Helping Home Owners Make Energy-Efficiency Residential Upgrades Now Act of 2008 or the H-HOMERUN Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish a program to make direct loans for energy efficiency improvements for single family housing. Sets forth loan requirements.
Directs the Secretary to require that the total present value cost of such improvement is less than the total present value of the energy saved over the useful life of the improvement. Requires such cost and savings to be determined pursuant to a home energy rating report based upon a physical inspection of the property by a home energy rating system, or energy consultant, approved by the Secretary.
Requires the aggregate outstanding principal balance of direct loans to not at any time exceed $100 billion.
Amends the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 to prohibit the Secretary from establishing a maximum limitation on the cost of the cost-effective energy efficiency improvements to be financed by an energy efficient mortgage provided under the Energy Efficient Mortgages Program. Requires a mortgagor to pay on account of the cost-effective energy efficiency improvements for which the mortgage is made at least 5% of the Secretary's estimate of the cost of acquisition and/or installation.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 6249 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6249
To establish a direct loan program for providing energy efficiency
improvements for single family housing, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 12, 2008
Mr. Kuhl of New York introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Financial Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a direct loan program for providing energy efficiency
improvements for single family housing, 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 ``Helping Home Owners Make Energy-
Efficiency Residential Upgrades Now Act of 2008'' or the ``H-HOMERUN
Act of 2008''.
SEC. 2. RESIDENTIAL ENERGY EFFICIENCY DIRECT LOAN PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
(in this Act referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall establish and
implement a program to make direct loans, to the extent amounts are
provided for costs of such loans pursuant to subsection (f), for
providing energy efficiency improvements for single family housing.
(b) Use of Loan Funds.--A direct loan made under this section may
be made for the costs of the acquisition or installation, or both the
acquisition and installation, as applicable, of any energy efficiency
improvement, including--
(1) a solar heating system;
(2) a solar cooling system;
(3) the application of a residential energy conservation
measure;
(4) a photovoltaic energy system;
(5) a geothermal heat pump system;
(6) a residential wind turbine;
(7) a ``green roof'' (a roof of a building that is
partially or completely covered with vegetation and soil, or a
growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane); and
(8) any cost-effective energy efficiency improvement
eligible to be financed under a mortgage insured under the
Energy Efficient Mortgage program established by section 513 of
the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C.
12712 note) and expanded pursuant to section 513(b) of such
Act.
(c) Loan Eligibility Requirements.--
(1) Contract requirement.--The Secretary may make a direct
loan under this section only if the Secretary has entered into
a contract with a borrower setting forth the terms of the loan.
(2) Repayment requirement.--The Secretary shall require
full repayment of the principal amount of the loan.
(3) Interest rate.--Loans made under this section shall
bear interest at a rate that is--
(A) fixed over the term of the loan;
(B) at least 2 percentage points less than the
average rate available from a private source for a
comparable loan at the time of the making of the loan;
and
(C) subject to such other requirements or
limitations as the Secretary may prescribe.
(4) Investment requirement.--A borrower shall pay on
account of the energy efficiency improvements for which the
loan is made at least 5 percent of the Secretary's estimate of
the cost of acquisition, installation, or both acquisition and
installation, as applicable, in cash or its equivalent.
(5) Credit underwriting standards.--The Secretary shall
establish credit underwriting standards to evaluate the
eligibility of borrowers to receive loans under this section.
(6) Security for loan.--The Secretary shall determine the
reasonable value of the interest in property that will serve as
security for a direct loan made under this section and shall
establish procedures for appraisals upon which the Secretary
may base such determinations.
(7) Repayment schedule.--Direct loans made under this
section shall be repaid in monthly installments.
(8) Principal residence requirement.--A direct loan made
pursuant to this section shall be used only for providing
energy efficiency improvements for the principal residence of
the borrower.
(9) Other terms.--Direct loans made under this section
shall be subject to such other terms, conditions, and
restrictions as the Secretary may require.
(d) Energy Efficiency Requirements.--
(1) Cost-effective energy efficiency improvements.--The
Secretary shall require, for any energy efficiency improvement
for single family housing for which a direct loan is made under
this section, that the total present value cost of the
improvement (including any maintenance and repair expenses) is
less than the total present value of the energy saved over the
useful life of the improvement.
(2) Energy efficiency determination.--
(A) Determination.--For purposes of paragraph (1),
the cost of the improvement and an estimation of the
energy savings of the improvement shall be determined
pursuant to a home energy rating report based upon a
physical inspection of the property by a home energy
ratings system, or energy consultant, approved by the
Secretary.
(B) Qualified inspection and determination.--For
purposes of subparagraph (A), the physical inspection
shall be conducted and the determination shall be made
by an individual certified by an appropriate national
organization as the Secretary may provide.
(e) Definition of Single Family Housing.--For the purposes of this
section, the term ``single family housing'' means any residential
structure consisting of from 1 to 4 dwelling units.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to
cover the costs (as such term is defined in section 502 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974) of direct loans under this
section such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal
years 2009 to 2019.
(2) Aggregate outstanding limitation.--The aggregate
outstanding principal balance of direct loans made under this
section shall not at any time exceed $100,000,000,000.
SEC. 3. HUD ENERGY EFFICIENT MORTGAGE PROGRAM AMENDMENTS.
(a) Cost of Improvements.--Subparagraph (C) of section 513(a)(2) of
the Housing and Community Development Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 12712
note) is amended to read as follows:
``(C) Cost of improvements.--The Secretary shall
not establish a maximum limitation on the cost of the
cost-effective energy efficiency improvements to be
financed by the energy efficient mortgage provided
under the program established by this section and as
expanded pursuant to subsection (b).''.
(b) Investment Requirement.--Section 513(a)(2) of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 12712 note) is amended by
adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
``(D) Investment requirement.--A mortgagor shall
pay on account of the cost-effective energy efficiency
improvements for which the mortgage is made at least 5
percent of the Secretary's estimate of the cost of
acquisition, installation, or both acquisition and
installation, as applicable, in cash or its
equivalent.''.
(c) Cost-Effective Determination.--Paragraph (2) of section 513(c)
of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 12712 note) is amended--
(1) in the last sentence by--
(A) striking ``sufficient for'' and all that
follows; and
(B) inserting ``based upon a physical inspection of
the property by a home energy ratings system, or energy
consultant, approved by the Secretary.'' after
``pursuant to a home energy rating report''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new sentence: ``Such
physical inspection shall be conducted and such determination
shall be made by an individual certified by an appropriate
national organization as the Secretary may provide.''
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
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