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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4146 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4146
To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish
grant programs relating to neighborhood revitalization, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 17, 2024
Mr. Casey (for himself and Mrs. Capito) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing,
and Urban Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to establish
grant programs relating to neighborhood revitalization, 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 ``Neighborhood Revitalization and Land
Banking Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Land bank.--The term ``land bank'' means a government
entity, agency, or program, or a special purpose nonprofit
entity formed by 1 or more units of government in accordance
with a State or local land bank enabling law, that has been
designated by 1 or more State or local governments to acquire,
steward, and dispose of vacant, abandoned, or other problem
properties in accordance with locally determined priorities and
goals.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Housing and Urban Development.
(3) Targeted revitalization corridor.--The term ``targeted
revitalization corridor'' means a segment of a community in
need of revitalization that--
(A) may be delineated by major streets or physical
topography;
(B) reflects a cohesive and targeted geographic
area with shared character; and
(C) has boundaries proposed and justified by
individual grant applicants based on unique community
need.
SEC. 3. BLIGHT MAPPING GRANTS.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish a program under
which the Secretary may make grants to eligible entities to assist in
monitoring property conditions and developing a database for tracking
blighted properties within a given geography.
(b) Eligible Entity.--An entity eligible for a grant under this
section shall be--
(1) a land bank; or
(2) any county or local government that is not served by a
land bank, for a period of not more than 4 years.
(c) Application.--
(1) Contents.--An eligible entity desiring a grant under
this section shall submit to the Secretary an application at
such time, in such manner, and including such information as
the Secretary may require.
(2) Priority.--If the overall resources provided to carry
out the program under this section are insufficient to fund all
qualified applicants in a given fiscal year, the Secretary
shall prioritize--
(A) applicants that are land banks; and
(B) 1 applicant per county, with a strong
preference for any applicant that is able to monitor
property conditions and track blighted properties
within the entire county.
(3) Multiple applicants.--A land bank that serves more than
1 county within a State may apply for and aggregate multiple
per-county grants under this section, but only if a signed
partnership agreement with each included county is provided
with the application.
(d) Use of Funds.--A recipient of a grant under this section--
(1) may use the grant funds for--
(A) mapping activities for a given geography, such
as data scraping, canvassing, purchasing of software
and technology, including technology used to link
multiple municipal datasets, maintenance on digital
archives and infrastructure, manpower, and equipment;
and
(B) documenting commercial, industrial, and
residential properties that are blighted; and
(2) may not use the grant funds for citation or enforcement
activities.
(e) Minimum Geography.--The Secretary shall establish a minimum
geography that eligible entities are required to survey in order to
qualify to apply for a grant under this section, which should be--
(1) responsive to the range of population densities across
the country; and
(2) ensure a significant amount of work is completed with
funding, and not that only a minimum square mileage is
surveyed.
(f) Annual Amount.--The amount of a grant under this section for an
eligible entity shall be $10,000 per fiscal year.
(g) Additional Mapping Activities.--If, after the Secretary awards
grants under this section in a fiscal year, there are remaining grant
funds, the Secretary may use those amounts to award grants to multiple
applicants within a single county, but in no case shall more than 5
grants be awarded in a single county.
(h) Data-Sharing Requirement.--By request, data collected using
grant funds under this section shall be made available for access by
other municipal or county agencies, and by local community development
entities and nonprofit organizations, including community land trusts,
other land banks, land bank associations and networks, researchers, and
redevelopment authorities.
(i) Reporting.--
(1) Names of recipients.--Not later than 3 months after
awarding a grant under this section, the Secretary shall
publish the name of the grant recipient on a publicly
accessible website.
(2) Additional reporting.--The Secretary may require
reporting on the activities supported using grant funds under
this section for oversight and research purposes.
SEC. 4. LAND BANK PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS.
(a) Establishment.--The Secretary, acting through the Office of
Community Planning and Development of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development, shall establish a program under which the Secretary
may award planning grants and implementation grants to land banks to
support projects that fund the revitalization of neighborhoods by
addressing property conditions in a region.
(b) Eligible Activities.--
(1) Planning grants.--A land bank receiving a planning
grant under this section may use the grant funds to create--
(A) a targeted list of blighted properties, in
particular blighted commercial and residential
properties to target for demolition, deconstruction,
redevelopment, or other disposition; and
(B) a proposed revitalization plan for how each
blighted property described in subparagraph (A) will be
used after the property is brought back into use, which
shall--
(i) support existing homeowners, renters,
and business owners and preserve occupied
properties where feasible, while also improving
neighborhood safety and continuity;
(ii) be created in partnership with
community groups and residents to ensure
responsible reuse in accordance with community
goals and priorities;
(iii) indicate how the project will
contribute to or support lasting housing
affordability and access to homeownership
opportunity; and
(iv) consider how blighted property
remediation efforts will contribute to holistic
neighborhood revitalization, including how they
will impact access to a safe environment,
respond to local housing market needs, and
impact access to housing affordable to a
variety of income levels, appropriate services,
public assets, transportation, schools, and
jobs.
