
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 42USC1437b]

 
                 TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
 
                      CHAPTER 8--LOW-INCOME HOUSING
 
            SUBCHAPTER I--GENERAL PROGRAM OF ASSISTED HOUSING
 
Sec. 1437b. Loans and commitments to make loans for low-income 
        housing projects
        

(a) Authority of Secretary; interest rates; repayment date; use as 
        security for obligations of public housing agency

    The Secretary may make loans or commitments to make loans to public 
housing agencies to help finance or refinance the development, 
acquisition, or operation of low-income housing projects by such 
agencies. Any contract for such loans and any amendment to a contract 
for such loans shall provide that such loans shall bear interest at a 
rate specified by the Secretary which shall not be less than a rate 
determined by the Secretary of the Treasury taking into consideration 
the current average market yield on outstanding marketable obligations 
of the United States with remaining periods to maturity comparable to 
the average maturities of such loans, plus one-eighth of 1 per centum. 
Such loans shall be secured in such manner and shall be repaid within 
such period not exceeding forty years, or not exceeding forty years from 
the date of the bonds evidencing the loan, as the Secretary may 
determine. The Secretary may require loans or commitments to make loans 
under this section to be pledged as security for obligations issued by a 
public housing agency in connection with a low-income housing project.

(b) Issuance of obligations by Secretary; limitation on amounts; forms 
        and denominations; terms and conditions; purchase, establishment 
        of maturities and rates of interest, and sale by Secretary of 
        the Treasury

    The Secretary may issue and have outstanding at any one time notes 
and other obligations for purchase by the Secretary of the Treasury in 
an amount which will not, unless authorized by the President, exceed 
$1,500,000,000. For the purpose of determining obligations incurred to 
make loans pursuant to this chapter against any limitation otherwise 
applicable with respect to such loans, the Secretary shall estimate the 
maximum amount to be loaned at any one time pursuant to loan agreements 
then outstanding with public housing agencies. Such notes or other 
obligations shall be in such forms and denominations and shall be 
subject to such terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the 
Secretary with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury. The notes 
or other obligations issued under this subsection shall have such 
maturities and bear such rate or rates of interest as shall be 
determined by the Secretary of the Treasury. The Secretary of the 
Treasury is authorized and directed to purchase any notes or other 
obligations of the Secretary issued hereunder and for such purpose is 
authorized to use as a public debt transaction the proceeds from the 
sale of any securities issued under chapter 31 of title 31, and the 
purposes for which securities may be issued under such chapter are 
extended to include any purchases of such obligations. The Secretary of 
the Treasury may at any time sell any of the notes or other obligations 
acquired by him under this section. All redemptions, purchases, and 
sales by the Secretary of the Treasury of such notes or other 
obligations shall be treated as public debt transactions of the United 
States.

(c) Public and Indian housing financing reforms

    (1) At such times as the Secretary may determine, and in accordance 
with such accounting and other procedures as the Secretary may 
prescribe, each loan made by the Secretary under subsection (a) of this 
section that has any principal amount outstanding or any interest amount 
outstanding or accrued shall be forgiven; and the terms and conditions 
of any contract, or any amendment to a contract, for such loan with 
respect to any promise to repay such principal and interest shall be 
canceled. Such cancellation shall not affect any other terms and 
conditions of such contract, which shall remain in effect as if the 
cancellation had not occurred. This paragraph shall not apply to any 
loan the repayment of which was not to be made using annual 
contributions, or to any loan all or part of the proceeds of which are 
due a public housing agency from contractors or others.
    (2)(A) On April 7, 1986, each note or other obligation issued by the 
Secretary to the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to subsection (b) of 
this section, together with any promise to repay the principal and 
unpaid interest that has accrued on each note or obligation, shall be 
forgiven; and any other term or condition specified by each such 
obligation shall be canceled.
    (B) On September 30, 1986, and on any subsequent September 30, each 
such note or other obligation issued by the Secretary to the Secretary 
of the Treasury pursuant to subsection (b) of this section during the 
fiscal year ending on such date, together with any promise to repay the 
principal and unpaid interest that has accrued on each note or 
obligation, shall be forgiven; and any other term or condition specified 
by each such obligation shall be canceled.
    (3) Any amount of budget authority (and contract authority) that 
becomes available during any fiscal year as a result of the forgiveness 
of any loan, note, or obligation under this subsection shall be 
rescinded.

(Sept. 1, 1937, ch. 896, title I, Sec. 4, as added Pub. L. 93-383, title 
II, Sec. 201(a), Aug. 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 656; amended Pub. L. 97-35, 
title III, Sec. 322(c), Aug. 13, 1981, 95 Stat. 402; Pub. L. 98-479, 
title II, Sec. 203(b)(1), Oct. 17, 1984, 98 Stat. 2229; Pub. L. 99-272, 
title III, Sec. 3004, Apr. 7, 1986, 100 Stat. 102; renumbered title I, 
Pub. L. 100-358, Sec. 5, June 29, 1988, 102 Stat. 681; Pub. L. 101-625, 
title V, Sec. 572(2), Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 4236.)


                            Prior Provisions

    A prior section 4 of act Sept. 1, 1937, ch. 896, 50 Stat. 889, as 
amended, provided for assistance of officers, etc., of other agencies 
and transfer of property to the Authority and was classified to section 
1404 of this title, prior to the general revision of this chapter by 
Pub. L. 93-383.


                               Amendments

    1990--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 101-625 substituted ``low-income 
housing'' for ``lower income housing'' wherever appearing.
    1986--Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 99-272 added subsec. (c).
    1984--Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 98-479 substituted ``chapter 31 of title 
31'' for ``the Second Liberty Bond Act, as amended'' and ``such 
chapter'' for ``such Act''.
    1981--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 97-35 substituted reference to lower 
income for reference to low-income in two places.


                    Effective Date of 1981 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 97-35 effective Oct. 1, 1981, see section 371 
of Pub. L. 97-35, set out as an Effective Date note under section 3701 
of Title 12, Banks and Banking.


Carryover of Amounts of Budget Authority; Availability as Appropriation 
                           of Funds for Grants

    Pub. L. 99-500, Sec. 101(g) [H.R. 5313, title I], Oct. 18, 1986, 100 
Stat. 1783-242, and Pub. L. 99-591, Sec. 101(g) [H.R. 5313, title I], 
Oct. 30, 1986, 100 Stat. 3341-242; Pub. L. 100-202, Sec. 106, Dec. 22, 
1987, 101 Stat. 1329-433, provided in part: ``That the budget authority 
obligated under contracts for annual contributions shall be increased 
above amounts heretofore provided in appropriations Acts by 
$7,805,668,000: Provided further, That any part of the amount of the 
increase in budget authority provided for in the immediately foregoing 
proviso that is available under this Act for public housing development 
and acquisition costs or which is to be used for amendments for such 
costs, shall be available as an appropriation of funds, to remain 
available until expended, for grants, which are hereby authorized in 
lieu of loans under section 4(a) of the United States Housing Act of 
1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437b), and which the Secretary may make on 
substantially the same terms (except for repayment unless repayment is a 
properly imposed sanction) as those heretofore set forth in annual 
contributions contracts for loans and annual contributions: Provided 
further, That during 1987 and thereafter, any amounts of budget 
authority which are carried over from a prior year, or which are 
otherwise available for obligation, and which are available for public 
housing development and acquisition costs, together with any amounts of 
budget authority which are to be used for amendments for such costs, in 
accordance with any Act, shall also be made available as an 
appropriation of funds for grants, under the same terms as those 
applying under the immediately preceding proviso''.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 1437c, 1437q of this title.
