Title: Restoring Community Oversight of Sober Living Homes Act of 2018
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Restoring Community Oversight of Sober Living Homes Act of 2018
This bill amends the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to remove substance use disorder services from the list of essential health benefits that must be covered by health plans.
The bill also amends the Fair Housing Act to address state and local zoning laws regarding recovery facilities (buildings that are occupied by individuals who are handicapped by drug addiction or alcoholism and that prohibit controlled substances and alcohol). The bill specifies that federal anti-discrimination laws do not bar any state or local zoning laws that prohibit recovery facilities in residential areas. Recovery facilities must also comply with all state and local zoning laws in order to receive federal funds.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5724 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5724

To amend the Fair Housing Act to clarify the applicability of that Act 
            to recovery facilities, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 9, 2018

 Mr. Rohrabacher introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
  the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Fair Housing Act to clarify the applicability of that Act 
            to recovery facilities, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Restoring Community Oversight of 
Sober Living Homes Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. ZONING AND LICENSING OF RECOVERY FACILITIES.

    Section 807 of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3607) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Nothing in this title or any other Federal law relating to 
protections for those with disabilities prohibits any State or local 
government from implementing laws, regulations, or ordinances that 
apply specifically to recovery facilities located in residentially 
zoned areas, including a law, regulation, or ordinance which prohibits 
recovery facilities in residentially zoned areas.''.

SEC. 3. FAIR HOUSING ACT DEFINITIONS.

    Section 802 of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3602) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b), by inserting before the period at 
        the end the following: ``, except that such term does not 
        include any building, structure, or portion thereof that is 
        located in a residentially zoned area and is used as a recovery 
        facility''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(p) `Recovery facility' means a building, structure, or portion 
thereof that is occupied by a person who is handicapped due to drug 
addiction or alcoholism, and for which a condition of such occupancy of 
such building, structure, or portion thereof is that it remains free of 
controlled substances and alcohol.''.

SEC. 4. REQUIREMENTS FOR RECOVERY FACILITIES AS A CONDITION FOR CERTAIN 
              FEDERAL FUNDING.

    (a) In General.--A recovery facility in a residential zone may not 
receive direct or indirect payments or reimbursements or other 
remunerations from a Federal health care program unless--
            (1) the recovery facility is in compliance with State and 
        local laws, regulations, or ordinances that apply within the 
        zone where the recovery facility is located; and
            (2) the local government with jurisdiction over the zone in 
        which the recovery facility is located certifies to the 
        Secretary of Health and Human Services that the recovery 
        facility is in compliance with State and local laws, 
        regulations, or ordinances that apply within the zone where the 
        recovery facility is located.
    (b) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Federal health care program.--The term ``Federal health 
        care program'' has the meaning given such term in section 
        1128B(f) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320a7b(f)).
            (2) Recovery facility.--The term ``recovery facility'' has 
        the meaning given such term in section 802 of the Fair Housing 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 3602), as amended by section 3.

SEC. 5. REMOVING SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER SERVICES AS AN ESSENTIAL HEALTH 
              BENEFIT.

    Section 1302(b)(1)(E) of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care 
Act (42 U.S.C. 18022(b)(1)(E)) is amended by striking ``and substance 
use disorder''.

SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act, and the amendments made by this Act, shall take effect on 
the date that is 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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