S.Amdt. 4309

SA 4309. Mr. HAWLEY (for himself and Mr. Merkley) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill H.R. 6644, a bill
to increase the supply of housing in America, and for other purposes;
which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. ___. HOMES FOR AMERICAN FAMILIES.

(a) In General.--The Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. 1 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 9. RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE CONTRACTS IN RESTRAINT OF
TRADE.

``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Covered entity.--
``(A) In general.--The term `covered entity' means--
``(i) real estate investment trust;
``(ii) an insurance company; or
``(iii) an investment company or private fund--

``(I) with assets under management of not less than
$150,000,000; or
``(II) that is directly or indirectly owned or controlled
by a person that directly or indirectly owns or controls 1 or
more investment companies or private funds with total assets
under management of not less than $150,000,000.

``(B) Aggregation rules.--For purposes of determining the
assets under management of an entity under subparagraph
(A)(iii), all persons which are treated as a single employer
under subsection (b) or (c) of section 414 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 shall be treated as one entity. For
purposes of this subsection, in applying section 414(b) of
such Code, section 1563 of such Code shall be applied without
regard to subsection (b)(2) thereof.
``(2) Insurance company.--The term `insurance company' has
the meaning given the term in section 2(a) of the Investment
Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-2(a)).
``(3) Investment company.--The term `investment company'
has the meaning given the term in section 3 of the Investment
Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a-3).
``(4) Private fund.--The term `private fund' means a
corporation that would be considered an investment company
under section 3 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15
U.S.C. 80a-3) but for the application of paragraph (1) or (7)
of subsection (c) of such section 3.
``(5) Real estate investment trust.--The term `real estate
investment trust' has the meaning given the term in section
856 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
``(6) Residential real estate.--The term `residential real
estate' means--
``(A) a single-family home;
``(B) a condominium;
``(C) a townhouse; and
``(D) any land that has been zoned by a local government
for the development of a property described in subparagraphs
(A) through (C).
``(b) Contracts in Restraint of Trade.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), any
purchase by a covered entity of residential real estate shall
be deemed a contract in restraint of trade in violation of
section 1, except that the violation shall be civil only and
no criminal penalty under that section, including a term of
imprisonment, shall apply.
``(2) Exceptions.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a
homebuilder, developer, or redeveloper if the units of
residential real estate are being or have been constructed
for ownership by a person or entity that is not prohibited
from purchasing residential real estate under this
subsection.
``(3) Application.--Paragraph (1) shall only apply to the
purchase of residential real estate on or after the date of
enactment of this section.
``(c) Prioritized Antitrust Scrutiny and Enforcement.--The
Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Antitrust
Division of the Department of Justice shall prioritize the
review of purchases of residential real estate by a covered
entity for anti-competitive effects and prioritize
enforcement of antitrust laws, as appropriate, against
coordinated vacancy, pricing strategies, and other
anticompetitive practices by covered entities in local
residential real estate markets.''.
(b) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made
by this section shall take effect on the date that is 90 days
after the date of enactment of this Act.
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