547 
(1) INAPPLICABILITY OF IN-PERSON HEARING 
REQUIREMENTS.—A grantee may not be required to 
hold in-person public hearings in connection with its 
citizen participation plan, but shall provide citizens 
with notice and a reasonable opportunity to com-
ment of not less than 15 days. Following the period 
that begins upon the date of the enactment of this 
Act and ends upon 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 Re-
lief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 4121 
et seq.) relating to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 
(COVID–19) pandemic, and after the period de-
scribed in paragraph (2), the Secretary shall direct 
grantees to resume pre-crisis public hearing require-
ments. 
(2) VIRTUAL PUBLIC HEARINGS.—During the 
period that national or local health authorities rec-
ommend social distancing and limiting public gath-
erings for public health reasons, a grantee may ful-
fill applicable public hearing requirements for all 
grants from funds made available pursuant to this 
section by carrying out virtual public hearings. Any 
such virtual hearings shall provide reasonable notifi-
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548 
cation and access for citizens in accordance with the 
grantee’s certifications, timely responses from local 
officials to all citizen questions and issues, and pub-
lic access to all questions and responses. 
(l) ADMINISTRATION.—Of any amounts made avail-
able pursuant to subsection (a), not more than the lesser 
of 0.5 percent, or $15,000,000, may be used for staffing, 
training, technical assistance, technology, monitoring, re-
search, and evaluation activities necessary to carry out the 
program carried out under this section, and such amounts 
shall remain available until September 30, 2024. 
SEC. 105. EMERGENCY HOMELESS ASSISTANCE. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated under the Emergency Solu-
tions Grants program under subtitle B of title IV of the 
McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
11371 et seq.) $15,500,000,000 for grants under such 
subtitle in accordance with this section to respond to needs 
arising from the public health emergency relating to 
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID–19). 
(b) FORMULA.—Notwithstanding sections 413 and 
414 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 
U.S.C. 11372, 11373), the Secretary of Housing and 
Urban Development (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Sec-
retary’’) shall allocate amounts made available pursuant 
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549 
to subsection (a) in accordance with a formula to be estab-
lished by the Secretary that takes into consideration the 
following factors: 
(1) Risk of transmission of coronavirus in a ju-
risdiction. 
(2) Whether a jurisdiction has a high number 
or rate of sheltered and unsheltered homeless indi-
viduals and families. 
(3) Economic and housing market conditions in 
a jurisdiction. 
(c) ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.—In addition to eligible ac-
tivities under section 415(a) of the McKinney-Vento 
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11374(a), amounts 
made available pursuant to subsection (a) may also be 
used for costs of the following activities: 
(1) Providing training on infectious disease pre-
vention and mitigation. 
(2) Providing hazard pay, including for time 
worked before the effectiveness of this clause, for 
staff working directly to prevent and mitigate the 
spread of coronavirus or COVID–19 among people 
experiencing or at risk of homelessness. 
(3) Reimbursement of costs for eligible activi-
ties (including activities described in this paragraph) 
relating to preventing, preparing for, or responding 
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to the coronavirus or COVID–19 that were accrued 
before the date of the enactment of this Act. 
Use of such amounts for activities described in this para-
graph shall not be considered use for administrative pur-
poses for purposes of section 418 of the McKinney-Vento 
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11377). 
(d) INAPPLICABILITY
OF PROCUREMENT STAND-
ARDS.—To the extent amounts made available pursuant 
to subsection (a) are used to procure goods and services 
relating to activities to prevent, prepare for, or respond 
to the coronavirus or COVID–19, the standards and re-
quirements regarding procurement that are otherwise ap-
plicable shall not apply. 
(e) INAPPLICABILITY OF HABITABILITY AND ENVI-
RONMENTAL REVIEW STANDARDS.—Any Federal stand-
ards and requirements regarding habitability and environ-
mental review shall not apply with respect to any emer-
gency shelter that is assisted with amounts made available 
pursuant to subsection (a) and has been determined by 
a State or local health official, in accordance with such 
requirements as the Secretary shall establish, to be nec-
essary to prevent and mitigate the spread of coronavirus 
or COVID–19, such shelters. 
(f) INAPPLICABILITY OF CAP ON EMERGENCY SHEL-
TER ACTIVITIES.—Subsection (b) of section 415 of the 
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McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act shall not apply 
to any amounts made available pursuant to subsection 
(a)(1) of this section. 
(g) INITIAL ALLOCATION OF ASSISTANCE.—Section 
417(b) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act 
(42 U.S.C. 11376(b)) shall be applied with respect to 
amounts made available pursuant to subsection (a) by 
substituting ‘‘30-day’’ for ‘‘60-day’’. 
(h) WAIVERS AND ALTERNATIVE REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1) AUTHORITY.—In administering amounts 
made available pursuant to subsection (a), the Sec-
retary may waive, or specify alternative require-
ments for, any provision of any statute or regulation 
(except for any requirements related to fair housing, 
nondiscrimination, labor standards, and the environ-
ment) that the Secretary administers in connection 
with the obligation or use by the recipient of such 
amounts, if the Secretary finds that good cause ex-
ists for the waiver or alternative requirement and 
such waiver or alternative requirement is consistent 
with the purposes described in this subsection. 
