,,ii #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #befg ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #bf1 #bjai,mrs4 ,shaheen 7for herself and ,ms4 ,smith7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,banking1 ,housing1 and ,urban ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to provide rental assistance to low-income tenants of certain multifamily rural housing projects1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,rural ,housing ,preservation ,act of #bjai4 #b4 ,availability of rural housing vouchers for tenants in projects with maturing loans 7a7 ,in general ,section #edb of the ,housing ,act of #aidi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adijr7 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7c7 ,rural vouchers for tenants of projects with prepaid or maturing loans 7#a7 ,authority ,subject to the availability of amounts provided in appropriation ,acts and to paragraph 7#c71 the ,secretary shall provide rural housing vouchers under this section1 in the amount provided under this section1 to any low-income household 7including those not receiving rental assistance7 residing in a property that is-- 7,a7 financed with a loan made or insured under section #ead or #eae that has been prepaid or has matured after ,september #cj1 #bjje2 or 7,b7 assisted under section #ead or #eaf that is owned by a nonprofit organization or public agency4 7#b7 ,administration and subsidies 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall1 to the maximum extent practicable1 administer and operate rural housing vouchers under this section according to regulations and administrative guidance that is applicable to enhanced vouchers under section #h7t7 of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adcg;f7t77 administered by the ,secretary of ,housing and ,urban ,development4 7,b7 ,amount of assistance ,the amount of rental assistance provided on behalf of holders of rural housing vouchers under this section shall be the same as the rental assistance provided on behalf of holders of enhanced vouchers under section #h7t7 of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adcg;f7t774 7#c7 ,termination of assistance ,the ,secretary shall terminate the provision of voucher assistance pursuant to this subsection1 with respect to a property1 if-- 7,a7 at any time1 a new loan is made or insured under section #ead or #eae for the property2 and 7,b7 as a result of a loan described in subparagraph 7,a71 rental assistance is provided on behalf of the voucher holder in an amount comparable to the rental assistance provided on behalf of the voucher holder under the voucher program4 7d7 ,limitation relating to projects with prepaid loans 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall not issue rural housing vouchers under this section to residents who remain in properties that-- 7,a7 were financed with a loan made or insured under section #ead or #eae that has been prepaid2 and 7,b7 are subject to any restrictive use agreements entered into pursuant to section #ejb7;c77#e77;,g74 7#b7 ,review and approval ,the ,secretary shall-- 7,a7 review and approve all proposed rent increases for residents of properties described in paragraph 7#a7 that are protected by the use agreements described in that paragraph2 and 7,b7 issue1 to those residents1 limited voucher assistance that covers the cost of all approved future rent increases that are not related to the cost of prepaying the loan or refinancing the property4 4 7b7 ,requirement for section #eae projects ,to accept vouchers ,section #eae of the ,housing ,act of #aidi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adhe7 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7bb7 ,requirement ,to accept rural housing vouchers ,no owner of a property financed with a loan made or insured under this section1 whether the loan is outstanding or fully paid1 may refuse to lease an available dwelling unit in the property to a household on behalf of whom voucher assistance is provided under section #edb1 and to enter into a voucher contract respecting the unit1 a proximate cause of which is the status of the current or prospective tenant as a holder of that voucher4 4 #c4 ,decoupling rental assistance from maturing rural housing loans ,section #eba7;a77#b7 of the ,housing ,act of #aidi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adij;a7a77#b77 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7,f7 ,rental assistance for projects with matured loans 7i7 ,authority ,to continue to make decent1 safe1 and sanitary housing available to low-income occupants of projects originally financed with a loan made or insured under section #ead or #eae that has matured on or after the date of enactment of this subparagraph or with a grant provided under section #eaf1 and at rental rates commensurate to income as specified in subparagraph 7,a71 the ,secretary may1 subject to the availability of amounts provided in appropriation ,acts1 contract to make and renew annual assistance payments pursuant to this subparagraph to the owners of those projects4 7ii7 ,offer ,the ,secretary shall ensure that an offer to provide a contract for assistance payments pursuant to this subparagraph shall be extended to all owners of projects described in clause 7i7 not later than #bd months before the maturation of the loan 7except in the case of loans maturing after the date that is #bd months before the date of enactment of this subparagraph74 7iii7 ,terms ,each contract for assistance payments pursuant to this subparagraph shall-- 7,i7 have a term of #bj years and be subject to availability of amounts provided in annual appropriations ,acts2 7,,ii7 cover all new and existing households residing in the project1 regardless of whether or not the households were previously assisted under the rental assistance program authorized under subparagraph 7,a72 7,,iii7 be recorded at such local real property recording office as is prescribed by the ,state in which the project is located2 7,,iv7 bind the owner of the project and successors