ing or financial assistance, health care, mortgages, 
bond and tax financing, homebuyer support courses, 
financial education, mortgage insurance or loan 
guarantees, housing counseling, supportive services, 
energy assistance, or other assistance related to 
healthy housing. 
(8) SERVICE.—The term ‘‘service’’ includes 
public and environmental health services, housing 
services, energy efficiency services, human services, 
and any other services needed to ensure that fami-
lies and individuals in the United States have access 
to healthy housing. 
SEC. 4. INTERAGENCY COUNCIL ON HEALTHY HOUSING. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the ex-
ecutive branch an independent council to be known as the 
Interagency Council on Healthy Housing. 
(b) OBJECTIVES.—The objectives of the Council are 
as follows: 
(1) To promote the supply of and demand for 
healthy housing in the United States through capac-
ity building, technical assistance, education, and 
public policy. 
(2) To promote coordination and collaboration 
among the Federal departments and agencies in-
volved with housing, public health, energy efficiency, 
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emergency preparedness and response, and the envi-
ronment to improve services for families and individ-
uals residing in inadequate or unsafe housing and to 
make recommendations about needed changes in 
programs and services with an emphasis on— 
(A) maximizing the impact of existing pro-
grams and services by transitioning the focus of 
such programs and services from categorical ap-
proaches to comprehensive approaches that con-
sider and address multiple housing-related 
health hazards; 
(B) reducing or eliminating areas of over-
lap and duplication in the provision and accessi-
bility of such programs and services; 
(C) ensuring that resources, including as-
sistance with capacity building, are targeted to 
and sufficient to meet the needs of high-risk 
communities, families, and individuals; and 
(D) facilitating access by families and indi-
viduals to programs and services that help re-
duce health hazards in housing. 
(3) To identify knowledge gaps, research needs, 
and policy and program deficiencies associated with 
inadequate housing conditions and housing-related 
illnesses and injuries. 
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(4) To help identify best practices for achieving 
and sustaining healthy housing. 
(5) To help improve the quality of existing and 
newly constructed housing and related programs and 
services, including those programs and services 
which serve low-income families and individuals. 
(6) To establish an ongoing system of coordina-
tion among and within such agencies or organiza-
tions so that the healthy housing needs of families 
and individuals are met in a more effective and effi-
cient manner. 
(c) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall be composed of 
the following members: 
(1) The Secretary of Health and Human Serv-
ices. 
(2) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel-
opment. 
(3) The Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency. 
(4) The Secretary of Energy. 
(5) The Secretary of Labor. 
(6) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs. 
(7) The Secretary of the Treasury. 
(8) The Secretary of Agriculture. 
(9) The Secretary of Education. 
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(10) The head of any other Federal agency as 
the Council considers appropriate. 
(11) Six additional non-Federal employee mem-
bers, as appointed by the President to serve terms 
not to exceed 2 years, of whom— 
(A) 1 shall be a State or local Government 
Director of Health or the Environment; 
(B) 1 shall be a State or local Government 
Director of Housing or Community Develop-
ment; 
(C) 2 shall represent non-profit organiza-
tions involved in housing or health issues; and 
(D) 2 shall represent for-profit entities in-
volved in the housing, banking, or health insur-
ance industries. 
(d) CO-CHAIRPERSONS.—The co-Chairpersons of the 
Council shall be the Secretary of Housing and Urban De-
velopment and the Secretary of Health and Human Serv-
ices. 
(e) VICE CHAIR.—Every 2 years, the Council shall 
elect a Vice Chair from among its members. 
(f) MEETINGS.—The Council shall meet at the call 
of either co-Chairperson or a majority of its members at 
any time, and no less often than annually. 
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SEC. 5. FUNCTIONS OF THE COUNCIL. 
(a) RELEVANT ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out the ob-
jectives described in section 4(b), the Council shall— 
(1) review Federal programs and services that 
provide housing, health, energy, or environmental 
services to families and individuals; 
(2) monitor, evaluate, and recommend improve-
ments in existing programs and services adminis-
tered, funded, or financed by Federal, State, and 
local agencies to assist families and individuals in 
accessing healthy housing and make recommenda-
tions about how such agencies can better work to 
meet the healthy housing and related needs of low- 
income families and individuals; 
(3) recommend ways to— 
(A) reduce duplication among programs 
and services by Federal agencies that assist 
families and individuals in meeting their 
healthy housing and related service needs; 
(B) ensure collaboration among and within 
agencies in the provision and availability of pro-
grams and services so that families and individ-
uals are able to easily access needed programs 
and services; 
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