shall be disaggregated by race, gen-
der, income, and disability. 
SEC. 4. ASSISTANCE FOR EVICTION RELATED LEGAL AID. 
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec-
retary $10,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2021, to remain 
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available until expended, for assistance under the Emer-
gency Solutions Grants program under subtitle B of title 
IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 
U.S.C. 11371 et seq.), to be used only for— 
(1) providing legal counsel for tenants subject 
to or at risk of eviction with regard to any eviction- 
related legal proceeding; and 
(2) costs of any court fees associated with an 
eviction-related legal proceeding for a tenant (ex-
cluding any attorneys fees for the attorney of the 
landlord of the tenant). 
SEC. 5. CONSUMER REPORTS. 
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et 
seq.) is amended— 
(1) by inserting after section 605B the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘SEC. 605C. ADVERSE INFORMATION RELATING TO HOUS-
ING COURT RECORDS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A consumer reporting agency 
may only furnish a consumer report containing an adverse 
item of information relating to a landlord tenant action 
if— 
‘‘(1) the landlord in the action prevailed in a 
final judgment; and 
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‘‘(2) the tenant in such action was not a minor 
on the date that such court claim was filed. 
‘‘(b) 1 YEAR LIMITATION.—A consumer reporting 
agency shall remove from a consumer report any adverse 
item of information relating to a landlord tenant action 
not later than one year after the date of such landlord 
tenant action.’’; and 
(2) in the table of contents, by inserting after 
the item relating to section 605B the following new 
item: 
‘‘605C. Adverse information relating to housing court records.’’. 
SEC. 6. EVICTION INFORMATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, not later 
than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
issue rules that require each owner of a covered federally 
assisted rental dwelling unit to ensure that each tenant 
of such dwelling unit owned by such owner receives infor-
mation not less than once each year about— 
(1) the rights and responsibilities of such owner 
with regard to eviction; and 
(2) local organizations and resources that can 
provide assistance in eviction-related matters. 
(b) HOTLINE.—The Secretary shall, not later than 
1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, estab-
lish a hotline to provide assistance with regard to eviction- 
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related matters to tenants of covered federally assisted 
rental dwelling units. 
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 
(a) For purposes of this Act: 
(1) 
ASSISTANCE.—The 
term 
‘‘assistance’’ 
means any grant, loan, subsidy, contract, cooperative 
agreement, or other form of financial assistance, but 
such term does not include the insurance or guar-
antee of a loan, mortgage, or pool of loans or mort-
gages. 
(2) COVERED
FEDERALLY
ASSISTED
RENTAL 
DWELLING UNIT.—The term ‘‘covered federally as-
sisted rental dwelling unit’’ means a residential 
dwelling unit that is made available for rental and 
for which assistance is provided, or that is part of 
a housing project for which assistance is provided, 
under any program administered by the Secretary of 
Housing and Urban Development, including— 
(A) the public housing program under the 
United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 
1437 et seq.); 
(B) the program for rental assistance 
under section 8 of the United States Housing 
Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f); 
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(C) the HOME Investment Partnerships 
program under title II of the Cranston-Gon-
zalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 
U.S.C. 12721 et seq.); 
(D) title IV of the McKinney-Vento Home-
less Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11360 et seq.); 
(E) the Housing Trust Fund program 
under section 1338 of the Housing and Com-
munity Development Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 
4568); 
(F) the program for supportive housing for 
the elderly under section 202 of the Housing 
Act of 1959 (12 U.S.C. 1701q); 
(G) the program for supportive housing for 
persons with disabilities under section 811 of 
the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable 
Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 8013); 
(H) the AIDS Housing Opportunities pro-
gram under subtitle D of title VIII of the Cran-
ston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act 
(42 U.S.C. 12901 et seq.); 
(I) the program for Native American hous-
ing under the Native American Housing Assist-
ance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 
U.S.C. 4101 et seq.); and 
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Community Development Act of 1974 (42 
U.S.C. 5301 et seq.). 
(F) The HOME Investment Partnerships 
program under titles I and II of the Cranston- 
Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 
U.S.C. 12704 et seq.). 
(G) The program for housing opportunities 
for persons with AIDS under subtitle D of title 
VIII of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Afford-
able Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12901 et seq.). 
(H) The programs for homeless assistance 
under title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless 
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11361 et seq.). 
(4) COVERED HOUSING ASSISTANCE.—The term 
‘‘covered housing assistance’’ means assistance 
under any program specified in paragraph (3). 
(5) LEGAL COUNSEL.—The term ‘‘legal coun-
sel’’ means full representation by an attorney 
throughout proceedings in issue. 
(6) OWNER.—For the purposes of this Act, the 
term ‘‘owner’’ means any private person or entity, 
including a cooperative, an agency of the Federal 
Government, or a public housing agency, having the 
legal right to lease or sublease dwelling units. 
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(7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 
Æ 
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