Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— General Military Law › Part IV— SERVICE, SUPPLY, AND PROPERTY › Chapter 169— MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND MILITARY FAMILY HOUSING › Subchapter II— MILITARY FAMILY HOUSING › § 2836
Allows military and Coast Guard leaders to promise to guarantee rental occupancy for housing that private developers or housing authorities build or fix up on or near a new or existing base when there is a shortage of places for service members and their families. Such guarantees can only be made for projects that are authorized by law and must follow uniform rules set by the Secretary of Defense. The housing must meet Department of Defense specs (or local building codes if the military decides) or Department of Homeland Security specs for the Coast Guard. Rental rates set at the start cannot be higher than similar local units, and the guarantee can cover no more than 97 percent of the units. Agreements may last up to 25 years and can only be renewed if the project is on government land, with the renewal period no longer than the original term. Agreements may cover existing housing, can include services like child care or civic buildings, and may let the government provide utilities and trash removal to occupants at no cost as it does for government housing. The guarantee cannot exceed the shelter rent based on amortized construction costs. The military must use public, competitive bidding rules to pick developers and must require that local military housing has been over 97 percent full for 18 months before entering a deal (except for new bases or ones expecting big family increases). Agreements must give priority to military families, let the Secretary cancel the deal if the owner fails to maintain the property, state that payments depend on yearly appropriations for that project, and may require disputes to follow federal contract dispute procedures.
Full Legal Text
Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
Legislative History
Reference
Citation
10 U.S.C. § 2836
Title 10 — Armed Forces
Last Updated
Apr 3, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60