HELP for Interior Cities Act

This Act may be cited as the Humanitarian Emergency Localized Partnerships for Interior Cities Act or the HELP for Interior Cities Act .

(a) Prioritization for hospitals, clinics, and community health centers. Of the amount appropriated or otherwise made available for payments under the Shelter and Services Program under this Act, not less than 20 percent shall be prioritized for hospitals, clinics, and community health centers.

(b) Prioritization of interior cities. In carrying out the Program, the Director shall— (1) assess the amount of funding provided to interior cities as compared to border cities; (2) compile a list of interior cities that have not received as much funding under the Program as border cities with a similar size and population; and (3) prioritize consideration of providing funding authorized under this Act to such interior cities.

There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the Program $1,400,000,000, to remain available until expended.

In this Act, the following definitions apply: (1) Border city The term border city means a city that lies along a border of the United States. (2) Director The term Director means the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. (3) Shelter and Services Program; Program The term Shelter and Services Program or Program means the program operated by the Director to provide funds to nonfederal entities that provide shelter and other eligible services to migrants encountered by and released from the custody of the Department of Homeland Security, as well as funding to increase their temporary shelter capacity, for which funds were transferred from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to the Federal Emergency Management Agency under the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act, 2023 (division F of Public Law 117–328 ).