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People & committees
Rep. Fletcher, Lizzie [D-TX-7] · D–TX
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Sep 19, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-02-26 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
The bill would give homeowners without traditional ownership records more ways to prove ownership for federal Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery and mitigation assistance after a presidentially declared disaster. This includes people who jointly inherited residential property through intestacy—inheritance under law when property is not disposed of by a will. Grantees, the entities receiving and administering these program grants, would have to provide a standardized ownership affidavit—a signed statement of ownership—and make copies accessible in specified languages. They could not require notarization. The form would receive a specific exemption from public comment periods and publication notices under the referenced regulations.
in connection with a Presidentially declared disaster, in a case in which a homeowner is required to demonstrate ownership of a property heir property owners and any other owners not having traditionally accepted forms of documentation of ownership of property are provided resources and options for proving ownership for purposes of receiving assistance under such Disaster Recovery and Mitigation programs.
the term heir property means residential property for which title passed by operation of law through intestacy and is held by two or more heirs as tenants in common.
Each grantee shall ensure that, at the time of application for housing repair and reconstruction assistance or mitigation assistance under such programs— (A) each applicant is informed of the existence of the affidavit of ownership and provided a copy at the time of application; and (B) copies of the form in English, Spanish, and any other locally predominant languages of the Presidentially-declared disaster area are accessible to the applicant.
A grantee may not require that the signed affidavit of ownership form of an applicant be notarized.
An affidavit of ownership form shall be exempt from any public comment periods or publication notices under part 570 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations.
Section 1 would name the legislation the Heirs Empowerment and Inheritance Rights Act of 2025, or HEIR Act of 2025.
This Act may be cited as the Heirs Empowerment and Inheritance Rights Act of 2025 or the HEIR Act of 2025.
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development would have to amend 24 CFR part 570 to provide ownership-documentation options for Community Development Block Grant disaster recovery and mitigation assistance. When homeowners must demonstrate ownership in connection with a presidentially declared disaster, heir property owners and other owners lacking traditionally accepted ownership records would have to receive resources and options for proving ownership.
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall amend the regulations at part 570 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, to ensure that in providing assistance for the Community Development Block Grant program for Disaster Recovery (CDBG–DR) and the Community Development Block Grant program for Mitigation (CDBG–MIT), in connection with a Presidentially declared disaster, in a case in which a homeowner is required to demonstrate ownership of a property heir property owners and any other owners not having traditionally accepted forms of documentation of ownership of property are provided resources and options for proving ownership for purposes of receiving assistance under such Disaster Recovery and Mitigation programs.
For the ownership-documentation subsection, “heir property” would mean residential property whose title passed by operation of law through intestacy—inheritance under law when property is not disposed of by a will—and is held by two or more heirs as tenants in common, meaning they hold separate ownership shares in the same property.
For purposes of this subsection, the term heir property means residential property for which title passed by operation of law through intestacy and is held by two or more heirs as tenants in common.
Acceptable ownership documentation would include either the bill's signed ownership affidavit or letters from local public or private schools, federal or state benefit providers, or social service organizations, including community assistance programs and nonprofits.
Acceptable documentation for purposes paragraph (1) shall include— (A) a signed affidavit of ownership form developed pursuant to subsection (b); or (B) letters from local public or private schools, Federal or State benefit providers, and social service organizations, including community assistance programs and nonprofit organizations.
The Secretary would have to develop a standardized ownership affidavit and amend regulations to provide for its use by CDBG–DR and CDBG–MIT grantees in coordination with appropriate authorities of the applicable jurisdiction.
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall amend the regulations at part 570 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, to provide for the use of a standardized affidavit of ownership form, to be developed by the Secretary, by grantees of the Community Development Block Grant program for Disaster Recovery (CDBG–DR) and the Community Development Block Grant program for Mitigation (CDBG–MIT) in coordination with appropriate authorities of the applicable jurisdiction.
At application for housing repair and reconstruction assistance or mitigation assistance, each grantee would have to inform every applicant about the affidavit and provide a copy. Copies would have to be accessible in English, Spanish, and any other locally predominant languages of the presidentially declared disaster area.
Each grantee shall ensure that, at the time of application for housing repair and reconstruction assistance or mitigation assistance under such programs— (A) each applicant is informed of the existence of the affidavit of ownership and provided a copy at the time of application; and (B) copies of the form in English, Spanish, and any other locally predominant languages of the Presidentially-declared disaster area are accessible to the applicant.
Grantees would be prohibited from requiring notarization of an applicant's signed ownership affidavit.
A grantee may not require that the signed affidavit of ownership form of an applicant be notarized.
The ownership affidavit form would be exempt from any public comment periods or publication notices under 24 CFR part 570. The exemption expressly concerns the form. Because the referenced regulations are not supplied, the source set does not establish which procedures would otherwise apply or the practical extent of the exemption.
An affidavit of ownership form shall be exempt from any public comment periods or publication notices under part 570 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations.
The supplied action snapshot, updated September 19, 2026, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on Financial Services on February 26, 2025.
Source snapshot updated 2026-09-19T23:40:57Z. 2025-02-26: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services. 2025-02-26: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-02-26. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy change attached to appropriations was identified after reviewing the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for particular recipients or places was identified after reviewing the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish absence in other versions or accompanying materials. Formal earmark status cannot be fully assessed without the relevant accompanying materials.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
Findings to examine
The complete supplied introduced text contains a narrow procedural exemption warranting scrutiny under this category. Classification is not a judgment about its justification.
Section 2(c) singles out the ownership affidavit form for exemption from public comment periods and publication notices under 24 CFR part 570. Read with section 2(b), this provides form-specific administrative relief for HUD and the grantees responsible for developing or using the form, to the extent those procedures would otherwise apply. The exemption directly relates to the bill's ownership-documentation policy. The referenced regulations are absent, so the supplied text does not establish which procedures would otherwise apply to which administrator or the practical extent of the relief.
An affidavit of ownership form shall be exempt from any public comment periods or publication notices under part 570 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations.
The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development shall amend the regulations at part 570 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, to provide for the use of a standardized affidavit of ownership form, to be developed by the Secretary, by grantees of the Community Development Block Grant program for Disaster Recovery (CDBG–DR) and the Community Development Block Grant program for Mitigation (CDBG–MIT) in coordination with appropriate authorities of the applicable jurisdiction.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Sep 19, 2026. How PlainBill uses AI