BLANKET Act

This Act may be cited as the “Building Local Access for Needs in Key Emergency Temperatures Act” or the “BLANKET Act”.

The Congress finds the following:

(1) Severe weather events including severe storms, heat waves, severe winter storms, flooding, wildfires, and cold snaps present serious risks to people experiencing homelessness.

(2) Temporarily increasing emergency shelter capacity during severe weather periods will prevent injury, reduce harm, and reduce strain on emergency medical services and hospitals.

(3) Targeted Federal funding is necessary to protect life, prevent illness, and support State and local efforts to respond to emergencies.

Subtitle B of title IV of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11371 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

“419. Supplemental severe weather emergency solutions grants.—

(a) In general.— The Secretary shall not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this section establish a competitive grant program to award supplemental severe weather emergency solutions grants (in this section referred to as “grants”) to eligible entities to expand and improve the capacity of emergency shelters available during periods of severe weather.

(b) Application.— To receive a grant under this section, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may require that includes—

(1) a description of the population to be served by the grant project and anticipated severe weather events, including past weather patterns and any relevant research data;

(2) data demonstrating a need for expanded emergency shelter services related to severe weather events, including the extent of unsheltered homelessness and weather-related risks in the area to be served by the eligible entity;

(3) a plan to expand shelter capacity in the area to be served by the eligible entity during severe weather events; and

(4) a plan to coordinate with emergency management, public health, and local service providers to make use of grant funds to provide emergency shelter and related services to homeless individuals during severe weather events.

(c) Selection criteria.— When awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall consider—

(1) the degree of need for emergency homelessness shelter and related services in the area to be served by the eligible entity, including the extent of unsheltered homelessness in such area;

(2) the demonstrated capacity, if any, of the eligible entity to deploy emergency shelters during severe weather;

(3) past performance of the eligible entity under programs authorized under this title;

(4) past coordination with local emergency response systems by the eligible entity; and

(5) expected measurable benefits in health expenditures, injury, and loss of life to the community served by the eligible entity relative to costs of the activities proposed to be undertaken with grant amounts by the eligible entity.

(d) Use of amounts.— Amounts from grants provided under this section may be used—

(1) to temporarily expand emergency shelter capacity, including seasonal warming and cooling centers;

(2) to finance vouchers for non-congregate shelter at hotels, motels, and comparable facilities;

(3) to finance shelter staffing, shelter security personnel, overtime compensation, sanitation, utilities, and necessary transportation involved in severe weather response;

(4) to purchase emergency supplies and equipment, including water, heating and cooling equipment, generators, air filtration, and emergency medical support; and

(5) such other uses as determined appropriate by the Secretary.

(e) Application of other requirements.— Any recipient of amounts under this section shall be required to comply with all requirements established under this subtitle, or any rule issued under this subtitle, that apply to recipients to recipients of grants under this subtitle.

(f) GAO Report.— The Comptroller General of the United States shall, not later than 5 years after the date of the enactment of this section, submit a report to Congress that evaluates the effectiveness of the grants provided under this section and shall include information about—

(1) people served by emergency shelters funded using amounts provided under this section;

(2) barriers to implementation of the grant program established under this section; and

(3) services used by people requiring emergency homeless shelter and related services during periods of severe weather during which amounts provided under this section are utilized.

(g) Authorization of appropriations.— In addition to amounts otherwise available, there is authorized to be appropriated $750,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2029 for the purpose of offering supplemental Emergency Solutions Grants addressing severe weather emergencies.

(h) Eligible entity defined.— In this section, the term “eligible entity” means—

(1) a State;

(2) a unit of general local government;

(3) a nonprofit organization;

(4) a public housing agency;

(5) or any combination of the types of entities listed in paragraphs (1) through (6).”.