42 U.S.C. § 1581 — Housing disposition

**(a) Mandatory transfers** Upon the filing of a request therefor as herein prescribed, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall (subject to the provisions of this section) relinquish and transfer, without monetary consideration, to any State or political subdivision thereof, local housing authority, local public agency, nonprofit organization, or educational institution, all contractual rights (including the right to revenues and other proceeds) and all property right, title, and interest of the United States in and with respect to (1) any temporary housing located on land owned or controlled by such transferee and in which the United States has no leasehold or other property interest, and (2) housing materials which have been made available to the transferee by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to [section 1572 of this title](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title42-section1572&num=0&edition=prelim). **(b) Transfer to provide housing for parents of deceased World War II servicemen** Upon the filing of a request therefor as herein prescribed, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may (subject to the provisions of this section) relinquish and transfer, without monetary consideration other than that specifically required by this subsection, to any State, county, municipality, or local housing authority, or to any educational institution where the housing involved is being operated for its student veterans or where the land underlying the housing is in the ownership of two or more educational institutions, or to any other local public agency or nonprofit organization where the housing involved has been made available by the United States to such agency or organization pursuant to [section 1572 of this title](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title42-section1572&num=0&edition=prelim) or where the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines that the housing involved is urgently needed by parents of persons who served in the Armed forces at any time on or after September 16, 1940, and prior to July 26, 1947, or on or after June 27, 1950, and prior to such date thereafter as shall be determined by the President and died of service-connected illness or injury (in which case the preferences in subsection (d)(1) shall not apply), all right, title, and interest of the United States in and with respect to any temporary housing (excluding commercial facilities which the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines are suitable for separate disposal and community facilities which the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines should be disposed of separately) located on land in which the United States has a property interest through ownership, lease, or otherwise, under the following conditions: (1) If the land is owned by the United States and under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the transferee shall have purchased such land from the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development at a price substantially equal to the cost to the United States of the land (including survey, title examination, and other similar expenses incident to acquisition but excluding the cost or value of all improvements thereto by the United States other than extraordinary fill), or, if the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines the amount of such cost to be nominal or not readily ascertainable, at a price which the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development determines to be fair and reasonable. Payment for such land shall be made in full at the time of sale or in not more than ten equal annual installments (the first of which shall be paid within one year from the date of conveyance) all of which shall be secured as determined by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development with interest from the date of conveyance at the going Federal rate of interest at the time of conveyance. (2) If the land is owned by the United States and not under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the transferee shall have purchased such land from the Federal agency having jurisdiction thereof. The Federal agency having jurisdiction of any such land is authorized to sell and convey the same to any such transferee on the terms authorized herein except that the determinations required to be made by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall be made by the agency having jurisdiction of such land. (3) If the United States does not own the land but has an interest therein through lease or otherwise, the transferee shall (i) where it is not the landowner, obtain the right to possession of such land for a term satisfactory to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, (ii) obtain from the landowner a release (or, if the transferee is the landowner, furnish a release) of the United States from all liability in connection therewith, including any liability for removal of structures or restoration of the land, except for any rental or use payment due at the time of transfer, and (iii) reimburse the United States for the proportionate amount of any payments made by the United States for the right to use the land and for taxes or payments in lieu of taxes for any period extending beyond the time of the transfer, and (iv) if the interest of the United States is not under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the transferee shall obtain a transfer or release of the interest of the United States from the Federal agency having jurisdiction, which transfers and releases by such Federal agencies are authorized on such terms as the head of the respective agency determines to be in the public interest. **(c) Requests for relinquishment and transfer** The filing of a request under subsections (a), (b), (g), or (h) of this section must be made on or before June 30, 1953, unless the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall, in any specific case, authorize the filing of a request subsequent to such date but on or before June 30, 1951, and, in any such case, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may extend, for a specified period not beyond December 31, 1951, the time hereinafter prescribed for complying with all conditions to the relinquishment or transfer. Such request shall be in the form of a resolution adopted by the governing body of the applicant, except that, in the case of a State, such request may be in the form of a written request from the governor, and, in the case of a local housing authority (other than the Alaska Housing Authority), or a local public agency organized specifically and solely for the purpose of slum clearance and community redevelopment, shall be accompanied by a resolution of the governing body of the municipality or county approving the request for transfer. Such request shall be accompanied by either (1) a final opinion of the chief law officer or legal counsel of the applicant to the effect that it has legal authority to make the request, to accept the transfer of and operate any property involved, and to perform its obligations under this subchapter, or (2) a preliminary opinion of such officer or counsel concerning the legal authority of the applicant with respect to the proposed relinquishment or transfer including a statement of the reasons for not furnishing the final opinion with the request and the time required to furnish such opinion. If a request has been submitted as herein provided, the applicant shall comply with all conditions to the relinquishment or transfer (including the furnishing of the final legal opinion) on or before June 30, 1953: Provided, That, in any case where the applicant is unable to comply with all conditions to the relinquishment or transfer because of the need for the enactment of State legislation or charter amendment, such date shall be June 30, 1952, and may be extended by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, upon request in a particular case, to December 31, 1952. