To promote the development of affordable, quality rental housing in rural areas for low-income households.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Rental Housing Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) There is a pressing and increasing need for rental 
        housing for rural families and senior citizens, as evidenced by 
        the fact that--
                    (A) two-thirds of extremely low-income and very 
                low-income rural households do not have access to 
                affordable rental housing units;
                    (B) more than 900,000 rural rental households (10.4 
                percent) live in either severely or moderately 
                inadequate housing; and
                    (C) substandard housing is a problem for 547,000 
                rural renters, and approximately 165,000 rural rental 
                units are overcrowded.
            (2) Many rural United States households live with serious 
        housing problems, including a lack of basic water and 
        wastewater services, structural insufficiencies, and 
        overcrowding, as shown by the fact that--
                    (A) 28 percent, or 10,400,000, rural households in 
                the United States live with some kind of serious 
                housing problem;
                    (B) approximately 1,000,000 rural renters have 
                multiple housing problems; and
                    (C) an estimated 2,600,000 rural households live in 
                substandard housing with severe structural damage or 
                without indoor plumbing, heat, or electricity.
            (3) In rural America--
                    (A) one-third of all renters pay more than 30 
                percent of their income for housing;
                    (B) 20 percent of rural renters pay more than 50 
                percent of their income for housing; and
                    (C) 92 percent of all rural renters with 
                significant housing problems pay more than 50 percent 
                of their income for housing costs, and 60 percent pay 
                more than 70 percent of their income for housing.
            (4) Rural economies are often less diverse, and therefore, 
        jobs and economic opportunity are limited because--
                    (A) factors that exist in rural environments, such 
                as remoteness and low population density, lead to 
                limited access to many forces driving the economy, such 
                as technology, lending, and investment; and
                    (B) local expertise is often limited in rural areas 
                where the economies are focused on farming or natural 
                resource-based industries.
            (5) Rural areas have less access to credit than 
        metropolitan areas since--
                    (A) banks and other investors that look for larger 
                projects with lower risk seek metropolitan areas for 
                loans and investment;
                    (B) credit that is available is often insufficient, 
                leading to the need for interim or bridge financing; 
                and
                    (C) credit in rural areas is often more expensive 
                and available at less favorable terms than in 
                metropolitan areas.
            (6) The Federal Government investment in rural rental 
        housing has dropped during the last 10 years, as evidenced by 
        the fact that--
                    (A) Federal spending for rural rental housing has 
                been cut by 73 percent since 1994; and
                    (B) rural rental housing unit production financed 
                by the Federal Government has been reduced by 88 
                percent since 1990.
            (7) To address the scarcity of rural rental housing, the 
        Federal Government must work in partnership with State and 
        local governments, private financial institutions, private 
        philanthropic institutions, and the private sector, including 
        nonprofit organizations.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Eligible project.--The term ``eligible project'' means 
        a project for the acquisition, rehabilitation, or construction 
        of rental housing and related facilities in an eligible rural 
        area for occupancy by low-income families.
            (2) Eligible rural area.--The term ``eligible rural area'' 
        means a rural area with a population of not more than 25,000, 
        as determined by the most recent decennial census of the United 
        States, and that is located outside an urbanized area.
            (3) Eligible sponsor.--The term ``eligible sponsor'' means 
        a public agency, an Indian tribe, a for-profit corporation, or 
        a private nonprofit corporation--
                    (A) a purpose of which is planning, developing, or 
                managing housing or community development projects in 
                rural areas; and
                    (B) that has a record of accomplishment in housing 
                or community development and meets other criteria 
                established by the Secretary by regulation.
            (4) Low-income families.--The term ``low-income families'' 
        has the meaning given the term in section 3(b) of the United 
States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)).
            (5) Qualified intermediary.--The term ``qualified 
        intermediary'' means a State, a State agency designated by the 
        Governor of the State, a public instrumentality of the State, a 
        private nonprofit community development corporation, a 
        nonprofit housing corporation, a community development loan 
        fund, or a community development credit union, that--
                    (A) has a record of providing technical and 
                financial assistance for housing and community 
                development activities in rural areas; and
                    (B) has a demonstrated technical and financial 
                capacity to administer assistance made available under 
                this Act.
            (6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Agriculture.
            (7) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several 
        States of the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 
        the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
        Mariana Islands, Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, the 
        Trust Territories of the Pacific, and any other possession of 
        the United States.

