Regular Session 2021-2022 Senate Bill 0109 P.N. 0074

PRINTER'S NO. 74

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

SENATE BILL

No.

109

Session of

2021

INTRODUCED BY PITTMAN, JANUARY 23, 2021

REFERRED TO URBAN AFFAIRS AND HOUSING, JANUARY 23, 2021

AN ACT

Amending the act of April 9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), entitled

"An act relating to the finances of the State government;

providing for cancer control, prevention and research, for

ambulatory surgical center data collection, for the Joint

Underwriting Association, for entertainment business

financial management firms, for private dam financial

assurance and for reinstatement of item vetoes; providing for

the settlement, assessment, collection, and lien of taxes,

bonus, and all other accounts due the Commonwealth, the

collection and recovery of fees and other money or property

due or belonging to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

including escheated property and the proceeds of its sale,

the custody and disbursement or other disposition of funds

and securities belonging to or in the possession of the

Commonwealth, and the settlement of claims against the

Commonwealth, the resettlement of accounts and appeals to the

courts, refunds of moneys erroneously paid to the

Commonwealth, auditing the accounts of the Commonwealth and

all agencies thereof, of all public officers collecting

moneys payable to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

and all receipts of appropriations from the Commonwealth,

authorizing the Commonwealth to issue tax anticipation notes

to defray current expenses, implementing the provisions of

section 7(a) of Article VIII of the Constitution of

Pennsylvania authorizing and restricting the incurring of

certain debt and imposing penalties; affecting every

department, board, commission, and officer of the State

government, every political subdivision of the State, and

certain officers of such subdivisions, every person,

association, and corporation required to pay, assess, or

collect taxes, or to make returns or reports under the laws

imposing taxes for State purposes, or to pay license fees or

other moneys to the Commonwealth, or any agency thereof,

every State depository and every debtor or creditor of the

Commonwealth," in emergency COVID-19 response, repealing

provisions relating to Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Subarticle J of Article I-C of the act of April

9, 1929 (P.L.343, No.176), known as The Fiscal Code is repealed:

[SUBARTICLE J

PENNSYLVANIA HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY

Section 190-C. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this subarticle

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Agency." The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency.

"Eligible landlord." An individual or entity owning a place

of residence that leases the residence to an individual and that

experienced a loss of rental income because the lessee became

unemployed after March 1, 2020, or the lessee had their annual

household income reduced by 30% or more due to reduced work

hours and wages related to COVID-19. The loss of rental income

must be at least 30 days past due.

"Lessee." An individual who leases a place of residence in

which the individual will permanently reside.

Section 191-C. Mortgage and Rental Assistance Program.

(a) Establishment of program.--The agency shall establish

the COVID Relief - Mortgage and Rental Assistance Grant Program.

(b) Purpose of the program.--The program shall receive

applications from lessees, landlords, mortgagees and mortgagors

and award grants to eligible landlords and mortgagees in

accordance with this act.

Housing Finance Agency for COVID Relief - Mortgage and Rental

20210SB0109PN0074 - 2 -

Assistance shall be used to make grants under this subarticle.

(d) Allocation.--The agency shall allocate a minimum of

$150,000,000 of the funds received for use under this subarticle

for rental assistance grants.

(e) Guidelines.--The agency shall establish guidelines that

are consistent with the provisions of this subarticle within 30

days of the effective date of this section. The guidelines shall

be:

(1) submitted to the Legislative Reference Bureau for

publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin; and

(2) posted on the agency's publicly accessible Internet

website.

(f) (Reserved).

(g) Program requirements.--The following shall apply:

(1) An eligible lessee, mortgagor, landlord or mortgagee

shall submit to the agency the name of the lessee or

mortgagor from whom rental or mortgage payments are sought,

along with any additional information deemed necessary by the

agency to carry out the agency's responsibilities under this

section.

(2) Assistance may be awarded to lessors or mortgagees

on behalf of lessees or mortgagors who became unemployed

after March 1, 2020, or had their annual household income

reduced by 30% or more due to reduced work hours and wages

related to COVID-19.

(3) The agency shall develop an application for eligible

lessees, mortgagors, landlords or mortgagees to apply for

assistance under this section within 30 days of the effective

date of this section. The application shall include an

attestation by the landlord or mortgagee releasing the lessee

20210SB0109PN0074 - 3 -

or mortgagor of any remaining obligation for any past due or

future rent or mortgage payment for which the agency pays the

landlord or mortgagee. The application shall be made

available and posted on the agency's publicly accessible

Internet website and be in a form that can be completed and

returned by the lessee, mortgagor, landlord or mortgagee

electronically or through the United States mail. The

deadline for submitting applications to the agency shall be

September 30, 2020.

(4) The agency shall verify the name of the lessee or

mortgagor with the Department of Labor and Industry's Bureau

of Unemployment Compensation to ensure the lessee or

mortgagor became unemployed after March 1, 2020.

(5) The agency shall require any applicant seeking

assistance based on reduced work hours or wages related to

the coronavirus pandemic to submit information verifying such

information.

(6) The agency shall make payments only to lessors or

mortgagees.

(7) The agency shall make payments only on behalf of

households with an annualized current income of no more than

the upper limit of "median income" as defined in guidelines

published annually by the United States Department of Housing

and Urban Development.

(8) The agency shall notify each lessee or mortgagor of

the amount of payment made to the landlord or mortgagee on

the lessee's or mortgagor's behalf.

(9) The agency shall make payments as follows:

(i) For rental assistance, an amount equal to 100%

of the lessee's monthly rent, not to exceed $750 per

20210SB0109PN0074 - 4 -

month, for each month for which assistance is sought for

a maximum of six months. Payments shall be made no later

than November 30, 2020.

(ii) For mortgage assistance, an amount equal to

100% of the mortgagor's monthly mortgage, not to exceed

$1,000 per month, for each month for which assistance is

sought for a maximum of six months. Payments shall be

made no later than November 30, 2020.

(h) Report.--By December 31, 2020, the agency shall issue a

report to the chairperson and minority chairperson of the

Appropriations Committee of the Senate and the chairperson and

minority chairperson of the Appropriations Committee of the

House of Representatives and post the report on the agency's

publicly accessible Internet website. The report shall include

the following information:

(1) The total number of landlords who applied for

assistance under this section.

(2) The total number of mortgagees who applied for

assistance under this section.

(3) The total amount of assistance that was sought.

(4) The average amount of assistance that was applied

for under this section.

(5) The average amount of assistance that was provided

under this section.

(6) The total number of landlords and mortgagees who

received assistance under this section by county.

(7) The value of payments made by the agency under this

section by county.]

Section 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

20210SB0109PN0074 - 5 -