Resident councils

(a) In general Section 2 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437) is amended by adding at the end the following: (c) Resident councils (1) In general Each public housing project with not less than 50 dwelling units shall form a resident council to— (A) improve residents’ quality of life and resident satisfaction; and (B) establish self-help initiatives to enable residents to create a positive living environment for families living in public housing projects. (2) Participation Each resident council formed under this subsection may actively participate through working partnerships with a public housing agency to advise and assist in all aspects of public housing project operations in accordance with part 964 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation. (3) Requirements (A) In general A resident council shall consist of individuals residing in public housing and shall meet the requirements described in this paragraph in order to— (i) receive official recognition from the public housing agency and the Secretary; (ii) be eligible to receive funds for resident council activities; and (iii) be eligible to receive stipends for officers for their related costs in connection with volunteer work in public housing. (B) Residents represented A resident council may represent residents residing in— (i) scattered site buildings; (ii) areas of contiguous row houses; (iii) 1 or more contiguous buildings; (iv) residents with tenant protection vouchers; (v) residents now in Rental Assistance Demonstration-converted properties who maintain their prior existing rights under sections 6 and 9 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d, 1437g); (vi) a development; or (vii) any combination of clauses (i) through (vi). (C) Elections (i) Written procedures A resident council shall adopt written procedures, such as by-laws or a constitution, which shall— (I) provide for a democratically elected governing board that— (aa) consists of not less than 5 members; and (bb) is elected— (AA) by the voting membership of the residents of the public housing project; and (BB) in elections that occur on a regular basis not less frequently than every 2 years; and (II) provide for the recall of the resident council by the voting membership through a petition or other expression of the desire of the voting membership for a recall election and set the threshold percentage of voting membership who are required to be in agreement in order to hold a recall election, which percentage shall be not less than 10 percent of the voting membership. (ii) Voting membership The voting membership of a resident council shall consist of heads of households of the public housing dwelling units of any age and other residents not less than 16 years of age. (4) Stipends Public housing agencies may provide stipends to resident council officers who serve as volunteers in their public housing projects, which shall— (A) not exceed $1,000 per month per officer; (B) not be required for officers for whom receiving the stipend would affect other income-calculated benefits; and (C) be decided locally by the resident council and the public housing agency. (5) Applicability of 2-year election cycle The requirement under paragraph (3)(C)(i)(I)(bb)(BB) shall apply on and after January 1, 2027.. (b) Rulemaking The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, amend— (1) section 964.150(a)(1) of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, by striking the third sentence and inserting the following: Of this amount, $40 per unit per year would be provided to fund tenant participation activities under subpart B of this part of duly elected resident councils or jurisdiction-wide councils and $25 per unit per year would be used by the HA to pay for costs incurred in carrying out tenant participation activities under subpart B of this part, including the expenses for conduction elections, recalls, or arbitration required under section 964.130 in subpart B.; and (2) section 964.150(b)(1) of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, by striking the third sentence and inserting the following: Subject to appropriations, the stipends will be funded from resident council’s portion of the operating subsidy funding for resident council expenses ($25.00 per unit per year).