Community Assistance Act for Persons with Mental Illness - Authorizes the use of specified funds, by state and local governments under the community development, mental health services, and substance abuse prevention and treatment block grant programs of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 and the Public Health Service Act, to provide housing counseling and financial counseling for individuals before their release from institutions for individuals with mental illness.
Amends the Public Health Service Act to include in a state plan for comprehensive community-based mental health systems: (1) housing counseling; (2) financial counseling; and (3) support services for individuals released from inpatient or residential institutions.
[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 552 Introduced in House (IH)]
112th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 552
To encourage States and units of general local government to use
amounts received under the community development block grant program
and the community mental health services and substance abuse block
grant programs to provide housing counseling and financial counseling
for individuals before their release from inpatient or residential
institutions for individuals with mental illness and periodic
evaluation of the appropriateness of such counseling after such
release.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 8, 2011
Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to
the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently
determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such
provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To encourage States and units of general local government to use
amounts received under the community development block grant program
and the community mental health services and substance abuse block
grant programs to provide housing counseling and financial counseling
for individuals before their release from inpatient or residential
institutions for individuals with mental illness and periodic
evaluation of the appropriateness of such counseling after such
release.
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 ``Community Assistance Act for Persons
with Mental Illness''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) Many homeless individuals in the United States are
individuals who have been discharged from inpatient or
residential institutions for individuals with mental illness.
(2) With proper predischarge housing counseling and related
services, many such individuals can be accommodated in existing
housing facilities.
(3) Residential institutions for individuals with mental
illness are funded and operated by States and units of general
local government without direct Federal involvement.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
Section 1919 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-8) is
amended by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
``(3) Housing counseling.--The term `housing counseling'
means counseling furnished to an individual before the
individual's release from an inpatient or residential
institution for individuals with mental illness that includes
discussions with an accredited or experienced advisor from a
community-based non-profit organization on, and distribution to
such individual by such an advisor of, information about how
the application and grant processes work for Federal, State,
and local housing assistance, about selection preferences for
such housing assistance, about how rent is determined for
applicable public housing, and about the duration for which the
individual would be eligible to stay in such public housing.
Such counseling shall include information on any of the
following topics, as appropriate:
``(A) Housing choice vouchers under section 8(o) of
the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C.
1437f(o)).
``(B) Direct housing subsidies.
``(C) Non-profit housing.
``(D) Public housing (as such term is defined in
section 3(b) of the United States Housing Act of 1937
(42 U.S.C. 1437a(b)).
``(E) Rent supplements and assistance programs.
``(F) Co-operative housing.
``(G) Permanent supportive housing.
``(H) Private-sector housing affordable to the
individual.
``(I) Tax credit programs.
``(J) Local laws regarding renters' rights.
``(K) Home mortgages.
``(L) Mortgage refinancing.
``(M) Home equity loans.
``(N) Home repair loans.
``(O) Property taxes.
``(P) Other housing options for low-income
individuals or other applicable groups of individuals.
``(4) Financial counseling.--The term `financial
counseling' means counseling furnished to an individual before
the individual's release from a residential institution for
individuals with mental illness that includes discussions with
an accredited or experienced advisor from a community-based
non-profit organization on, and distribution to such individual
by such an advisor of, information about issues relating to
financial literacy and education to promote an understanding of
consumer, economic, and personal finance issues and concepts,
including the following, as appropriate:
``(A) Saving for retirement.
``(B) Managing credit.
``(C) Long-term care.
``(D) Estate planning.
``(E) Predatory lending.
``(F) Identity theft.
``(G) Financial abuse schemes.
``(H) Work incentives.
``(I) Money management skills building.''.
SEC. 4. USE OF CERTAIN BLOCK GRANT FUNDS FOR HOUSING COUNSELING,
FINANCIAL COUNSELING, AND PERIODIC EVALUATION.
(a) Use of Funds Under Existing Program Permitted.--Funds made
available to States and units of general local government under the
community development block grant program under title I of the Housing
and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.), and
under the block grant programs for community mental health services and
for the prevention and treatment of substance abuse under part B of
title XIX of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x et seq.),
may be used for purposes of providing housing counseling and financial
counseling (as such terms are defined in paragraphs (3) and (4),
respectively, of section 1919 of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 300x-8), as added by section 3) for individuals before their
release from inpatient or residential institutions for individuals with
mental illness and for purposes of biannual evaluations of the
appropriateness of such counseling provided for such individuals
following such release.
