I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1847 
To suspend obligations of residential renters and mortgagors to make 
payments during the COVID–19 emergency, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 11, 2021 
Ms. OMAR (for herself, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. BOW-
MAN, Mr. POCAN, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. JONES, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, 
Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Ms. PRESSLEY, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. THOMPSON of 
Mississippi, Ms. NORTON, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. TLAIB, Ms. CLARKE of 
New York, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, 
Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. CARSON, Ms. OCASIO-CORTEZ, Mr. 
NADLER, and Ms. BUSH) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Financial Services 
A BILL 
To suspend obligations of residential renters and mortgagors 
to make payments during the COVID–19 emergency, 
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 ‘‘Rent and Mortgage 
Cancellation Act of 2021’’. 
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SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF OBLIGATIONS TO MAKE RESIDEN-
TIAL MORTGAGE AND RENT PAYMENTS. 
(a) RENT PAYMENTS.— 
(1) SUSPENSION.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, the obligation of each tenant house-
hold of a covered rental dwelling unit to pay rent for 
occupancy in such dwelling unit shall be suspended 
with respect to such occupancy during the COVID- 
19 suspension period. 
(2) PROHIBITIONS.— 
(A) ON
FINES.—No tenant or tenant 
household may be charged a fine or fee for non-
payment of rent in accordance with paragraph 
(1) and such nonpayment of rent shall not be 
grounds for any termination of tenancy or evic-
tion. 
(B) ON
DEBT.—No tenant or tenant 
household may be treated as accruing any debt 
by reason of suspension of contribution of rent 
under paragraph (1). 
(C) ON REPAYMENT.—No tenant or tenant 
household may be held liable for repayment of 
any amount of rent contribution suspended 
under paragraph (1). 
(D) 
ON
CREDIT
SCORES.—The 
non-
payment of rent by a tenant or tenant house-
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hold shall not be reported to a consumer report-
ing agency nor shall such nonpayment adversely 
affect a tenant or member of a tenant house-
hold’s credit score. 
(b) MORTGAGE PAYMENTS.— 
(1) SUSPENSION.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, the obligation of each mortgagor 
under a covered residential mortgage loan to make 
mortgage payments of principal and interest that be-
come due during the COVID-19 suspension period is 
hereby suspended. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS AND PROHIBITIONS.— 
(A) ON DEBT.—No mortgagor under any 
covered residential mortgage loan may be held 
responsible for payment of mortgage payments 
suspended under paragraph (1) or treated as 
accruing any debt by reason of suspension 
under such paragraph of the obligation to make 
mortgage payments. 
(B) ON
FORECLOSURE.—A mortgagee 
under a covered residential mortgage loan (or 
servicer for such mortgagee) may not commence 
or continue any judicial foreclosure action or 
non-judicial foreclosure process or any action 
for failure to make a payment due under such 
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mortgage that is suspended pursuant to para-
graph (1). 
(C) ON
FEES, PENALTIES, AND
INTER-
EST.—No fees, penalties, or additional interest 
beyond the amounts scheduled or calculated as 
if the mortgagor made all contractual payments 
on time and in full under the terms of the 
mortgage contract in effect as of the commence-
ment of the COVID-19 suspension period shall 
accrue. 
(D) 
ON
CREDIT
SCORES.—The 
non-
payment of a mortgage payment by a mort-
gagor pursuant to suspension under paragraph 
(1) of the obligation to make such payment 
shall not be reported to a consumer reporting 
agency nor shall such nonpayment adversely af-
fect a mortgagor’s credit score. 
(c) NOTICE.—The Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development shall establish and carry out a system to no-
tify all tenants of covered rental dwelling units, including 
tenants described in section 8(1)(B)(ii), and all mortga-
gors under covered residential mortgage loans, of the sus-
pensions under paragraph (1) of subsections (a) and (b) 
of the obligations to make rental payments or mortgage 
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payments, respectively, and of their right to pursue legal 
action pursuant to section 4. 
SEC. 3. FORGIVENESS OF RESIDENTIAL RENT AND MORT-
GAGE DEBT. 
