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This section establishes the short title of the Act as the “Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Modernization Act of 2026” and sets forth the table of contents.
This section amends environmental review provisions in Section 105 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA) as follows: (1) authorizes tribally designated housing entity officials, in addition to tribal officers, to certify environmental reviews under subsection (c)(2); (2) converts the Secretary's waiver authority under subsection (d) from discretionary ("may") to mandatory ("shall"), redesignates existing paragraphs as subparagraphs, and requires action on waiver requests within 60 days; (3) adds subsection (e) deeming tribes (or the Director of the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands) in compliance with NAHASDA, CDBG title I (42 U.S.C. 5301 et seq.), and NEPA environmental reviews for projects using additional federal funds not exceeding 49% of the federal share, if the tribe assumes all relevant responsibilities; and (4) adds subsection (f) streamlining environmental reviews for NAHASDA- and CDBG-assisted activities, including (A) exemptions from review for affordable housing costing ≤$250,000, non-federal acquisitions, and rehabilitations costing <50% of pre-rehab market value with no ground disturbance, footprint change, or historic structures; (B) no requirement to consider or test for radon; (C) lead paint testing in remote areas (i.e., USDA-designated Frontier and Remote ZIP codes) for target housing rehabilitation via paint chip testing, inspection, visual assessment, risk assessment, or EPA-recognized test kits per TSCA §§402/404 (15 U.S.C. §§2682, 2684); and (D) exemption from HUD separation distances/mitigation for residential fuel tanks ≤1,320 gallons on one-to-four family dwellings used solely for noncommercial purposes.
This section extends the authorization of appropriations for grants under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA)—which provides block grants to Indian tribes and tribally designated housing entities for affordable housing activities (i.e., development, management, operation, and modernization)—to FY2026 through FY2032 (from FY2009 through FY2013).
This section expands eligible housing services under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA)—which provides block grants to Indian tribes for affordable rental and homeownership housing activities—to explicitly include college housing assistance as part of self-sufficiency and other services. (Thus, tribes may use NAHASDA funds for college housing assistance alongside activities such as counseling and energy auditing.)
This section revises the maximum rent cap of 30% of monthly adjusted income to apply only to dwelling units owned or operated by a recipient and assisted under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA) (previously, any assisted dwelling unit). It further establishes recipient self-determination by permitting written and publicly available policies governing maximum and minimum rents and homebuyer payments for all dwelling units assisted under NAHASDA, notwithstanding the 30% cap.
This section amends the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA) to (1) require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to approve or deny, within 60 days of receipt, a tribe's request to exceed by more than 10% the total development cost (TDC) maximum for a housing project—with the request deemed approved if HUD does not respond (Thus, this accelerates tribal housing development by limiting HUD delay); and (2) define TDC as the sum of all project costs—including administration, planning, site acquisition, demolition, construction or equipment, financing (including carrying charges), and other development—excluding off-site water and sewer, based on a moderately designed house and determined by averaging current construction costs from at least two nationally recognized residential construction cost indices.
This section modifies the affordable housing criteria under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA)—which provides block grants to Indian tribes for rental housing, homeownership, and related activities—by (1) adding an exception to the low-income family requirement in subsection (a)(1) to permit rental housing to be converted to homeownership or lease-purchase exclusively for the current rental family if that family was low-income at initial occupancy; and (2) expanding subsection (c) to exempt improvements to privately owned homes from long-term affordability commitments if the costs do not exceed 10% of the home's maximum total development cost.
This section requires that the lease termination notice period under subsection (a)(3)—i.e., the period required under State, tribal, or local law for leases in Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA) grant-assisted affordable housing—also apply to projects and programs funded in part by NAHASDA amounts. (Thus, this extends the notice requirement to partially funded tribal housing activities.)
This section revises procedures under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA)—which provides block grants to Indian tribes and tribally designated housing entities for affordable housing activities—allowing the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to immediately limit payments to unaffected programs, projects, or activities before a hearing in cases of substantial noncompliance with material provisions resulting in unauthorized federal expenditures. It replaces prior requirements for HUD to conduct a hearing within 60 days of notice with new procedures requiring (1) notice to the recipient at the time of action informing it of the right to request a hearing within 30 days; (2) any requested hearing to proceed under specified HUD regulations on an expedited basis to the maximum extent practicable; and (3) automatic termination of the payment limitation if the hearing is not completed within 180 days after the request.
This section modifies the annual reporting requirement under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA)—which provides block grants to Indian tribes for housing and related activities—by (1) directing the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to submit the report to the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the House Committee on Financial Services, rather than to Congress generally; and (2) requiring the report to be made publicly available, including to grant recipients.
This section increases the maximum term of leases for trust or restricted Indian lands—whether tribally- or individually-owned—for housing development and residential purposes, subject to approval by the affected tribe and Secretary of the Interior, to 99 years (from 50 years) and makes conforming changes to the section heading and rule of construction.
This section reauthorizes appropriations to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for Native Hawaiian housing assistance grants for FY2026 through FY2032 (previously authorized for FY2001 through FY2005). (The program provides formula block grants to the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands for the development, maintenance, and operation of affordable housing for low-income Native Hawaiian families.)
This section amends section 105 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to (1) qualify Indian Tribes, tribally designated housing entities (as defined in section 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996), and Tribal organizations (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act) as community-based development organizations for new housing construction under Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) awards authorized by section 106(a)(1); and (2) authorize such entities receiving CDBG grants under section 106(a)(1) to directly carry out activities described in section 105(a)(15).
