Renters facing eviction could receive emergency financial assistance and be less likely to face eviction proceedings under proposed legislation from U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet.

The Eviction Crisis Act, introduced on Thursday, would create a grant program for short-term financial assistance to renters under threat of eviction, assisting them in payments for utilities, past-due rent and fees. Up to one-quarter of the money could be used for case management in child welfare, health or addiction problems, and employment, with the goal of keeping people stably housed.

“An unexpected illness, a car accident, or a family emergency can lead to a family being evicted from their home and falling into a cycle of poverty that lasts for years,” said Bennet. “As a former school superintendent, I saw kids unable to stay awake in class because they didn’t have a stable place to sleep the night before.”

U.S. Sens. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, and Todd Young, R-Ind., are the co-sponsors for the bill.

A large component of the legislation involves improving data collection on evictions nationwide. In 2016, one in 50 renters experienced an eviction, and the National Low Income Housing Coalition calculated that there is a deficit of 3.7 million housing units needed for extremely low income renters — defined as being below the poverty level or earning below 30% of median income for their area.

The bill would create a database to track evictions and order a study of trends between local laws and evictions over the past 30 years.

There would also be a grant program for community courts, which provide an alternative procedure to eviction that focuses on involving social services representatives in the dispute resolution. Diverting cases to this process would correct a disparity in conventional legal proceedings between the parties. In Denver, lawyers represent 90% of landlords in eviction cases, while only 2% of tenants have attorneys.

The courts would need to be in high-eviction areas, serve people with disabilities, and accommodate those with limited English proficiency to receive the federal grants.