I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6374 
To suspend requirements that tenants of assisted housing make contributions 
toward rent during the public health emergency relating to coronavirus, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 23, 2020 
Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To suspend requirements that tenants of assisted housing 
make contributions toward rent during the public health 
emergency relating to coronavirus, and for other pur-
poses. 
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 ‘‘Ensuring Affordable 
Housing Security During the Coronavirus Emergency Act 
of 2020’’. 
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SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF REQUIREMENTS REGARDING TEN-
ANT CONTRIBUTION TOWARD RENT. 
(a) SUSPENSION.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of law, the obligation of each tenant household of a 
dwelling unit in assisted housing to pay any contribution 
toward rent for occupancy in such dwelling unit shall be 
suspended with respect to such occupancy during the pe-
riod beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act 
and ending 6 months after the date of the termination 
by the Federal Emergency Management Agency of the 
emergency declared on March 13, 2020, by the President 
under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emer-
gency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 4121 et seq.) relating 
to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. 
(b) FEDERAL REIMBURSEMENT PAYMENTS.—To the 
extent that amounts are made available pursuant to sub-
section (e) for reimbursements under this subsection, the 
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development or the Sec-
retary of Agriculture, as appropriate, shall— 
(1) provide owners of assisted housing and pub-
lic housing agencies for any amounts in rent not re-
ceived as a result of subsection (a), plus the amount 
of any increases in costs of administering and main-
taining such housing to the extent only that such in-
creases result from the public health emergency re-
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lating to Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19); 
and 
(2) in the case of public housing agencies pro-
viding assistance under section 8(o) of the United 
States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)), 
reimburse such agencies in an amount sufficient to 
cover any increase in housing assistance payments 
resulting from the suspension of tenant rent pay-
ments pursuant to subsection (a), plus the amount 
of any increases in the cost of administering such 
assistance to the extent only that such increases re-
sult from the public health emergency relating to 
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). 
(c) PROHIBITIONS.— 
(1) ON FINES.—No tenant or tenant household 
may be charged a fine or fee for nonpayment of rent 
in accordance with subsection (a) and such non-
payment of rent shall not be grounds for any termi-
nation of tenancy or eviction. 
(2) ON DEBT.—No tenant or tenant household 
may be treated as accruing any debt by reason of 
suspension of contribution of rent under subsection 
(a). 
(3) ON
REPAYMENT.—No tenant or tenant 
household may be held liable for repayment of any 
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amount of rent contribution suspended under sub-
section (a). 
(4) ON CREDIT SCORES.—The nonpayment of 
rent by a tenant or tenant household shall not be re-
ported to a consumer reporting agency nor shall 
such nonpayment adversely affect a tenant or mem-
ber of a tenant household’s credit score. 
(d) ASSISTED HOUSING.—For purposes of this sec-
tion, the term ‘‘assisted housing’’ means housing or a 
dwelling unit assisted under— 
(1) section 213, 220, 221(d)(3), 221(d)(4), 
223(e), 231, or 236 of the National Housing Act 
(12 U.S.C. 1715l(d)(3), (d)(4), or 1715z–1); 
(2) section 101 of the Housing and Urban De-
velopment Act of 1965 (12 U.S.C. 1701s); 
(3) section 202 of the Housing Act of 1959 (12 
U.S.C. 1701q); 
(4) section 811 of the Cranston-Gonzales Na-
tional Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 8013); 
(5) title II of the Cranston-Gonzalez National 
Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 12701 et seq.); 
(6) subtitle D of title VIII of the Cranston-Gon-
zalez National Affordable Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 
12901 et seq.); 
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(7) title I of the Housing and Community De-
velopment Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.); 
(8) section 8 of the United States Housing Act 
of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f); 
(9) the public housing program under title I of 
the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 
1437 et seq.); or 
(10) section 514, 515, 516, 521(a)(2), 538, or 
542 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1484, 
1485, 1486, 1490a(a)(2), 1490p–2, 1490r). 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec-
essary to make payments under subsection (b) to all own-
ers of assisted housing and public housing agencies. 
Æ 
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