1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to housing; establishing a temporary emergency rental assistance program; 
1.3 	appropriating money.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. APPROPRIATION; COVID-19 EMERGENCY RENTAL ASSISTANCE 
1.6 	PROGRAM.
 1.7 	(a) $330,000,000 in fiscal year 2022 is appropriated from the state fiscal recovery federal 
1.8 	fund to the commissioner of the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency to provide emergency 
1.9 	rental assistance under this section. This is a onetime appropriation and is available until 
1.10 	June 30, 2022. For the purposes of this section, "state fiscal recovery federal fund" means 
1.11 	funds received by the state from the state fiscal recovery fund in the American Rescue Plan 
1.12 	Act, Public Law 117-2.
1.13 	(b) The commissioner may use funds under this section to continue operation of the 
1.14 	RentHelpMN rental assistance program authorized under the federal Consolidated 
1.15 	Appropriations Act, 2021, Public Law 116-260, and the federal American Rescue Plan Act, 
1.16 	2021, Public Law 117-2. Rental assistance shall be disbursed pursuant to the RentHelpMN 
1.17 	program guidelines in effect on January 28, 2022. The commissioner shall spend not more 
1.18 	than ten percent of the amount appropriated under this section for administrative costs 
1.19 	attributable to providing financial assistance.
1.20 	(c) A landlord may not bring an eviction action against a tenant for the nonpayment of 
1.21 	rent or proceed with an eviction action for nonpayment of rent if one has already been filed, 
1.22 	if the tenant demonstrates the tenant has a pending application for rental assistance under 
2.1 	this section, until the commissioner makes a determination on the application for rental 
2.2 	assistance or June 1, 2022, whichever is first.