111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 46 
AN ACT 
To provide for payment of an administrative fee to public 
housing agencies to cover the costs of administering fam-
ily self-sufficiency programs in connection with the hous-
ing choice voucher program of the Department of Hous-
ing and Urban Development. 
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 ‘‘Family Self-Sufficiency 
Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. ADMINISTRATIVE FEES FOR FAMILY SELF-SUFFI-
CIENCY PROGRAM COSTS. 
Subsection (h) of section 23 of the United States 
Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437u(h)) is amended 
by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(1) SECTION 8 FEES.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary shall 
establish a fee under section 8(q) for the costs 
incurred in administering the self-sufficiency 
program under this section to assist families re-
ceiving voucher assistance through section 8(o). 
‘‘(B) ELIGIBILITY FOR FEE.—The fee shall 
provide funding for family self-sufficiency coor-
dinators as follows: 
‘‘(i) BASE
FEE.—A public housing 
agency serving 25 or more participants in 
the family self-sufficiency program under 
this section shall receive a fee equal to the 
costs of employing one full-time family 
self-sufficiency coordinator. An agency 
serving fewer than 25 such participants 
shall receive a prorated fee.
‘‘(ii) ADDITIONAL
FEE.—An agency 
that meets minimum performance stand-
ards shall receive an additional fee suffi-
cient to cover the costs of employing a sec-
ond family self-sufficiency coordinator if 
the agency has 75 or more participating 
families, and a third such coordinator if it 
has 125 or more participating families. 
‘‘(iii) PREVIOUSLY
FUNDED
AGEN-
CIES.—An agency that received funding 
from the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development for more than three 
such coordinators in any of fiscal years 
1999 through 2008 shall receive funding 
for the highest number of coordinators 
funded in a single fiscal year during that 
period, provided they meet applicable size 
and performance standards. 
‘‘(iv) INITIAL
YEAR.—For the first 
year in which a public housing agency ex-
ercises its right to develop an family self- 
sufficiency program for its residents, it 
shall be entitled to funding to cover the 
costs of up to one family self-sufficiency
coordinator, based on the size specified in 
its action plan for such program. 
‘‘(v) STATE
AND
REGIONAL
AGEN-
CIES.—For purposes of calculating the 
family self-sufficiency portion of the ad-
ministrative fee under this subparagraph, 
each administratively distinct part of a 
State or regional public housing agency 
shall be treated as a separate agency. 
‘‘(vi) DETERMINATION
OF
NUMBER 
OF
COORDINATORS.— 
In 
determining 
whether a public housing agency meets a 
specific threshold for funding pursuant to 
this paragraph, the number of participants 
being served by the agency in its family 
self-sufficiency program shall be considered 
to be the average number of families en-
rolled in such agency’s program during the 
course of the most recent fiscal year for 
which the Department of Housing and 
Urban Development has data. 
‘‘(C) PRORATION.—If insufficient funds 
are available in any fiscal year to fund all of the 
coordinators authorized under this section, the 
first priority shall be given to funding one coor-
dinator at each agency with an existing family 
self-sufficiency program. The remaining funds 
shall be prorated based on the number of re-
maining coordinators to which each agency is 
entitled under this subparagraph. 
‘‘(D) RECAPTURE.—Any fees allocated 
under this subparagraph by the Secretary in a 
fiscal year that have not been spent by the end 
of the subsequent fiscal year shall be recaptured 
by the Secretary and shall be available for pro-
viding additional fees pursuant to subparagraph 
(B)(ii). 
‘‘(E) PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.—Within 
six months after the date of the enactment of 
this paragraph, the Secretary shall publish a 
proposed rule specifying the performance stand-
ards applicable to funding under clauses (ii) 
and (iii) of subparagraph (B). Such standards 
shall include requirements applicable to the 
leveraging of in-kind services and other re-
sources to support the goals of the family self- 
sufficiency program. 
‘‘(F) DATA COLLECTION.—Public housing 
agencies receiving funding under this paragraph 
shall collect and report to the Secretary, in such
manner as the Secretary shall require, informa-
tion on the performance of their family self-suf-
ficiency programs. 
‘‘(G) EVALUATION.—The Secretary shall 
conduct a formal and scientific evaluation of 
the effectiveness of well-run family self-suffi-
ciency programs, using random assignment of 
participants to the extent practicable. Not later 
than the expiration of the 4-year period begin-
ning upon the enactment of this paragraph, the 
Secretary shall submit an interim evaluation re-
port to the Congress. Not later than the expira-
tion of the 8-year period beginning upon such 
enactment, the Secretary shall submit a final 
evaluation report to the Congress. There is au-
thorized to be appropriated $10,000,000 to 
carry out the evaluation under this subpara-
graph. 
‘‘(H) INCENTIVES FOR INNOVATION AND 
HIGH PERFORMANCE.—The Secretary may re-
serve up to 10 percent of the amounts made 
available for administrative fees under this 
paragraph to provide support to or reward fam-
ily self-sufficiency programs that are particu-
larly innovative or highly successful in achieving 
the goals of the program.’’. 
Passed the House of Representatives April 29, 2009. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 46 
AN ACT 
To provide for payment of an administrative fee to 
public housing agencies to cover the costs of ad-
ministering family self-sufficiency programs in 
connection with the housing choice voucher pro-
gram of the Department of Housing and Urban 
Development.