This section establishes a waiver of housing counseling certification requirements under section 106(g)(1) of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1968 (12 U.S.C. 1701x(g)(1)) for Indian tribes, tribal organizations, tribally designated housing entities, and the Department of Hawaiian Homelands providing homeownership or rental housing counseling under section 105(a)(20) of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 5305(a)(20)) or sections 202(3) or 810(b)(2)(A) of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4132(3), 4229(b)(2)(A)). These entities may obtain certification voluntarily.
This section expands eligibility for housing counseling grants under the HUD housing counseling program to include Indian Tribes and tribally designated housing entities (TDHEs)—as defined in the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act (i.e., federally recognized tribes and entities approved by tribes to receive NAHASDA assistance)—in two eligibility subparagraphs, adds corresponding definitions, and makes a related redesignation. (Thus, Tribes and TDHEs may now apply directly for grants to provide counseling services such as homebuyer education, foreclosure prevention, and rental assistance to low- and moderate-income households.)
This section revises the Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee Program—which guarantees loans to promote homeownership for Indian families, tribes, housing authorities, and tribally designated housing entities on trust land and fee simple land—as follows: (1) in subsection (a), explicitly authorizing the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to guarantee up to 100% of unpaid principal and interest due on eligible loans and adding tribally designated housing entities as eligible borrowers; (2) in subsection (b), revising eligible housing to include 1- to 4-family dwellings that are standard housing; adding community development financial institutions as eligible lenders; authorizing a direct guarantee process for qualifying lenders (with lender indemnification requirements for losses due to origination violations, fraud, or misrepresentation, and periodic Secretary reviews of lender performance that may result in termination for unacceptable risk to the loan guarantee fund); and permitting loan terms up to 40 years for modifications; (3) in subsection (c), establishing exceptions to prior Secretary review and certification requirements when delegating direct guarantee endorsement authority to eligible lenders, who may then issue guarantee certificates; and (4) in subsection (l), adding a definition of tribally designated housing entity.
This section expands the Native Hawaiian Housing Loan Guarantee Program (i.e., Section 184A program, which provides FHA-like loan guarantees to increase homeownership among Native Hawaiians) as follows: (1) expands the program's purpose to include Native Hawaiian families eligible for homesteads under the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920, on fee simple lands in Hawaii; (2) revises eligible housing to cover loans used to construct, acquire, refinance, or rehabilitate 1- to 4-family standard dwellings; (3) expands eligible lenders to include any federally supervised, approved, regulated, or insured lender (e.g., certified community development financial institutions) and authorizes the Secretary to delegate direct guarantee endorsement authority to such lenders (with related lender indemnification requirements for origination defects or fraud, Secretary review of lender performance based on default rates and other risk factors, and implementation via regulation or notice); (4) permits loan terms up to 40 years (previously without stated maximum) in cases of loan modification; (5) exempts direct endorsement lenders from certain Secretary pre-approval requirements for loan guarantees; and (6) authorizes appropriations of such sums as necessary for program costs in FY2026 through FY2032.
This section establishes the Tribal HUD–VASH program within the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program (i.e., tenant-based rental assistance under Section 8(o)(19) of the U.S. Housing Act of 1937 paired with VA supportive services for homeless veterans). The program requires the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to use at least 5% of amounts available for such rental assistance to award grants to eligible recipients under section 101 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (NAHASDA; 25 U.S.C. 4111) for the benefit of eligible Indian veterans (i.e., homeless or at-risk veterans living on or near reservations or other Indian areas). The program is modeled on existing HUD-VASH, with modifications allowed after consultation with Indian tribes and organizations; grants are awarded based on need, administrative capacity, and other criteria; and grants are administered under NAHASDA with specified reporting on utilization and effectiveness. HUD may waive certain requirements (except labor standards or environmental protections), provide renewal grants, and—together with VA and the Indian Health Service—must consult on program design, conduct reviews, and submit reports to specified congressional committees not later than 1 year after enactment and every 5 years thereafter.
This section amends the Continuum of Care program under Title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (i.e., grants to public and private nonprofit entities for permanent and transitional housing and services for the homeless) to facilitate participation by Indian tribes and tribally designated housing entities (TDHEs, as defined in section 4 of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4103), i.e., tribes or entities designated to administer tribal housing programs). Specifically, the section (1) adds a definition of TDHE in section 401; (2) includes Indian tribes and TDHEs as eligible collaborative applicants in section 423(g); and (3) revises section 435 to (a) exempt specified tribal projects from title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000d et seq.) and title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.); (b) require certifications of consistency with an approved Indian housing plan under NAHASDA (25 U.S.C. 4112) for projects on reservations or trust lands; (c) exempt Continuum of Care collaborative applicants whose geographic area includes only reservation or trust land from consolidated planning requirements under section 402(f)(2); and (d) authorize the Secretary to waive or specify alternative requirements (except for labor standards and environmental reviews) to enable tribal participation.
This section directs the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to develop policies and procedures authorizing interested Indian tribes and tribally designated housing entities receiving grants under the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996 to submit, at their discretion, one consolidated annual performance report covering all such grants and grants from other HUD-administered programs. (Thus, eligible recipients may consolidate performance reporting across multiple HUD programs, notwithstanding other reporting laws.)
This section exempts housing activities carried out using federal financial assistance provided to Indian tribes, tribally designated housing entities, tribal organizations, other Tribal entities (including the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands), and the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands under any federal program from requirements under the Build America, Buy America Act and related regulations or guidance. (The Build America, Buy America Act generally requires use of domestic iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials in federally funded infrastructure projects.)