(a) RENT DEBT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, all debt for unpaid residential rent 
arrears for a covered rental dwelling unit that ac-
crued from March 13, 2020, through April 1, 2022, 
is hereby forgiven. 
(2) PREEMPTION.—To the extent that any 
State or local law or decision of any State or local 
court or arbitral body conflicts with paragraph (1), 
it is preempted and shall have no force or effect. 
(3) NO EFFECT ON CREDIT SCORE.—Receipt of 
forgiveness of residential rent debt pursuant to para-
graph (1) shall not be reported to any consumer re-
porting agency nor shall receipt of such forgiveness 
adversely affect the credit score of any tenant or 
member of a tenant household. 
(b) MORTGAGE DEBT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, all debt for unpaid residential mort-
gage arrears under a covered residential mortgage 
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loan that accrued from March 13, 2020, through 
April 1, 2022, is hereby forgiven. 
(2) REDUCTION OF BALANCE.—By consequence 
of the forgiveness required under paragraph (1), for-
given mortgage debt shall be reduced from mortga-
gors’ interest and principal balances, as applicable. 
(3) PREEMPTION.—To the extent that any 
State or local law or decision of any State or local 
court or arbitral bodies conflicts with paragraph (1), 
it is preempted and shall have no force or effect. 
(4) NO EFFECT ON CREDIT SCORE.—Receipt of 
forgiveness of residential rent debt pursuant to para-
graph (1) shall not be reported to any consumer re-
porting agency nor shall receipt of such forgiveness 
adversely affect the credit score of a mortgagor. 
(c) NOTICE.—The Secretary of Housing and Urban 
Development shall establish and carry out a system to no-
tify all tenants of covered rental dwelling units, including 
tenants described in section 8(1)(B)(ii), and all mortga-
gors under covered residential mortgage loans, of the for-
giveness under paragraph (1) of subsections (a) and (b) 
of debt for unpaid residential rent and mortgage arrears, 
respectively, and of their right to pursue legal action pur-
suant to section 4. 
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SEC. 4. CIVIL ACTION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Any individual aggrieved by an 
adverse action taken by a lessor or mortgagee for exer-
cising rights under section 2 or 3 may commence a civil 
action under this section against the lessor or mortgagee 
violating such section in an appropriate United States dis-
trict court or State court not later than 2 years after such 
violation occurs for damages under subsection (b). 
(b) DAMAGES; PENALTY.—Any lessor or mortgagee 
found to have taken adverse action against any lessee or 
mortgagor for exercising rights under section 2 shall be 
liable— 
(1) to the individual aggrieved by such viola-
tion, for any actual damages as a result of such ad-
verse action; and 
(2) for a fine in the amount of— 
(A) $5,000, in the case of violation that is 
the first violation by such lessor or mortgagee; 
(B) $10,000, in the case of violation that 
is the second violation by such lessor or mort-
gagee; and 
(C) $50,000 or forfeiture of the property, 
in the case of violation that is the third or sub-
sequent violation by such lessor or mortgagee. 
(c) AUTHORITY OF COURT.—In an action brought 
under this section, the court— 
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(1) may award preventative relief, including a 
permanent or temporary injunction or other order, 
to ensure the full rights granted by subsections (a) 
and (b) of section 2 and by subsections (a) and (b) 
of section 3; and 
(2) shall award any prevailing plaintiff, other 
than the United States, reasonable attorney’s fee 
and costs. 
(d) ATTORNEY GENERAL ENFORCEMENT.—The At-
torney General may bring a civil action in any appropriate 
United States district court against any individual who 
violates subsection (a) or (b) of section 2 for fines, or sub-
section (a) or (b) of section 3, under subsection (b)(2) of 
this section. 
SEC. 5. LANDLORD RELIEF FUND. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Housing 
and Urban Development shall establish and manage a 
Landlord Relief Fund (in this section referred to as the 
‘‘Fund’’), to provide lessors payments under this section 
to reimburse such lessors for payments under covered 
rental dwelling units suspended or forgiven pursuant to 
section 2(a) or 3(a), respectively. 
(b) APPLICATION.—The Secretary shall provide for 
lessors of covered rental dwelling units to apply for reim-
bursement payments from the Fund, which applications 
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