SEC. 2. IMPROVING ACCESS TO HOUSING FOR FOSTER 
YOUTH. 
Section 477 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
677) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(1)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and preventive’’ and in-
serting ‘‘preventive’’; and 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, and access to housing 
for youth age 18 or older’’ before the semicolon; 
(2) in subsection (a)(4), by inserting ‘‘current 
and’’ before ‘‘former’’; 
(3) in subsection (b)(2)(D), by inserting ‘‘, in-
cluding by collaborating with public housing agencies 
that administer Federal housing programs serving 
foster youth under section 8(x)(2)(B) of the United 
States Housing Act of 1937 and receive funding to 
partner with public child welfare agencies to serve 
youth who have experienced foster care’’ before the 
period; 
(4) in subsection (b)(3)(B), by striking ‘‘not 
more than 30 percent of the amounts paid to the 
State from its allotment under subsection (c) for a 
fiscal year’’ and inserting ‘‘an average of not more 
than 30 percent of the amounts paid to the State 
from its allotment under subsection (c) for the 5 fis-
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cal years covered by the application submitted by the 
State pursuant to paragraph (1) of this subsection’’; 
(5) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the 
following: 
‘‘(6) HOUSING SUPPORTIVE SERVICES.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—A State may use 
amounts from its allotment under subsection (c) 
to provide supportive services to assist eligible 
youth who experienced foster care to obtain or 
retain suitable housing. 
‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.— 
‘‘(i) ELIGIBLE YOUTH.—In this sub-
section, the term ‘eligible youth’ means an 
individual who receives assistance provided 
under section 8(x) of the United States 
Housing Act of 1937. 
‘‘(ii) 
SUPPORTIVE
SERVICES.—The 
term ‘supportive services’ may include— 
‘‘(I) basic life skills information 
and counseling on financial literacy, 
use of credit, and money management; 
‘‘(II) counseling on rental lease 
contracts and assistance with rental 
insurance; and 
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‘‘(III) assistance with security 
deposits, utility connection fees, mov-
ing costs, and other fees associated 
with establishing tenancy. 
‘‘(C) EXCEPTION.—Expenditures in ac-
cordance with this paragraph shall not be con-
sidered expenditures for room and board for 
purposes of subsection (b)(3)(B). 
‘‘(D) ALIGNING
AGE
ELIGIBILITY.—Not-
withstanding subsection (b)(3)(A)(ii), a State 
may use funds from its allotment under sub-
section (c) to provide supportive services to eli-
gible youth who have not attained 26 years of 
age for the purpose of supporting continued ac-
cess to housing.’’; and 
(6) in subsection (g)(1), by inserting ‘‘access to 
housing,’’ before ‘‘and personal’’. 
SEC. 3. JOINT AGENCY GUIDANCE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Within 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services and the Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development, shall develop and issue joint guidance to 
State public child welfare agencies and public housing au-
thorities to improve alignment and coordination of housing 
supportive services provided under section 477 of the So-
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cial Security Act and housing assistance provided under 
section 8(x) of the United States Housing Act of 1937. 
(b) CONTENTS.—The joint guidance shall include the 
following: 
(1) Clarification and alignment of Federal poli-
cies to improve access to housing for youth who have 
experienced foster care, including youth who are in 
independent living arrangements while in extended 
foster care. 
(2) Guidance on State use of funds provided 
under section 477 of the Social Security Act for sup-
portive services (as defined in subsection (d)(6) of 
such section) to improve access to housing programs 
administered by the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development. 
(3) Best practices for building partnerships be-
tween public child welfare agencies and public hous-
ing authorities, including ways to improve access to 
the supportive services. 
(4) Additional information the Secretaries deem 
necessary to effectively coordinate Federal programs 
serving current and former foster youth. 
(c) PRODUCTION.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services shall designate an official of the Depart-
ment of Health and Human Services to lead development 
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of the joint guidance in collaboration with the Department 
of Housing and Urban Development. 
SEC. 4. REPORT TO CONGRESS. 
Within 3 years after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in con-
sultation with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel-
opment shall submit to the Committee on Ways and 
Means and the Committee on Financial Services of the 
House of Representatives, and the Committee on Finance 
and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Af-
fairs of the Senate a report that sets forth— 
(1) aggregate data on the number of eligible 
youth who have experienced foster care who are re-
ceiving Federal housing assistance; 
(2) a description of the outcomes for the youth, 
including the extent to which youth are able to ac-
cess stable housing and rates of homelessness; 
(3) the findings from any evaluations of State 
programs conducted pursuant to section 477(g)(1) 
of the Social Security Act; and 
(4) statutory recommendations for improving 
coordination between public child welfare agencies 
and Federal housing programs. 
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SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall 
take effect on the date that is 1 year after the date of 
the enactment of this Act. 
Æ 
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