of the owner to continue to operate the project in accordance with such agreements2 7,v7 require the owner and successors of the owner to agree to continue to operate the project as if the project were subject to an existing loan under section #ead or #eae or a grant under section #eaf1 as applicable2 7,,vi7 extend to residents of the project all the rights that at the time the contract is entered into are extended to residents of projects subject to an existing loan under section #ead or #eae or a grant under section #eaf1 as applicable2 7,,vii7 require the owner and successors of the owner to maintain the assisted housing as decent1 safe1 and sanitary housing2 and 7,,viii7 provide that the ,secretary may renew the contract for additional #e-year terms if the assisted housing is maintained in a decent1 safe1 and sanitary condition1 as determined by the ,secretary4 7iv7 ,actual market rentals 7,i7 ,in general ,a contract for assistance payments provided pursuant to this subparagraph for a project shall provide assistance to the owner based on an initial reasonable operating budget the rents for which do not exceed such actual market rental rates for the area in which the project is located1 as are established by the ,secretary4 7,,ii7 ,adjustment2 renewal ,the ,secretary shall annually adjust the actual market rental rates used for purposes of this clause4 7v7 ,renewal2 adjustment ,in providing assistance pursuant to this subparagraph1 the ,secretary shall require the owner of the project to renew the assistance provided to each household not less frequently than annually1 in accordance with the provisions of subparagraph 7,a71 and shall adjust the amount of assistance provided to a household at any other time upon a decrease in the monthly income of the household of #ajj or more4 7vi7 ,administration ,except as otherwise provided in this subparagraph1 rental assistance contracts authorized by this subparagraph shall be administered by the ,secretary in the same manner as rental assistance contracts for projects having existing loans made or insured under section #eae or existing loans and grants made under sections #ead and #eaf4 4 #d4 ,uniform standards for transfers of section #eae properties using low-income tax credits ,section #eae of the ,housing ,act of #aidi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adhe71 as amended by this ,act1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7cc7 ,requirements for transfers of properties involving low-,income housing tax credits ,the ,secretary shall establish1 without exception1 uniform requirements1 terms1 and conditions for any sale or transfer of a property financed with a loan under this section to any entity1 including a nonprofit organization1 that is seeking to acquire that property with amounts authorized under this section and any low-income housing tax credit under section #db of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf4 4 #e4 ,rural multifamily housing revitalization program ,section #eae of the ,housing ,act of #aidi 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adhe71 as amended by this ,act1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7cc7 ,multifamily housing revitalization program 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary may establish a ,multifamily ,housing ,revitalization ,program for the preservation and revitalization of multifamily housing projects funded with loans made available pursuant to this section and sections #ead and #eaf to ensure that those projects have sufficient resources to provide safe and affordable housing for low-income residents and farm laborers4 7#b7 ,options ,in carrying out paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary may-- 7,a7 with respect to the loans-- 7i7 reduce or eliminate interest2 7ii7 defer loan payments2 and 7iii7 subordinate1 reduce1 or reamortize loan debt2 and 7,b7 provide other financial assistance1 including-- 7i7 advances2 and 7ii7 payments and incentives 7including the ability of owners to obtain reasonable returns on investment74 7#c7 ,requirements ,in exchange for assistance provided pursuant to this subsection1 the ,secretary shall enter into a restrictive use agreement with the property owner to ensure that the property remains subject to low-income use restrictions for an additional period of time consistent with the terms of the restructuring4 7#d7 ,use of funds for rural housing vouchers 7,a7 ,authority ,if the ,secretary determines that additional voucher funds under section #edb are needed1 funds for the revitalization program under this subsection may be used for those vouchers for any low-income household 7including those not receiving rental assistance7 residing in a property financed with a loan under this section that has been prepaid after ,september #cj1 #bjje4 7,b7 ,amount ,notwithstanding section #edb1 the amount of a voucher provided pursuant to this paragraph shall be the difference between comparable market rent for the unit and the tenant-paid rent for the unit4 7,c7 ,availability ,funds made available for vouchers pursuant to this paragraph shall be subject to the availability of annual appropriations4 7,d7 ,administration ,the ,secretary shall1 to the maximum extent practicable1 administer vouchers provided pursuant to this paragraph with regulations and administrative guidance that is applicable to housing vouchers under section #h of the ,united ,states ,housing ,act of #aicg 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #adcg;f7 administered by the ,secretary of ,housing and ,urban ,development4 7#e7 ,use of voucher funds for revitalization program ,if the ,secretary determines that additional funds for the revitalization program under this subsection are needed1 funds for the rural housing voucher program under section #edb may be used for the revitalization program under this subsection4 4 #f4 ,regulations ,not later than #abj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,agriculture shall issue regulations necessary to carry out the amendments made by this ,act4