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall act as promptly as practicable on any request which complies with the provisions of this section and is supported as herein required, and shall as promptly as practicable arrange for the making of any survey or the performance of other work necessary to the transfer: Provided, That, notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may at any time, except with respect to housing for which a request has been or may be submitted under subsection (a) of this section, remove, dispose of, or retain any temporary housing, or part thereof, in accordance with any provision of subchapters II to VII of this chapter. **(d) Representations by transferee as to use of property; preferences** No relinquishment or transfer with respect to temporary housing shall be made under this section unless the transferee represents in its request therefor that it proposes, to the extent permitted by law: (1) As among eligible applicants for occupancy in dwellings of given sizes and at specified rents, to extend the following preferences in the selection of tenants:First, to families which are to be displaced by any low-rent housing project or by any public slum-clearance or redevelopment project initiated after January 1, 1947, or which were so displaced within three years prior to making application for admission to such housing; and as among such families first preference shall be given to families of disabled veterans whose disability has been determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to be service-connected, and second preference shall be given to families of deceased veterans and servicemen whose death has been determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to be service-connected, and third preference shall be given to families of other veterans and servicemen; Second, to families of other veterans and servicemen; and as among such families first preference shall be given to families of disabled veterans whose disability has been determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to be service-connected, and second preference shall be given to families of deceased veterans and servicemen whose death has been determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to be service-connected: Provided, That if the transferee is an educational institution it may limit such preferences to student veterans and servicemen, and their families, and may, in lieu of such preferences, make available to veterans or servicemen and their families accommodations in any housing of the institution equal in number to the accommodations relinquished or transferred to it: And provided further, That, notwithstanding such preferences, if the transferee is a State, political subdivision, local housing authority, or local public agency, it will, in filling vacancies in housing transferred under subsection (b) hereof, give such preferences to military personnel and persons engaged in national defense or mobilization activities as the Secretary of Defense or his designee prescribes to such transferee. (2) Not to dispose of any right, title, or interest in the property (by sale, transfer, grant, exchange, mortgage, lease, release, termination of the leasehold, or any other relinquishment of interest) either (i) for housing use on the present site or on any other site except to a State or political subdivision thereof, local housing authority, a local public agency, or an educational or eleemosynary institution, or (ii) for any other use unless the governing body of the municipality or county shall have adopted a resolution determining that, on the basis of local need and acceptability, the structures involved are satisfactory for such use and need not be removed: Provided, That this representation will not apply to any disposal through demolition for salvage, lease to tenants for residential occupancy, or lease of nondwelling facilities for the continuance of a use existing on the date of transfer, or where such disposal is the result of a bona fide foreclosure or other proceeding to enforce rights given as security for a loan to pay for land under this section: And provided further, That nothing contained in this paragraph shall be construed as applicable to the disposition of any land or interest therein after the removal of the structures therefrom. (3) To manage and operate the property involved in accordance with sound business practices, including the establishment of adequate reserves. (4) Whenever the structures involved, or a substantial portion thereof, are terminated for housing use and are not to be used for a specific nonhousing use, to promptly demolish such structures terminated for housing use and clear the site thereof. **(e) Waiver of removal requirements** Any relinquishment or transfer by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under this section shall constitute a waiver of the requirements of [section 1553 of this title](https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title42-section1553&num=0&edition=prelim) (and any contractual obligations pursuant thereto) for removing the housing involved if the request for such relinquishment or transfer was made, as authorized herein, by the governing body of the municipality or county, or by the local housing authority, or, in other cases, if, prior to or within six months after the date of the relinquishment or transfer, there is filed with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development a resolution of such governing body specifically approving (1) the unconditional waiver of such requirements or (2) the waiver of such requirements subject to conditions specified in the resolution. Any such conditions shall not affect the waiver of removal requirements hereunder, and the United States shall assume no responsibility for compliance therewith. **(f) Disposition of net revenue and proceeds; transfer charges** In any relinquishment or transfer under this section, the net revenues and other proceeds from such housing to which the United States is entitled on the basis of periodic settlements shall continue to accrue to the United States until the end of the month in which the relinquishment or transfer is made, and the obligation of the transferee to pay such accrued amounts shall not be affected by this section. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may charge to the transferee the cost to the United States of any survey, title information, or other item incidental to the transfer. **(g) Transfers for slum clearance and community redevelopment projects** Upon the filing of a request therefor as herein prescribed, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may (subject to the provisions of this section) relinquish and transfer, without monetary consideration other than payment for land involved as specifically required by subsection (b) hereof, to any local public agency organized specifically and solely for the purpose of slum clearance and community redevelopment in a municipality in which the total number of persons, who on December 31, 1948, were living in temporary family accommodations provided by the United States or any agency thereof since September 8, 1939, exceeded the total population of such municipality as shown by the 1940 census, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and with respect to any temporary housing located in such municipality under the conditions set forth in said subsection (b). Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall not relinquish or transfer any right, title, or interest of the United States in and with respect to any temporary housing situated in such a municipality except as set forth in this subsection if at the time of the relinquishment or transfer there is in existence in such a municipality a local public agency organized specifically and solely for the purpose of slum clearance and community redevelopment. **(h) Transfers of temporary housing of masonry construction** Upon the filing of a request therefor as herein prescribed, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development may (subject to the provisions of this section except the provisions of subsection (d) hereof) relinquish and transfer to any municipality, without monetary consideration other than payment for the land involved as specifically required by subsection (b) hereof, all right, title, and interest of the United States in and with respect to unoccupied temporary housing of masonry construction located in such municipality: Provided, That such housing has been wholly or partially stripped of trim and fixtures prior to April 20, 1950 and the municipality adopts a resolution determining that the structures, with proposed improvements, will be suitable for long-term housing use.