IIB 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3019 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
SEPTEMBER 18 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 
Received 
OCTOBER 2 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 17), 2008 
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
Affairs 
AN ACT 
To establish an Office of Housing Counseling to carry out 
and coordinate the responsibilities of the Department 
of Housing and Urban Development regarding counseling 
on homeownership and rental housing issues, to make 
grants to entities for providing such counseling, to launch 
a national housing counseling advertising campaign, and 
for other purposes. 
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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 ‘‘Expand and Preserve 
Home Ownership Through Counseling Act’’. 
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF HOUSING COUN-
SELING. 
Section 4 of the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development Act (42 U.S.C. 3533) is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(g) OFFICE OF HOUSING COUNSELING.— 
‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established, 
in the Office of the Secretary, the Office of Housing 
Counseling. 
‘‘(2) DIRECTOR.—There is established the posi-
tion of Director of Housing Counseling. The Direc-
tor shall be the head of the Office of Housing Coun-
seling and shall be appointed by the Secretary. Such 
position shall be a career-reserved position in the 
Senior Executive Service. 
‘‘(3) FUNCTIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Director shall 
have ultimate responsibility within the Depart-
ment, except for the Secretary, for all activities 
and matters relating to homeownership coun-
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seling and rental housing counseling, includ-
ing— 
‘‘(i) research, grant administration, 
public outreach, and policy development re-
lating to such counseling; and 
‘‘(ii) establishment, coordination, and 
administration of all regulations, require-
ments, standards, and performance meas-
ures under programs and laws adminis-
tered by the Department that relate to 
housing counseling, homeownership coun-
seling (including maintenance of homes), 
mortgage-related 
counseling 
(including 
home equity conversion mortgages and 
credit protection options to avoid fore-
closure), and rental housing counseling, in-
cluding the requirements, standards, and 
performance measures relating to housing 
counseling. 
‘‘(B) SPECIFIC FUNCTIONS.—The Director 
shall carry out the functions assigned to the Di-
rector and the Office under this section and any 
other provisions of law. Such functions shall in-
clude establishing rules necessary for— 
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‘‘(i) the counseling procedures under 
section 106(g)(1) of the Housing and 
Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 
U.S.C. 1701x(h)(1)); 
‘‘(ii) carrying out all other functions 
of the Secretary under section 106(g) of 
the Housing and Urban Development Act 
of 1968, including the establishment, oper-
ation, and publication of the availability of 
the toll-free telephone number under para-
graph (2) of such section; 
‘‘(iii) carrying out section 5 of the 
Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 
1974 (12 U.S.C. 2604) for home buying 
information booklets prepared pursuant to 
such section; 
‘‘(iv) carrying out the certification 
program under section 106(e) of the Hous-
ing and Urban Development Act of 1968 
(12 U.S.C. 1701x(e)); 
‘‘(v) carrying out the assistance pro-
gram under section 106(a)(4) of the Hous-
ing and Urban Development Act of 1968, 
including criteria for selection of applica-
tions to receive assistance; 
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‘‘(vi) carrying out any functions re-
garding abusive, deceptive, or unscrupulous 
lending practices relating to residential 
mortgage loans that the Secretary con-
siders appropriate, which shall include con-
ducting the study under section 6 of the 
Expand and Preserve Home Ownership 
Through Counseling Act; 
‘‘(vii) providing for operation of the 
advisory committee established under para-
graph (4) of this subsection; 
‘‘(viii) collaborating with community- 
based organizations with expertise in the 
field of housing counseling; and 
‘‘(ix) providing for the building of ca-
pacity to provide housing counseling serv-
ices in areas that lack sufficient services. 
‘‘(4) ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
appoint an advisory committee to provide advice 
regarding the carrying out of the functions of 
the Director. 
‘‘(B) MEMBERS.—Such advisory committee 
shall consist of not more than 12 individuals, 
and the membership of the committee shall 
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