(2) Implementation grants.--
(A) In general.--A land bank receiving an
implementation grant under this section may use the
grant funds to implement a revitalization plan of the
land bank described in paragraph (1)(B) over a 5-year
period, including through efforts such as property
maintenance, site preparation, remediation, obtaining a
clear, marketable, and insurable title, property
acquisition and disposition, demolition,
deconstruction, property rehabilitation, staffing,
operations, and administrative costs.
(B) Construction predevelopment fund use cap.--A
land bank receiving an implementation grant under this
section may use not more than 25 percent of the grant
funds for construction and predevelopment costs
incurred in preparation of a site for redevelopment,
such as environmental reviews, stormwater work, and
geotechnical engineering.
(c) Application.--
(1) In general.--A land bank desiring a grant under this
section shall submit to the Secretary an application at such
time, in such manner, and including such information as the
Secretary may require.
(2) Considerations.--In selecting grant recipients under
this section, the Secretary shall--
(A) seek to make awards to land banks in a
geographically diverse manner;
(B) consider the needs of rural geographies
separately given population density;
(C) consider the extent to which the proposed
targeted revitalization corridor represents a cohesive
and targeted geographic area with a shared character;
and
(D) consider applications that address multiple
targeted revitalization corridors, if the Secretary
determines that the funding allocated to individual
targeted revitalization corridors is sufficient to
contribute to holistic neighborhood revitalization.
(d) Amount.--
(1) In general.--The amount of a grant made under this
section shall be--
(A) with respect to a planning grant, not less than
$100,000 and not more than $250,000 for each land bank
receiving a grant, with an aggregate total of--
(i) not more than $18,000,000 in each of
fiscal years 2025 and 2026; and
(ii) not more than $1,000,000 in each of
fiscal years 2027 through 2035; and
(B) with respect to an implementation grant, not
less than $2,000,000 and not more than $15,000,000 for
each land bank receiving a grant, with an aggregate
total of not more than $40,000,000 in each of fiscal
years 2027 through 2035.
(2) Set-asides.--Not less than one-third of planning grant
funding and one-third of implementation grant funding awarded
under this section shall be set aside each fiscal year for
awards to underresourced land banks.
(e) Underresourced Land Bank.--The Secretary, in consultation with
stakeholders engaged in land banking work throughout the United States,
shall work with stakeholders in the broader community revitalization
and land banking field to determine the various criteria that could
qualify a land bank as underresourced for purposes of subsection
(d)(2).
(f) Prohibition.--A land bank receiving a grant under this section
shall not be required to divert to the Secretary any proceeds from the
sale of any property assisted under the grant.
(g) Reporting.--
(1) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
reporting requirements imposed on grant recipients under this
section should prioritize simplicity and flexibility while also
providing the data required to successfully monitor grants made
under this section.
(2) Requirements.--The Secretary shall establish reporting
requirements that balance the considerations under paragraph
(1) and require grant recipients to report not more frequently
than on an annual basis.
SEC. 5. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM.
(a) Predevelopment Technical Assistance.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall provide predevelopment
technical assistance to individuals and organizations to
facilitate applications to the programs established under
sections 3 and 4 by funding not less than 1 and not more than 3
eligible entities or nonprofit organizations to provide
training, research, and technical assistance to individuals and
organizations, as appropriate.
(2) Establishment of fund.--The Secretary shall establish a
predevelopment technical assistance fund to provide the
technical assistance under paragraph (1).
(3) Cost of assistance.--Assistance provided under
paragraph (1) shall be provided at no cost to recipients.
(b) Blighted Property Remediation Fellowship Program.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall establish a program
under which the Secretary may make 3 awards of $300,000 each,
to be used over a 3-year period, to nonprofit organizations,
institutions of higher education, as defined in section 101 of
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001), or
consortiums to administer a blighted property remediation
fellowship pilot program aimed at advancing the land banking
field through research and the development of expertise within
the workforce.
(2) Technical assistance.--If requested by a recipient of
an award under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide
technical assistance to that recipient to comply with the
reporting requirements under paragraph (3).
(3) Report.--Each recipient of an award under this
subsection shall, not later than 3 years after receiving the
award, submit to the Secretary a report on the activities
carried out under this subsection.
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) Blight Mapping Grants.--There is authorized to be appropriated
to the Secretary to carry out section 3 $20,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2025 through 2035, to remain available until expended.
(b) Planning Grants and Technical Assistance.--
(1) In general.--There is authorized to be appropriated to
the Secretary to carry out sections 4 and 5--
(A) $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2025 and
2026; and
(B) $43,900,000 for each of fiscal years 2027
through 2035.
(2) Fiscal years 2025 and 2026.--In each of fiscal years
2025 and 2026, the Secretary shall use the majority of amounts
appropriated under this subsection to provide planning grants
and technical assistance and establish a pipeline of applicants
for future implementation grants under sections 4 and 5.
(3) Fiscal years 2027 through 2035.--In each of fiscal
years 2027 through 2035, amounts appropriated under this
subsection shall be distributed such that--
(A) not less than $1,000,000 is made available for
planning grants under section 4(b)(1);
(B) $40,000,000 is made available for
implementation grants under section 4(b)(2);
(C) $2,000,000 is provided for the predevelopment
technical assistance fund described in section 5(a)(2);
and
(D) $900,000 is provided for the program described
in section 5(b).
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
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