SEC-105 -- STATE AND LOCAL HOUSING STRATEGIES.


 (a) In General.-The Secretary shall provide assistance directly to a
jurisdiction only if-

 (1) the jurisdiction submits to the Secretary a comprehensive housing
affordability strategy (hereafter in this section referred to as the
"housing strategy");

 (2) the jurisdiction submits annual updates of the housing strategy;
and

 (3) the housing strategy, and any annual update of such strategy, is
approved by the Secretary.

The Secretary shall establish such dates and manner for the submission
and approval of housing strategies under this section that the Secretary
determines will facilitate orderly program management by jurisdictions
and provide for timely investment or other use of funds made available
under title II of this Act and other programs requiring submission of
a housing strategy. If the Secretary finds there is good cause, the
Secretary may provide reasonable extensions of any deadlines for
submission of a jurisdiction's housing strategy.

 (b) Contents.-A housing strategy submitted under this section shall be
in a form that the Secretary determines to be appropriate for the
assistance the jurisdiction may be provided and shall-

 (1) describe the jurisdiction's estimated housing needs projected for
the ensuing 5-year period, and the jurisdiction's need for assistance
for very low-income, low-income, and moderate-income families,
specifying such needs for different types of tenure and for different
categories of residents, such as very low-income, low-income, and
moderate-income families, the elderly, single persons, large families,
residents of nonmetropolitan areas, families who are participating in
an organized program to achieve economic independence and
self-sufficiency, persons with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, and
other categories of persons residing in or expected to reside in the
jurisdiction that the Secretary determines to be appropriate;

 (2) describe the nature and extent of homelessness within the
jurisdiction, providing an estimate of the special needs of various
categories of persons who are homeless or threatened with homelessness,
and a description of the jurisdiction's strategy for (A) helping
low-income families avoid becoming homeless; (B) addressing the
emergency shelter and transitional housing needs of homeless persons
(including a brief inventory of facilities and services that meet such
needs within that jurisdiction); and (C) helping homeless persons make
the transition to permanent housing and independent living;

 (3) describe the significant characteristics of the jurisdiction's
housing market, indicating how those characteristics will influence the
use of funds made available for rental assistance, production of new
units, rehabilitation of old units, or acquisition of existing units;

 (4) explain whether the cost of housing or the incentives to develop,
maintain, or improve affordable housing in the jurisdiction are affected
by public policies, particularly by policies of the jurisdiction,
including tax policies affecting land and other property, land use
controls, zoning ordinances, building codes, fees and charges, growth
limits, and policies that affect the return on residential investment,
and describe the jurisdiction's strategy to remove or ameliorate
negative effects, if any, of such policies;

 (5) explain the institutional structure, including private industry,
nonprofit organizations, and public institutions, through which the
jurisdiction will carry out its housing strategy, assessing the
strengths and gaps in that delivery system and describing what the
jurisdiction will do to overcome those gaps;

 (6) indicate resources from private and non-Federal public sources that
are reasonably expected to be made available to carry out the purposes
of this Act, explaining how funds made available will leverage those
additional resources and identifying, where the jurisdiction deems it
appropriate, publicly owned land or property located within the
jurisdiction that may be utilized to carry out the purposes of this Act;

 (7) set forth the jurisdiction's plan for investment or other use of
housing funds made available under title II of this Act, the United
States Housing Act of 1937, the Housing and Community Development Act
of 1974, and the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act, during the
ensuing year or such longer period as the Secretary determines to be
appropriate, indicating the general priorities for allocating investment
geographically within the jurisdiction and among different activities
and housing needs;

 (8) describe the means of cooperation and coordination among the State
and any units of general local government in the development,
submission, and implementation of their housing strategies;

 (9) in the case of a unit of local government, describe the number of
public housing units in the jurisdiction, the physical condition of such
units, the restoration and revitalization needs of public housing
projects within the jurisdiction, the public housing agency's strategy
for improving the management and operation of such public housing, and
the public housing agency's strategy for improving the living
environment of low- and very-low-income families residing in public
housing;

