I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 730
To require a housing impact analysis of any new rule of a Federal agency 
that has an economic impact of $100,000,000 or more. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 12, 2003
Mr. GREEN of Wisconsin (for himself, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mr. 
SOUDER, and Mr. TERRY) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To require a housing impact analysis of any new rule of 
a Federal agency that has an economic impact of 
$100,000,000 or more.
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 ‘‘Housing Affordability 
Assurance Act’’. 
SEC. 2. HOUSING IMPACT ANALYSIS. 
(a) APPLICABILITY.—Except as provided in sub-
section (b), the requirements of this section shall apply 
with respect to—
(1) any proposed rule, unless the agency pro-
mulgating the rule—
(A) has certified that the proposed rule 
will not, if given force or effect as a final rule, 
have a significant deleterious impact on housing 
affordability; and 
(B) has caused such certification to be 
published in the Federal Register at the time of 
publication of general notice of proposed rule-
making for the rule, together with a statement 
providing the factual basis for the certification; 
and 
(2) any final rule, unless the agency promul-
gating the rule—
(A) has certified that the rule will not, if 
given force or effect, have a significant delete-
rious impact on housing affordability; and 
(B) has caused such certification to be 
published in the Federal Register at the time of 
publication of the final rule, together with a 
statement providing the factual basis for the 
certification. 
Any agency making a certification under this subsection 
shall provide a copy of such certification and the state-
ment providing the factual basis for the certification to 
the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 
(b) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN BANKING RULES.—
The requirements of this section shall not apply to any 
proposed or final rule relating to—
(1) the operations, safety, or soundness of—
(A) federally insured depository institu-
tions or any affiliate of such an institution (as 
such term is defined in section 2(k) of the Bank 
Holding Company Act of 1956 (12 U.S.C. 
1841(k)); 
(B) credit unions; 
(C) the Federal home loan banks; 
(D) the enterprises (as such term is de-
fined in section 1303 of the Housing and Com-
munity Development Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 
4502); 
(E) a Farm Credit System institution; or 
(F) foreign banks or their branches, agen-
cies, commercial lending companies, or rep-
resentative offices that operate in the United 
States, or any affiliate of a foreign bank (as 
such terms are defined in section 1 of the Inter-
national Banking Act of 1978 (12 U.S.C. 
3101); or
(2) the payments system or the protection of 
deposit insurance funds or the Farm Credit Insur-
ance Fund. 
(c) STATEMENT
OF
PROPOSED
RULEMAKING.—
Whenever an agency publishes general notice of proposed 
rulemaking for any proposed rule, unless the agency has 
made a certification under subsection (a), the agency 
shall—
(1) in the notice of proposed rulemaking—
(A) state with particularity the text of the 
proposed rule; and 
(B) request any interested persons to sub-
mit to the agency any written analyses, data, 
views, and arguments, and any specific alter-
natives to the proposed rule; 
(2) provide an opportunity for interested per-
sons to take the actions specified under paragraph 
(1)(B) before promulgation of the final rule; and 
(3) prepare and make available for public com-
ment an initial housing impact analysis in accord-
ance with the requirements of subsection (d). 
(d) INITIAL HOUSING IMPACT ANALYSIS.—
(1) REQUIREMENTS.—Each initial housing im-
pact analysis shall describe the impact of the pro-
posed rule on housing affordability. The initial hous-
ing impact analysis or a summary shall be published 
in the Federal Register at the same time as, and to-
gether with, the publication of general notice of pro-
posed rulemaking for the rule. The agency shall 
transmit a copy of the initial housing impact anal-
ysis to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel-
opment. 
(2) CONTENTS.—Each initial housing impact 
analysis required under this subsection shall con-
tain—
(A) a description of the reasons why action 
by the agency is being considered; 
(B) a succinct statement of the objectives 
of, and legal basis for, the proposed rule; 
(C) a description of and, where feasible, an 
estimate of the extent to which the proposed 
rule would increase the cost or reduce the sup-
ply of housing or land for residential develop-
ment; and 
(D) an identification, to the extent prac-
ticable, of all relevant Federal rules which may 
duplicate, overlap, or conflict with the proposed 
rule. 
(e) FINAL HOUSING IMPACT ANALYSIS.—
(1) REQUIREMENT.—Whenever an agency pro-
mulgates a final rule after publication of a general 
notice of proposed rulemaking, unless the agency has 
made the certification under subsection (a), the 
agency shall prepare a final housing impact analysis. 
(2) CONTENTS.—Each final housing impact 
analysis shall contain—
(A) a succinct statement of the need for, 
and objectives of, the rule; 
(B) a summary of the significant issues, 
analyses, and alternatives to the proposed rule 
raised during the public comment period in re-
sponse to the proposed rule and initial housing 
impact analysis, a summary of the assessment 
of the agency of such issues, analyses, and al-
ternatives, and a statement of any changes 
made in the proposed rule as a result of such 
comments; and 
(C) a description of and an estimate of the 
extent to which the rule will impact housing af-
fordability or an explanation of why no such es-
timate is available. 
(3) AVAILABILITY.—The agency shall make 
copies of the final housing impact analysis available 
to members of the public and shall publish in the
Federal Register such analysis or a summary there-
of. 
(f) AVOIDANCE OF DUPLICATIVE OR UNNECESSARY 
ANALYSES.—
(1) DUPLICATION.—Any Federal agency may 
perform the analyses required by subsections (d) and 
(e) in conjunction with or as a part of any other 
agenda or analysis required by any other law, execu-
tive order, directive, or rule if such other analysis 
satisfies the provisions of such subsections. 