(2) 
EFFECTIVENESS; 
APPLICABILITY.—Any 
such waivers shall be deemed to be effective as of 
the date a State or unit of local government began 
preparing for coronavirus and shall apply to the use 
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552 
of amounts made available pursuant to subsection 
(a) and amounts provided in prior appropriation 
Acts for fiscal year 2020 under the heading ‘‘De-
partment of Housing and Urban Development— 
Community Planning and Development—Commu-
nity Development Fund’’ and used by recipients for 
the purposes described in this subsection. 
(3) NOTIFICATION.—The Secretary shall notify 
the public through the Federal Register or other ap-
propriate means 5 days before the effective date of 
any such waiver or alternative requirement, and any 
such public notice may be provided on the Internet 
at the appropriate Government web site or through 
other electronic media, as determined by the Sec-
retary. 
(4) EXEMPTION.—The use of amounts made 
available pursuant to subsection (a) shall not be sub-
ject to the consultation, citizen participation, or 
match requirements that otherwise apply to the 
Emergency Solutions Grants program, except that a 
recipient shall publish how it has and will utilize its 
allocation at a minimum on the Internet at the ap-
propriate Government web site or through other 
electronic media. 
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553 
(i) INAPPLICABILITY
OF
MATCHING
REQUIRE-
MENT.—Subsection (a) of section 416 of the McKinney- 
Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11375(a)) 
shall not apply to any amounts made available pursuant 
to subsection (a) of this section. 
(j) PROHIBITION ON PREREQUISITES.—None of the 
funds authorized under this section may be used to require 
people experiencing homelessness to receive treatment or 
perform any other prerequisite activities as a condition for 
receiving shelter, housing, or other services. 
SEC. 106. PARTICIPATION OF INDIAN TRIBES AND TRIB-
ALLY DESIGNATED HOUSING ENTITIES IN 
CONTINUUM OF CARE PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title IV of the McKinney-Vento 
Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11360 et seq.) is 
amended— 
(1) in section 401 (42 U.S.C. 11360)— 
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (10) 
through (33) as paragraphs (12) through (35), 
respectively; 
(B) by redesignating paragraphs (8) and 
(9) as paragraphs (9) and (10), respectively; 
(C) by inserting after paragraph (7) the 
following: 
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554 
‘‘(8) FORMULA AREA.—The term ‘formula area’ 
has the meaning given the term in section 1000.302 
of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, or any suc-
cessor regulation.’’; 
(D) in paragraph (9), as so redesignated, 
by inserting ‘‘a formula area,’’ after ‘‘non-
entitlement area,’’; and 
(E) by inserting after paragraph (10), as 
so redesignated, the following: 
‘‘(11) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian Tribe’ 
has the meaning given the term ‘Indian tribe’ in sec-
tion 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance 
and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 
4103).’’; and 
(2) in subtitle C (42 U.S.C. 11381 et seq.), by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 435. PARTICIPATION OF INDIAN TRIBES AND TRIB-
ALLY DESIGNATED HOUSING ENTITIES. 
‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, for 
purposes of this subtitle, an Indian Tribe or tribally des-
ignated housing entity (as defined in section 4 of the Na-
tive American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination 
Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103)) may— 
‘‘(1) be a collaborative applicant or eligible enti-
ty; or 
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‘‘(2) receive grant amounts from another entity 
that receives a grant directly from the Secretary, 
and use the amounts in accordance with this sub-
title.’’. 
(b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 
The table of contents in section 101(b) of the McKinney- 
Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Public Law 100–77; 101 
Stat. 482) is amended by inserting after the item relating 
to section 434 the following: 
‘‘Sec. 435. Participation of Indian Tribes and tribally designated housing enti-
ties.’’. 
SEC. 107. HOUSING ASSISTANCE FUND. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of the Treasury. 
(2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any 
State of the United States, the District of Columbia, 
any territory of the United States, Puerto Rico, 
Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, and the 
Northern Mariana Islands. 
(b) ESTABLISHMENT
OF FUND.—There is estab-
lished at the Department of the Treasury a Housing As-
sistance Fund to provide such funds as are allocated in 
subsection (f) to State housing finance agencies for the 
purpose of preventing homeowner mortgage defaults, fore-
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closures, and displacements of individuals and families ex-
periencing financial hardship after January 21, 2020. 
(c) ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Treas-
ury shall establish such criteria as are necessary to 
allocate the funds available within the Housing As-
sistance Fund to each State. The Secretary shall al-
locate such funds among all States taking into con-
sideration the number of unemployment claims with-
in a State relative to the nationwide number of un-
employment claims. 
(2) SMALL STATE MINIMUM.—Each State shall 
receive no less than $125,000,000 for the purposes 
established in subsection (b). 
(d) DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS.— 
(1) INITIAL
DISBURSEMENT.—The Secretary 
shall disburse to the State housing finance agencies 
not less than 1⁄2 of the amount made available pur-
suant to this section, and in accordance with the al-
locations established under subsection (c), not later 
than 120 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act. The Secretary or designee shall enter into a 
contract with each State housing finance agency, 
which may be amended from time to time, estab-
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