Section 16.56. Jumpstart housing assistance program.

  1.  As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:

  a.  “Disaster-affected home” means a primary residence that was destroyed or damaged due to a natural disaster occurring after May 24, 2008, and before August 14, 2008.

  b.  “Local government participant” means the cities of Ames, Cedar Falls, Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, Dubuque, Iowa City, Waterloo, and West Des Moines; a council of governments whose territory includes at least one county that was declared a disaster area by the president of the United States after May 24, 2008, and before August 14, 2008; and any county that is not part of any council of governments and was declared a disaster area by the president of the United States after May 24, 2008, and before August 14, 2008.

  2.  The authority shall establish and administer a jumpstart housing assistance program. Under the program, the authority shall provide grants to local government participants for purposes of distributing the moneys to eligible residents for eligible purposes which relate to disaster-affected homes.

  3.  An eligible resident is a person residing in a disaster-affected home who is the owner of record of a right, title, or interest in the disaster-affected home and who has been approved by the federal emergency management agency for housing assistance. An eligible resident must have a family income equal to or less than one hundred fifty percent of the area median family income.

  4.  Eligible purposes include forgivable loans for down payment assistance, emergency housing repair or rehabilitation, and interim mortgage assistance. An eligible resident who receives a forgivable loan may also receive energy efficiency assistance which shall be added to the principal of the forgivable loan.

  5.  A local government participant may retain a portion of the grant moneys for administrative purposes as provided in a grant agreement between the authority and the local government participant.

  6.  Any money paid to a local government participant by an eligible resident shall be remitted to the authority for deposit in the housing assistance fund created in section 16.40.

  7.  As determined by the authority, unused or unobligated moneys may be reclaimed and reallocated by the authority to other local government participants.

2014 Acts, ch 1080, §46, 78