Title: Public Health Emergency Shelter Act of 2020
Policy area: Housing and Community Development

Summary:
Public Health Emergency Shelter Act of 2020
This bill authorizes additional grants under the Emergency Solutions Grants program to assist individuals and families experiencing a housing crisis or homelessness and to otherwise address needs arising from the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3856 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3856

 To authorize emergency homeless assistance grants under the Emergency 
    Solutions Grants program of the Department of Housing and Urban 
  Development for response to the public health emergency relating to 
                   COVID-19, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 1, 2020

 Ms. Warren (for herself, Ms. Hirono, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. Wyden, Mr. 
   Sanders, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Brown, Mr. 
  Blumenthal, Mr. Markey, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Cardin, Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. 
  Smith, and Mrs. Feinstein) introduced the following bill; which was 
read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To authorize emergency homeless assistance grants under the Emergency 
    Solutions Grants program of the Department of Housing and Urban 
  Development for response to the public health emergency relating to 
                   COVID-19, 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 ``Public Health Emergency Shelter Act 
of 2020''.

SEC. 2. EMERGENCY HOMELESS ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated under the Emergency Solutions Grants program under 
subtitle B of title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act 
(42 U.S.C. 11371 et seq.) $11,500,000,000 for grants under such 
subtitle in accordance with this section to respond to needs arising 
from the public health emergency relating to the Coronavirus Disease 
2019 (COVID-19).
    (b) Formula.--Notwithstanding sections 413 and 414 of the McKinney-
Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11372a, 11373), the Secretary 
of Housing and Urban Development (in this Act referred to as the 
``Secretary'') shall allocate amounts made available pursuant to 
subsection (a) in accordance with a formula to be established by the 
Secretary that takes into consideration the following factors:
            (1) Risk of transmission of COVID-19 in a jurisdiction.
            (2) Whether a jurisdiction has a high number or rate of 
        sheltered and unsheltered homeless individuals and families.
            (3) Economic and housing market conditions in a 
        jurisdiction.
    (c) Eligible Activities.--
            (1) In general.--In addition to eligible activities under 
        section 415(a) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act 
        (42 U.S.C. 11374(a)), amounts made available pursuant to 
        subsection (a) of this section may also be used for the costs 
        of the following activities:
                    (A) Providing training on infectious disease 
                prevention and mitigation.
                    (B) Providing hazard pay, including for time worked 
                before the date of enactment of this Act, for staff 
                working directly to prevent and mitigate the spread of 
                COVID-19 among people experiencing or at risk of 
                homelessness.
                    (C) Reimbursement of costs for eligible activities 
                (including activities described in this paragraph) 
                relating to preventing, preparing for, or responding to 
                COVID-19 that were accrued before the date of enactment 
                of this Act.
            (2) Use of amounts.--The use of amounts made available 
        pursuant to subsection (a) for activities described in 
        paragraph (1) shall not be considered use for administrative 
        purposes for purposes of section 418 of the McKinney-Vento 
        Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11378).
    (d) Inapplicability of Procurement Standards.--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 COVID-19, the standards and requirements regarding 
procurement that are otherwise applicable shall not apply.
    (e) Inapplicability of Habitability and Environmental Review 
Standards.--Any Federal standards and requirements regarding 
habitability and environmental review shall not apply with respect to 
any emergency shelter that--
            (1) is assisted with amounts made available pursuant to 
        subsection (a); and
            (2) has been determined by a State or local health 
        official, in accordance with such requirements as the Secretary 
        shall establish, to be necessary to prevent and mitigate the 
        spread of COVID-19.
    (f) Inapplicability of Cap on Emergency Shelter Activities.--
Section 415(b) of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
11374(b)) shall not apply to any amounts made available pursuant to 
subsection (a) of this section.
    (g) Initial Allocation of Assistance.--With respect to amounts made 
available pursuant to subsection (a), section 417(b) of the McKinney-
Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11376(b)) shall be applied by 
substituting ``30-day'' for ``60-day''.
    (h) Waivers and Alternative Requirements.--
            (1) Authority.--In administering amounts made available 
        pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary may waive, or specify 
        alternative requirements for, any provision of any statute or 
        regulation (except for any requirements related to fair 
        housing, nondiscrimination, labor standards, and the 
        environment) that the Secretary administers in connection with 
        the obligation or use by the recipient of such amounts, if the 
        Secretary finds that good cause exists 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 waiver or 
        alternative requirement described in paragraph (1) shall--
                    (A) be deemed to be effective as of the date on 
                which a State or unit of local government began 
                preparing for COVID-19; and
                    (B) apply to the use of amounts made available 
                pursuant to subsection (a) and amounts provided in 
                prior appropriation Acts for fiscal year 2020 under the 
                heading ``Department of Housing and Urban Development--
                Community Planning and Development--Community 
                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 appropriate means not 
        later than 5 days before the effective date of any waiver or 
        alternative requirement under paragraph (1), and any such 
        public notice may be provided on the internet at the 
        appropriate government website or through other electronic 
        media, as determined by the Secretary.
            (4) Exemption.--The use of amounts made available pursuant 
        to subsection (a) shall not be subject to the consultation, 
        citizen participation, or match requirements that otherwise 
        apply to the Emergency Solutions Grants program under subtitle 
        B of title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 
        U.S.C. 11371 et seq.), except that a recipient shall, at a 
        minimum, publish how the recipient has and will utilize its 
        allocation on the internet at the appropriate government 
        website or through other electronic media.
    (i) Inapplicability of Matching Requirement.--Section 416(a) 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.
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