(2) JOINDER.—In order to avoid duplicative ac-
tion, an agency may consider a series of closely re-
lated rules as one rule for the purposes of sub-
sections (d) and (e). 
(g) PREPARATION OF ANALYSES.—In complying with 
the provisions of subsections (d) and (e), an agency may 
provide either a quantifiable or numerical description of 
the effects of a proposed rule or alternatives to the pro-
posed rule, or more general descriptive statements if quan-
tification is not practicable or reliable. 
(h) EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.—The requirements of 
subsections (d) and (e) do not alter in any manner stand-
ards otherwise applicable by law to agency action. 
(i) PROCEDURE FOR WAIVER OR DELAY OF COMPLE-
TION.—
(1) INITIAL HOUSING IMPACT ANALYSIS.—An 
agency head may waive or delay the completion of 
some or all of the requirements of subsection (d) by 
publishing in the Federal Register, not later than 
the date of publication of the final rule, a written 
finding, with reasons therefor, that the final rule is 
being promulgated in response to an emergency that 
makes compliance or timely compliance with the pro-
visions of subsection (a) impracticable. 
(2) FINAL
HOUSING
IMPACT
ANALYSIS.—An 
agency head may not waive the requirements of sub-
section (e). An agency head may delay the comple-
tion of the requirements of subsection (e) for a pe-
riod of not more than 180 days after the date of 
publication in the Federal Register of a final rule by 
publishing in the Federal Register, not later than 
such date of publication, a written finding, with rea-
sons therefor, that the final rule is being promul-
gated in response to an emergency that makes time-
ly compliance with the provisions of subsection (e) 
impracticable. If the agency has not prepared a final 
housing impact analysis pursuant to subsection (e) 
within 180 days from the date of publication of the 
final rule, such rule shall lapse and have no force or 
effect. Such rule shall not be repromulgated until a
final housing impact analysis has been completed by 
the agency. 
(j) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 
following definitions shall apply: 
(1) 
HOUSING
AFFORDABILITY.—The 
term 
‘‘housing affordability’’ means the quantity of hous-
ing that is affordable to families having incomes that 
do not exceed 150 percent of the median income of 
families in the area in which the housing is located, 
with adjustments for smaller and larger families. 
For purposes of this paragraph, area, median family 
income for an area, and adjustments for family size 
shall be determined in the same manner as such fac-
tors are determined for purposes of section 3(b)(2) 
of the United States Housing Act of 1937. 
(2) AGENCY.—The term ‘‘agency’’ means each 
authority of the Government of the United States, 
whether or not it is within or subject to review by 
another agency, but does not include—
(A) the Congress; 
(B) the courts of the United States; 
(C) the governments of the territories or 
possessions of the United States; 
(D) the government of the District of Co-
lumbia;
(E) agencies composed of representatives 
of the parties or of representatives of organiza-
tions of the parties to the disputes determined 
by them; 
(F) courts-martial and military commis-
sions; 
(G) military authority exercised in the field 
in time of war or in occupied territory; or 
(H) functions conferred by—
(i) sections 1738, 1739, 1743, and 
1744 of title 12, United States Code; 
(ii) chapter 2 of title 41, United 
States Code; 
(iii) subchapter II of chapter 471 of 
title 49, United States Code; or 
(iv) sections 1884, 1891–1902, and 
former section 1641(b)(2), of title 50, ap-
pendix, United States Code. 
(3) FAMILIES.—The term ‘‘families’’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 3 of the United 
States Housing Act of 1937. 
(4) RULE.—The term ‘‘rule’’ means any rule 
for which the agency publishes a general notice of 
proposed rulemaking pursuant to section 553(b) of 
title 5, United States Code, or any other law, includ-
ing any rule of general applicability governing grants 
by an agency to State and local governments for 
which the agency provides an opportunity for notice 
and public comment; except that such term does not 
include a rule of particular applicability relating to 
rates, wages, corporate or financial structures or re-
organizations thereof, prices, facilities, appliances, 
services, or allowances therefor or to valuations, 
costs or accounting, or practices relating to such 
rates, wages, structures, prices, appliances, services, 
or allowances. 
(5) 
SIGNIFICANT.—The 
term 
‘‘significant’’ 
means increasing consumers’ cost of housing by 
more than $100,000,000 per year. 
(k) DEVELOPMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Hous-
ing and Urban Development shall develop model initial 
and final housing impact analyses under this section and 
shall cause such model analyses to be published in the 
Federal Register. The model analyses shall define the pri-
mary elements of a housing impact analysis to instruct 
other agencies on how to carry out and develop the anal-
yses required under subsections (d) and (e). 
(l) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—
(1) DETERMINATION BY AGENCY.—Except as 
otherwise provided in paragraph (2), any determina-
tion by an agency concerning the applicability of any 
of the provisions of this Act to any action of the 
agency shall not be subject to judicial review. 
(2) OTHER ACTIONS BY AGENCY.—Any housing 
impact analysis prepared under subsection (d) or (e) 
and the compliance or noncompliance of the agency 
with the provisions of this Act shall not be subject 
to judicial review. When an action for judicial review 
of a rule is instituted, any housing impact analysis 
for such rule shall constitute part of the whole 
record of agency action in connection with the re-
view. 
(3) EXCEPTION.—Nothing in this subsection 
bars judicial review of any other impact statement or 
similar analysis required by any other law if judicial 
review of such statement or analysis is otherwise 
provided by law.
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