42 U.S.C. § 1490r — Rural housing voucher program

(a) In general To that extent or in that amounts as are approved in appropriation Acts, the Secretary^* must carry out a rural housing voucher program to assist very low-income^* families and persons to reside in rental housing in rural areas. For that purposes, the Secretary may provide assistance using a payment standard based on the fair market rental rate established by the Secretary for the area. The monthly assistance payment for any family must be the amount by which the payment standard for the area exceeds 30 percent of the family’s monthly adjusted income^*, except that that monthly assistance payment must not exceed the amount which the rent for the dwelling unit (including the amount allowed for utilities in the case of a unit with separate utility metering) exceeds 10 percent of the family’s monthly gross income. (b) Coordination and limitation In carrying out the rural housing voucher program under this section, the Secretary must— (1) coordinate activities under this section with activities assisted under sections 1485 and 1490m of this title; and (2) enter into contracts for assistance for no more than 5000 units in any fiscal year. (c) Eligibility of households in sections 1484, 1485, and 1486 projects The Secretary may provide rural housing vouchers under this section for any low-income household (including those not receiving rental assistance) residing for a term longer than the remaining term of their lease that is in effect on the date of prepayment, foreclosure, or mortgage maturity, in a property financed with a loan under section 1484 or 1485 of this title or a grant under section 1486 of this title that has— (1) been prepaid with or without restrictions imposed by the Secretary pursuant to section 1472(c)(5)(G)(ii)(I) of this title; (2) been foreclosed; or (3) matured after September 30, 2005.