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]
[H.R. 6362 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6362

 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 
                  coronavirus, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 23, 2020

 Ms. Pressley introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Financial Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 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 
                  coronavirus, 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.) $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 
``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 coronavirus 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.--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) may also be 
used for costs of the following activities:
            (1) Providing training on infectious disease prevention 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 activities 
        (including activities described in this paragraph) relating to 
        preventing, preparing for, or responding 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 paragraph shall 
not be considered use for administrative purposes for purposes of 
section 418 of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 
11377).
    (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 the coronavirus or 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 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 necessary to prevent and mitigate the spread of 
coronavirus or COVID-19, such shelters.
    (f) Inapplicability of Cap on Emergency Shelter Activities.--
Subsection (b) of section 415 of the 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 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 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 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 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 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, except that a 
        recipient shall publish how it has and will utilize its 
        allocation at a minimum on the internet at the appropriate 
        government website or through other electronic media.
    (i) Inapplicability of Matching Requirement.--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.
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