acquisition of certain properties situated at or near military bases which have been ordered to be closed

acquisition of certain properties situated at or near military bases which have been ordered to be closed Sec. 1013. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary of Defense is authorized to acquire title to, hold, manage, and dispose of, or, in lieu thereof, to reimburse for certain losses upon private sale of, or foreclosure against, any property improved with a one- or two-family dwelling which is situated at or near a military base or installation which the Department of Defense has, subsequent to November 1, 1964, ordered to be closed in whole or in part, if he determines— (1) that the owner of such property is, or has been, a Federal employee employed at or in connection with such base or installation (other than a temporary employee serving under a time limitation) or a serviceman assigned thereto; (2) that the closing of such base or installation, in whole or in part, has required or will require the termination of such owner’s employment or service at or in connection with such base or installation; and (3) that as the result of the actual or pending closing of such base or installation, in whole or in part, there is no present market for the sale of such property upon reasonable terms and conditions. (b) In order to be eligible for the benefits of this section such employees or military personnel must be or have been— (1) assigned to or employed at or in connection with the installation or activity at the time of public announcement of the closure action, (2) transferred from such installation or activity, or terminated as employees as a result of reduction-in-force, within six months prior to public announcement of the closure action, or (3) transferred from the installation or activity on an overseas tour unaccompanied by dependents within fifteen months prior to public announcement of the closure action: Provided, That, at the time of public announcement of the closure action, or at the time of transfer or termination as set forth above, such personnel or employees must— (i) have been the owner-occupant of the dwelling, or (ii) have vacated the owned dwelling as a result of being ordered into on-post housing during a six-month period prior to the closure announcement: Provided further, That as a consequence of such closure such employees or personnel must— (i) be required to relocate because of military transfer or acceptance of employment beyond a normal commuting distance from the dwelling for which compensation is sought, or (ii) be unemployed, not as a matter of personal choice, and able to demonstrate such financial hardship that they are unable to meet their mortgage payments and related expenses. 80 Stat. 1291 (c) Such persons as the Secretary of Defense may determine to be eligible under the criteria set forth above shall elect either (1) to receive a cash payment as compensation for losses which may be or have been sustained in a private sale, in an amount not to exceed the difference between (A) 95 per centum of the fair market value of their property (as such value is determined by the Secretary of Defense) prior to public announcement of intention to close all or part of the military base or installation and (B) the fair market value of such property (as such value is so determined) at the time of the sale, or (2) to receive, as purchase price for their property, an amount not to exceed 90 per centum of prior fair market value as such value is determined by the Secretary of Defense, or the amount of the outstanding mortgages, Cash payment as compensation for losses sustained in a private sale shall not be made in any case in which the property is encumbered by a mortgage loan guaranteed, insured, or held by a Federal agency unless such mortgage loan is paid, assumed by a purchaser satisfactory to such Federal agency, or otherwise fully satisfied at or prior to the time such cash payment is made. Except in cases of payment as compensation for losses, in the event of foreclosure by mortgagees commenced on or after public announcement of intention to close all or part of the military base or installation and prior to the one hundred and twentieth day after the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense may reimburse or pay on account of eligible persons such sums as may be paid or be otherwise due and owing by such persons as the result of such fore-closure, including (without limiting the generality of the foregoing) direct costs of judicial foreclosure, expenses and liabilities enforceable according to the terms of their mortgages or promissory notes, and the amount of debts, if any, established against such persons by a Federal agency in the case of loans made, guaranteed, or insured by such agency following liquidation of the security for such loans. (d) There shall be in the Treasury a fund which shall be available to the Secretary of Defense for the purpose of extending the financial assistance provided above. The capital of such fund shall consist of such sums as may, from time to time, be appropriated thereto, and shall consist also of receipts from the management, rental, or sale of properties acquired under this section, which receipts shall be credited to the fund and shall be available, together with funds appropriated therefor, for purchase or reimbursement purposes as provided above, as well as to defray expenses arising in connection with the acquisition, management, and disposal of such properties, including payment of principal, interest, and expenses of mortgages or other indebtedness thereon, and including the cost of staff services and contract services, costs of insurance, and other indemnity. Any part of such receipts not required for such expenses shall be covered into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts. Properties acquired under this section shall be conveyed to, and acquired in the name of, the United States. The Secretary of Defense shall have the power to deal with, rent, renovate, and dispose of, whether by sales for cash or credit or otherwise, any properties so acquired: Provided, however, That no contract for acquisition, or acquisition, shall be deemed to constitute a contract for or acquisition of family housing units in support of military installations or activities within the meaning of section 406(a) of the Act of August 30, 1957 (42 U.S.C. 1594i), nor shall it be deemed a transaction within the contemplation of section 2662 of title 10, United States Code. (e) Payments from the fund created by this section may be made in lieu of taxes to any State or political subdivision thereof, with respect to real property, including improvements thereon, acquired 80 Stat. 1292and held under this section. The amount so paid for any year upon such property shall not exceed the taxes which would be paid to the State or subdivision, as the case may be, upon such property if it were not exempt from taxation, and shall reflect such allowance as may be considered appropriate for expenditures, if any, by the Government for streets, utilities, or other public services to serve such property. (f) The title to any property acquired under this section, the eligibility for, and the amounts of, cash payable, and the administration of the preceding provisions of this section, shall conform to such requirements, and shall be administered under such conditions and regulations, as the Secretary of Defense may prescribe. Such regulations shall also prescribe the terms and conditions under which payments may be made and instruments accepted under this section, and all the determinations and decisions made pursuant to such regulations by the Secretary of Defense regarding such payments and conveyances and the terms and conditions under which they are approved or disapproved, shall be final and conclusive and shall not be subject to judicial review. (g) The Secretary of Defense is authorized to enter into such agreement with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development as may be appropriate for the purposes of economy and efficiency of administration of this section. Such agreement may provide authority to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and his designee to make any or all of the determinations and take any or all of the actions which the Secretary of Defense is authorized to undertake pursuant to the preceding provisions of this section. Any such determinations shall be entitled to finality to the same extent as if made by the Secretary of Defense, and, in event the Secretaries of Defense and Housing and Urban Development so elect, the fund established pursuant to subsection (d) of this section shall be available to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to carry out the purposes thereof. (h) Section 223(a)(8) of the National Housing Act is amended to read as follows: “(8) executed in connection with the sale by the Government of any housing acquired pursuant to section 1013 of the Demonstration Cities and Metropolitan Development Act of 1966.” (i) No funds may be appropriated for the acquisition of any property under authority of this section unless such funds have been specifically authorized for such purpose in a military construction authorization act, and no moneys in the fund created pursuant to subsection (d) of this section may be expended for any purpose except as may be provided in appropriation Acts. (j) Section 108 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 is repealed.