Healthy Affordable Housing Act

The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section, establish a grant and loan program that provides amounts to eligible entities to use to develop, create, or preserve qualifying affordable dwelling units in neighborhoods that the Secretary has determined have shortages of affordable housing.

To apply for a grant or loan under this section, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may reasonably require.

Grants and loans may only be awarded to applicants that propose to develop, create, or preserve qualifying affordable dwelling units that are in a neighborhood with—

(i) a Federally qualified health center;

(ii) a health care provider who, as determined by the Secretary accepts Medicaid and provides primary care services;

(iii) a grocery store that accepts Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or the Nutrition Assistance Program, benefits and Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children benefits;

(iv) a State licensed child care provider or an eligible child care provider under the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act that cares for at least one child to whom the provider is not related;

(v) a pharmacy; or

(vi) public transportation, as such term is defined in paragraph (15) of section 5302 of title 49, United States Code.

The Secretary shall give preference to applicants that are—

(i) developing, creating, or preserving qualifying affordable dwelling units that are not more than a mile from 2 or more of the types of amenities listed in subparagraph (A); or

(ii) developing, creating, or preserving, with or without the assistance of a partnering entity, qualifying affordable dwelling units that are located in buildings that have or will contain any of the amenities listed in subparagraph (A).

The Secretary, in administering the grant and loan program, may establish selection criteria relating to—

(i) how many qualifying affordable housing units will be developed, created, or preserved;

(ii) the boundaries of the neighborhood in which the qualifying affordable dwelling units are to be developed, created, or preserved; and

(iii) the area median income in the area in which the qualifying affordable housing units are to be developed, created, or preserved.

Two years after the date that any qualifying affordable dwelling unit is first occupied after being developed, created, or preserved using amounts provided under this section, and every 2 years thereafter for 10 years, the Secretary shall conduct a voluntary survey of residents in such dwelling unit about any benefits they perceive associated with being physically near the amenities listed in subsection (b)(2)(A).

The Secretary may, if the Secretary determines appropriate, survey persons who are not residents in a qualifying affordable dwelling unit that received amounts under this section as part of a control group for the survey required under subparagraph (A).

The Secretary shall, not later than 1 year after the date on which the Secretary completes a survey required under paragraph (1), compile the results of each survey conducted under paragraph (1) and submit a report about such results to the Committees on Appropriations and Financial Services of the House of Representatives and the Committees on Appropriations and Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate.

Each report submitted under subparagraph (A) shall evaluate, with respect to each qualifying affordable dwelling unit developed, created, or preserved using amounts provided under this section, whether nearby the amenities identified in subsection (b)(2)(A) have closed or changed location in the time since the previous report submitted under subparagraph (A).

Nothing in this section may be construed to prohibit the Secretary from awarding a grant or loan under this section to a person who has applied for another funding opportunity administered by the Secretary relating to the development, creation, or preservation of affordable housing units.

Nothing in this section may be construed to prohibit a qualifying affordable dwelling unit that is developed, created, or preserved using amounts provided under this section from receiving tenant-based assistance or project-based assistance under section 8(o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937.

There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $100,000,000 in each of fiscal years 2024 to 2028 carry out this section.

In this section:

The term eligible entity means—

(A) a unit of general local government, including county government;

(B) a tribe, tribal entity or tribally designated housing entity;

(C) an owner or developer of a qualifying affordable dwelling unit;

(D) a public housing agency;

(E) an organization with a mission that involves the development, creation, preservation, renovation, operation, or maintenance of affordable housing; or

(F) any combination of the entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (E).

The term Federally qualified health center has the meaning given the term in section 1861(aa)(4) of the Social Security 22 Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(aa)).

The term qualifying affordable dwelling unit means a dwelling unit that—

(A) qualifies as affordable housing under 215(a) of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act; and

(B) meets the income targeting requirements described in section 214(1) of such Act.

The term Secretary means the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.