SEC. 4. RURAL RENTAL HOUSING ASSISTANCE.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary may, directly or through 1 or more 
qualified intermediaries in accordance with section 5, make assistance 
available to eligible sponsors in the form of loans, grants, interest 
subsidies, annuities, and other forms of financing assistance, to 
finance the eligible projects.
    (b) Applications.--
            (1) In general.--To be eligible to receive assistance under 
        this section, an eligible sponsor shall submit to the 
        Secretary, or a qualified intermediary, an application in such 
        form and containing such information as the Secretary shall 
        require by regulation.
            (2) Affordability restriction.--Each application under this 
        subsection shall include a certification by the applicant that 
        the housing to be acquired, rehabilitated, or constructed with 
        assistance under this section will remain affordable for low-
        income families for not less than 30 years.
    (c) Priority for Assistance.--In selecting among applicants for 
assistance under this section, the Secretary, or a qualified 
intermediary, shall give priority to providing assistance to eligible 
projects--
            (1) for very low-income families (as defined in section 
        3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 
        1437a(b)); and
            (2) in low-income communities or in communities with a 
        severe lack of affordable rental housing, in eligible rural 
        areas, as determined by the Secretary; or
            (3) if the applications are submitted by public agencies, 
        Indian tribes, private nonprofit corporations or limited 
        dividend corporations in which the general partner is a non-
        profit entity whose principal purposes include planning, 
        developing and managing low-income housing and community 
        development projects.
    (d) Allocation of Assistance.--
            (1) In general.--In carrying out this section, the 
        Secretary shall allocate assistance among the States, taking 
        into account the incidence of rural substandard housing and 
        rural poverty in each State and the share of that State of the 
        national total of such incidence.
            (2) Small state minimum.--In making an allocation under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide each state an amount 
        not less than $2,000,000.
    (e) Limitations on Amount of Assistance.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
        assistance made available under this Act may not exceed 50 
        percent of the total cost of the eligible project.
            (2) Exception.--Assistance authorized under this Act shall 
        not exceed 75 percent of the total cost of the eligible 
        project, if the project is for the acquisition, rehabilitation, 
        or construction of not more than 20 rental housing units for 
        use by very low-income families.

SEC. 5. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary may delegate authority for 
distribution of assistance--
            (1) to one or more qualified intermediaries in the State; 
        and
            (2) for a period of not more than 3 years, at which time 
        that delegation of authority shall be subject to renewal, in 
        the discretion of the Secretary, for 1 or more additional 
        periods of not more than 3 years.
    (b) Solicitation.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may, in the discretion of 
        the Secretary, solicit applications from qualified 
        intermediaries for a delegation of authority under this 
        section.
            (2) Contents of application.--Each application under this 
        subsection shall include--
                    (A) a certification that the applicant will--
                            (i) provide matching funds from sources 
                        other than this Act in an amount that is not 
                        less than the amount of assistance provided to 
                        the applicant under this section; and
                            (ii) distribute assistance to eligible 
                        sponsors in the State in accordance with 
                        section 4; and
                    (B) a description of--
                            (i) the State or the area within a State to 
                        be served;
                            (ii) the incidence of poverty and 
                        substandard housing in the State or area to be 
                        served;
                            (iii) the technical and financial 
                        qualifications of the applicant; and
                            (iv) the assistance sought and a proposed 
                        plan for the distribution of such assistance in 
                        accordance with section 4.
            (3) Multistate applications.--The Secretary may, in the 
        discretion of the Secretary, seek application by qualified 
        intermediaries for more than 1 State.

SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 
$250,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2008.

Summary: Rural Rental Housing Act of 2003 - Authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to provide rural rental assistance, with applicant priority given to very low-income families, low-income communities, rural areas, and communities with severe lack of affordable rental housing.