REFORM OF PUBLIC HOUSING MANAGEMENT.

SEC. 113. REFORM OF PUBLIC HOUSING MANAGEMENT. (a) Independent Management Assessment.—Section 6(j)(2) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(2)) is amended— (1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new subparagraph: “(B) (i) Upon designating a public housing agency as troubled pursuant to subparagraph (A) and determining that an assessment under this subparagraph will not duplicate any review conducted under section 14(p), the Secretary shall provide for an on-site, independent assessment of the management of the agency. “(ii) To the extent the Secretary deems appropriate (taking into account an agency’s performance under the indicators specified under paragraph (1)), the assessment team shall also consider issues relating to the agency’s resident population and physical inventory, including the extent to which (I) the agency’s comprehensive plan prepared pursuant to section 14 adequately and appropriately addresses the rehabilitation needs of the agency’s inventory, (II) residents of the agency are involved in and informed of significant management decisions, and (III) any projects in the agency’s inventory are severely distressed and eligible for assistance pursuant to section 24. “(iii) An independent assessment under this subparagraph shall be carried out by a team of knowledgeable individuals selected by the Secretary (referred to in this section as the ‘assessment team’) with expertise in public housing and real estate management. In conducting an assessment, the assessment team shall consult with the residents and with public and private entities in the jurisdiction in which the public housing is located. The assessment team shall provide to the Secretary and the public housing agency a written report, which shall contain, at a minimum, recommendations for such management improvements as are necessary to eliminate or substantially remedy existing deficiencies”; and (3) in subparagraph (C), as so redesignated by paragraph (1)— 106 STAT. 3690 (A) by striking “agency setting forth” and inserting the following: “agency, after reviewing the report submitted pursuant to subparagraph (B) and consulting with the agency’s assessment team. Such agreement shall set forth”; and (B) by inserting before the second sentence the following new flush sentence: “To the extent the Secretary deems appropriate (taking into account an agency’s performance under the indicators specified under paragraph (D), such agreement shall also set forth a plan for enhancing resident involvement in the management of the public housing agency.”. (b) Additional Statutory Remedies.—Section 6(j)(3)(A) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(3)(A)) is amended— (1) in clause (i), by inserting after “agents” the first place it appears the following: “(which may be selected by existing tenants through administrative procedures established by the Secretary)”; (2) at the end of clause (ii), by striking “and”; (3) by redesignating clause (iii) as clause (iv); (4) by inserting after clause (ii) the following new clause: “(iii) solicit competitive proposals from other public housing agencies and private entities with experience in construction management in the eventuality that such agencies or firms may be needed to oversee implementation of assistance made available under section 14 for the housing; and”; and (5) by adding at the end the following new flush sentence: “Residents of a public housing agency designated as troubled pursuant to paragraph (2)(A) may petition the Secretary in writing to take 1 or more of the actions referred to in this subparagraph. The Secretary shall respond to such petitions in a timely manner with a written description of the actions, if any, the Secretary plans to take and, where applicable, the reasons why such actions differ from the course proposed by the residents.”. (c) Resources.—Section 6(j)(3) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(3)) is amended— (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (B) and (C) as subparagraphs (C) and (D), respectively; and (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new subparagraph: “(B) The Secretary may make available to receivers and other entities selected or appointed pursuant to this paragraph such assistance as is necessary to remedy the substantial deterioration of living conditions in individual public housing developments or other related emergencies that endanger the health, safety and welfare of the residents.”. (d) Annual Reports.—Section 6(j)(5)(E) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(4)(E)), as so redesignated by subsection (d)(1), is amended by inserting before the semicolon the following: “, including an accounting of the authorized funds that have been expended to support such actions”. (e) Applicability.— (1) Assessment of resident management corporations.— Section 6(j)(1) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(j)(1) is amended— 106 STAT. 3691 (A) in the first sentence, by inserting “and resident management corporations” before the period; (B) in the third sentence, by inserting “and resident management corporations” after “agencies”; and (C) in the fourth sentence, by striking “indicators.” and inserting “indicators for public housing agencies, to the extent practicable;”. (2) Procedures.— Section 6(j)(2) of the United States Housing Act of 1937, as amended by subsection (a) of this section, is further amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: “(D) The Secretary shall apply the provisions of this paragraph to resident management corporations as well as public housing agencies”.