 (10) in the case of a State, describe the strategy to coordinate the
Low-Income Tax Credit with development of housing, including public
housing, that is affordable to very low-income and low-income families;

 (11) describe the jurisdiction's activities to encourage public housing
residents to become more involved in management and participate in
homeownership;

 (12) describe the standards and procedures according to which the
jurisdiction will monitor activities authorized under this Act and
ensure long-term compliance with the provisions of this Act;

 (13) include a certification that the jurisdiction will affirmatively
further fair housing;

 (14) include a certification that the jurisdiction is in compliance
with a residential antidisplacement and relocation assistance plan under
section 104(d) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (to
the extent that such a plan applies to the jurisdiction); and

 (15) include the number of families to whom the jurisdiction will
provide affordable housing as defined in section 215 using funds made
available.

The Secretary may provide for the submission of abbreviated housing
strategies by jurisdictions that are not otherwise expected to be
participating jurisdictions under title II of this Act. Such an
abbreviated housing strategy shall be appropriate to the types and
amounts of assistance the jurisdiction is to receive as determined by
the Secretary.

 (c) Approval.-

 (1) In general.-The Secretary shall review the housing strategy upon
receipt. Not later than 60 days after receipt by the Secretary, the
housing strategy shall be approved unless the Secretary determines
before that date that (A) the housing strategy is inconsistent with the
purposes of this Act, or (B) the information described in subsection (b)
has not been provided in a substantially complete manner. For the
purpose of the preceding sentence, the adoption or continuation of a
public policy identified pursuant to subsection (b)(4) shall not be a
basis for the Secretary's disapproval of a housing strategy. During the
18-month period following enactment of this Act, the Secretary may
extend the review period to not longer than 90 days.

 (2) Actions in case of disapproval.-If the Secretary disapproves the
housing strategy, the Secretary shall immediately notify the
jurisdiction of such disapproval. Not later than 15 days after the
Secretary's disapproval, the Secretary shall inform the jurisdiction in
writing of (A) the reasons for disapproval, and (B) actions that the
jurisdiction could take to meet the criteria for approval. If the
Secretary fails to inform the jurisdiction of the reasons for
disapproval within such 15-day period, the housing strategy shall be
deemed to have been approved.

 (3) Amendments and resubmission.-The Secretary shall, for a period of
not less than 45 days following the date of first disapproval, permit
amendments to, or the resubmission of, any housing strategy that is
disapproved. The Secretary shall approve or disapprove a housing
strategy not less than 30 days after receipt of such amendments or
resubmission.

 (d) Coordination of State and Local Housing Strategies.-The Secretary
may establish such requirements as the Secretary deems appropriate to
encourage coordination between and among the housing strategies of a
State and any participating jurisdictions within the State, except that
a unit of general local government shall not be required to have
elements of its housing strategy approved by the State.

 (e) Consultation With Social Service Agencies.-When preparing a housing
strategy for submission under this section, a jurisdiction shall make
reasonable efforts to confer with appropriate social service agencies
regarding the housing needs of children, elderly persons, persons with
disabilities, homeless persons, and other persons served by such
agencies.

 (f) Barrier Removal.-Not later than 4 months after completion of the
final report of the Secretary's Advisory Commission on Regulatory
Barriers to Affordable Housing, the Secretary shall submit to the
Congress a written report outlining the Secretary's recommendations for
legislative and administrative actions to facilitate the removal or
modification of excessive, duplicative, or unnecessary regulations or
other requirements of Federal, State, or local governments that (1)
inflate the costs of or otherwise inhibit the construction,
rehabilitation, or management of housing, particularly housing that
otherwise could be affordable to low-income and moderate-income
families, or (2) contribute to economic or racial discrimination.