(b) Sense of Congress About Using Funds for This Purpose.--It is
the sense of Congress that States and units of general local government
should use a reasonable portion of the funds described in subsection
(a) to provide for housing counseling, financial counseling, and
biannual evaluations described in such subsection.
SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO THE HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1974
AND PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE ACT.
(a) Statement of Projected Use of Funds and Reports by Recipients
of Community Development Block Grant Funds.--
(1) Statement of projected use of funds to include funds
used for housing counseling and financial counseling.--Section
104(a)(1) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974
(42 U.S.C. 5304(a)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new sentence: ``Each statement of projected use of
funds required under this paragraph shall include a specific
statement of the portion of funds received under section 106
that are expected to be used pursuant to section 4(a) of the
Community Assistance Act for Persons with Mental Illness to
provide housing counseling and financial counseling (as such
terms are defined in section 1919 of the Public Health Service
Act) for individuals before their release from inpatient or
residential institutions for individuals with mental illness
and for biannual evaluations of the appropriateness of such
counseling provided for such individuals following such
release.''.
(2) Reports on housing counseling and financial counseling
provided.--Section 104(e) of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5304(e)) is amended by
inserting after the third sentence the following new sentences:
``The report shall include a specific statement of the portion
of funds received by the grantee under section 106 that were
used pursuant to section 4(a) of the Community Assistance Act
for Persons with Mental Illness to provide housing counseling
and financial counseling (as such terms are defined in section
1919 of the Public Health Service Act) for individuals before
their release from inpatient or residential institutions for
individuals with mental illness, a description of the housing
counseling and financial counseling provided, a specific
statement of the portion of such funds used to evaluate
biannually the appropriateness of such counseling provided for
such individuals following such release, and a description of
the type of the evaluations made. The report shall also include
recommendations for the further improvement of such counseling
and such biannual evaluations.''.
(b) State Plan and Reports by States Receiving Block Grants for
Community Mental Health Services and for Prevention and Treatment of
Substance Abuse.--
(1) Inclusion of housing counseling and financial
counseling in state plan for comprehensive community-based
mental health systems.--The second sentence of section
1912(b)(1) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-
2(b)(1)) is amended--
(A) by inserting ``housing counseling (as defined
in section 1919(4)), financial counseling (as defined
in section 1919(5),'' after ``medical and dental
care,''; and
(B) by inserting ``, including individuals who are
released from inpatient or residential institutions,''
after ``support services to be provided to
individuals''.
(2) Reports on housing counseling and financial counseling
provided.--Section 1942(a) of such Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-52(a))
is amended--
(A) in paragraph (1), at the end by striking at the
end ``and'';
(B) in paragraph (2), at the end by striking the
period and inserting ``; and''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(3) with respect to a grant under section 1911, the
number of individuals in the State who were transitioned out of
inpatient or residential institutions for individuals with
mental illness, the housing counseling and financial counseling
furnished to such individuals for purposes of such transition
into the community, and the number of such individuals who
returned to such an institution after being released from such
institution and the reasons for such return.''.
(c) Reports by Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and
Secretary of Health and Human Services.--
(1) Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and
the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall each submit to
the Congress a report describing the projected use of funds
received under the applicable block grant program referred to
in section 4(a) for fiscal year 2012 to provide housing
counseling and financial counseling (as such terms are defined
in paragraphs (4) and (5) of section 1919 of the Public Health
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300x-8), as added by section 3) for
individuals before their release from inpatient or residential
institutions for individuals with mental illness and biannual
evaluations of the appropriateness of such counseling provided
for such individuals following such release.
(2) Not later than September 30, 2013, and annually
thereafter, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and
the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall each submit to
the Congress a report describing the actual use of amounts
received under the applicable block grant program referred to
in section 4(a) for the previous 12-month period to provide the
housing counseling, financial counseling, and biannual
evaluation described in paragraph (1). Each such report shall
include--
(A) an analysis of the feasibility and desirability
of requiring, as a condition of receipt of funds under
the applicable block grant program, that each State and
unit of general local government either have a program
providing for such housing counseling, financial
counseling, and biannual evaluation or for the
development of a prerelease housing plan;
(B) an analysis of the feasibility and desirability
of requiring States and units of general local
government to reserve for such purpose a certain
portion or amount of the funds received under such
block grant program; and
(C) any recommendations of the applicable Secretary
for legislative changes in such block grant program.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b)
shall apply to grants made for periods beginning on or after October 1,
2012.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit.
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