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<section article="ghs" article_name="Housing and Community Development" number="4-507" title_number="4" title_name="Division of Development Finance" subtitle_number="5" subtitle_name="Funds">
  <level label="a">
    <text>In this section, “Fund” means the Housing Counseling and Foreclosure Mediation Fund.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="b">
    <text>There is a Housing Counseling and Foreclosure Mediation Fund.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="c">
    <text>The purposes of the Fund are to:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>support nonprofit and government housing counselors and other nonprofit entities with providing:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>legal assistance to homeowners or occupants who are trying to avoid foreclosure or manage foreclosure proceedings; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>homebuyer education, housing advice, or financial counseling for homeowners, prospective homeowners, and low– and moderate–income households;</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>support the establishment and operation of nonprofit housing counseling entities;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>support efforts by the Department and the Maryland Department of Labor to:</text>
      <level label="i">
        <text>contact and provide advice and assistance to homeowners or occupants facing financial difficulty or foreclosure; and</text>
      </level>
      <level label="ii">
        <text>provide advice and assistance to prospective homeowners; and</text>
      </level>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>assist in funding the costs of foreclosure mediations provided by the Office of Administrative Hearings under § 7–105.1 of the Real Property Article.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="d">
    <text>The Department shall administer the Fund.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="e">
    <level label="1">
      <text>The Fund is a special, nonlapsing fund that is not subject to § 7–302 of the State Finance and Procurement Article.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>The State Treasurer shall hold the Fund separately, and the Comptroller shall account for the Fund.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="f">
    <text>The Fund consists of:</text>
    <level label="1">
      <text>revenue distributed to the Fund under § 7–105.1 of the Real Property Article;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>investment earnings of the Fund;</text>
    </level>
    <level label="3">
      <text>money appropriated in the State budget to the Fund; and</text>
    </level>
    <level label="4">
      <text>any other money from any other source accepted for the benefit of the Fund.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="g">
    <text>The Fund may be used only for the purposes described in subsection (c) of this section.</text>
  </level>
  <level label="h">
    <level label="1">
      <text>The State Treasurer shall invest the money of the Fund in the same manner as other State money may be invested.</text>
    </level>
    <level label="2">
      <text>Any investment earnings of the Fund shall be paid into the Fund.</text>
    </level>
  </level>
  <level label="i">
    <text>Expenditures from the Fund may be made only in accordance with the State budget.</text>
  </level>
</section>
