# The DEPOSIT Act: Help for Low-Income Renters

This bill creates a new assistance program to help low-income families afford the upfront costs of renting a home. Specifically, it provides money to cover security deposits and moving expenses—two major financial barriers that often prevent struggling families from securing housing.

The bill works through two existing federal housing programs. First, it allows public housing agencies to use federal funds to pay security deposits on behalf of families who receive housing vouchers (a program that helps low-income people afford rent). Second, it opens up the HOME program—another federal housing initiative—to provide loans or grants specifically for security deposits to very low- and low-income families, whether or not they're receiving other rental assistance. In both cases, if a landlord returns unused deposit money when a tenant moves out, that money gets recycled back into the program to help other families.

The bill also requires the Department of Housing and Urban Development to study alternatives to traditional security deposits, such as monthly insurance premiums that tenants could pay instead of putting down a large lump sum. This research would examine how these alternatives affect different groups of renters based on their race, income, age, and other characteristics.

For renters, this could mean the difference between being able to move into a new apartment or staying stuck in an unsuitable living situation. For landlords, it provides assurance that they'll still be protected against damage costs. The bill doesn't mandate any changes—it simply authorizes federal agencies to spend money on these assistance programs if Congress appropriates the funds.

DEPOSIT Act

Lee, Barbara

Delivering Essential Protection, Opportunity, and Security for Tenants Act or DEPOSIT Act This bill provides access to rental security deposit and moving cost assistance for participants in certain low-income housing programs. Specifically, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) must provide public housing agencies (PHAs) funding for rental security deposit assistance for families in Section 8 tenant-based rental assistance (TBRA) programs (i.e., the Housing Choice Voucher Program). Upon tenancy termination, any unused security deposit amounts must be returned to a PHA to remain available for use as security deposits. HUD may also provide funding to PHAs to provide assistance with reasonable moving costs for families moving into an assisted dwelling unit. Under current law, security deposit assistance (i.e., loans or grants) is available in the HOME Investment Partnerships Program for families participating in a TBRA program. This bill expands access to security deposit assistance by allowing participating jurisdictions to provide these loans or grants to very low- and low-income families regardless of participation in a TBRA program. In addition, HUD must study and report on (1) alternatives to rental housing security deposits, including requiring a tenant to pay a monthly insurance premium; and (2) the impact that such alternatives have on the rental housing market and tenants, including how such alternatives affect tenants based on tenant demographics (e.g., race, age, sex, and disability).