BILL REQ. #:  H-4780.1 

Read first time 01/23/08.   Referred to Committee on Housing.

     AN ACT Relating to housing reform policies to achieve greater efficiencies in housing investments; amending RCW 43.180.050 and 84.36.560; reenacting and amending RCW 43.180.070; adding new sections to chapter 43.185 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 43.180 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 81.04 RCW; creating new sections; making an appropriation; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The department of community, trade, and economic development shall work in consultation with the affordable housing advisory board and representatives from nonprofit housing development organizations and affordable housing advocacy groups in the state to identify development costs and fees associated with affordable housing development projects financed through the Washington housing trust fund under chapters 43.185 and 43.185A RCW and to make recommendations for strategies to reduce these costs and fees. Development costs and fees may include, but are not limited to, costs associated with legal and architectural services. The department shall report its findings and recommendations to the governor and to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2008.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The department of community, trade, and economic development and the office of the insurance commissioner must work in collaboration to analyze statutory and regulatory requirements regarding liability insurance for housing developers and identify economical alternatives to obtain required liability coverage for affordable housing projects funded by the Washington housing trust fund under chapters 43.185 and 43.185A RCW. The department and the office of the insurance commissioner must identify:
     (1) State statutes or administrative rules, or compliance regulations of the Washington housing trust fund, Washington state housing finance commission, or other commonly used affordable housing sources of financing, that mandate or stipulate specific types and levels of liability insurance coverage;
     (2) Liability insurance coverage that eligible organizations with affordable housing projects funded by the housing trust fund currently carry in order to fulfill requirements of the state;
     (3) Specific recommendations for statutory or regulatory changes necessary to assist or enable eligible organizations with affordable housing projects funded by the housing trust fund to economically fulfill liability insurance requirements including, but not limited to, changes that facilitate:
     (a) The creation of a self-insurance program for eligible organizations that have projects funded by the housing trust fund; and
     (b) The assignment of liability for all or a portion of an eligible organization's affordable housing development project funded by the housing trust fund to the state of Washington.
     (4) The department and the office of the insurance commissioner shall report its findings and recommendations to the governor and to the appropriate committees of the legislature by December 1, 2008.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 43.185 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The housing trust fund floating loan program is created within the department. The department may use funds from the housing trust fund floating loan account created in section 4 of this act to provide short-term, zero-interest or low-interest loans to eligible organizations making application to the Washington housing trust fund for affordable housing developments projects that are ready to proceed, but for which there is inadequate housing trust funds available during the current funding round. The department may finance the project's continued development for a period not to exceed three years during which time the organization must secure replacement permanent financing, which may include permanent financing from the department through the Washington housing trust fund. Once awarded permanent financing, either through the housing trust fund or an alternative source, the organization must repay the short-term floating loan. Floating loan repayments must be placed in the housing trust fund floating loan account to be used by the department for future short-term financing loans.
     (2) The department must collaborate with the affordable housing advisory board to determine criteria to be used in issuing floating loans and to determine an appropriate limit to the amount of funds to be loaned in any given year.
     (3) The department must report annually on the activities and outcomes of loans made under this section to the governor and the appropriate committees of the legislature beginning by January 1, 2009.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   A new section is added to chapter 43.185 RCW to read as follows:
     The housing trust fund floating loan account is created in the custody of the state treasurer. All receipts from housing trust fund floating loan repayments and from funds within the Washington housing trust fund that are directed for this purpose must be deposited into the account. Expenditures from the account may be used only for the housing trust fund floating loan program. Only the director or the director's designee may authorize expenditures from the account. The account is subject to allotment procedures under chapter 43.88 RCW, but an appropriation is not required for expenditures.

Sec. 5   RCW 43.180.050 and 1986 c 264 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) In addition to other powers and duties prescribed in this chapter, and in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter to provide decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable housing for eligible persons, the commission is empowered to:
     (a) Issue bonds in accordance with this chapter;
     (b) Invest in, purchase, or make commitments to purchase or take assignments from mortgage lenders of mortgages or mortgage loans;
     (c) Make loans to or deposits with mortgage lenders for the purpose of making mortgage loans; and
     (d) Participate fully in federal and other governmental programs and to take such actions as are necessary and consistent with this chapter to secure to itself and the people of the state the benefits of those programs and to meet their requirements, including such actions as the commission considers appropriate in order to have the interest payments on its bonds and other obligations treated as tax exempt under the code.
     (2) The commission shall establish eligibility standards for eligible persons, considering at least the following factors:
     (a) Income;
     (b) Family size;
     (c) Cost, condition and energy efficiency of available residential housing;
     (d) Availability of decent, safe, and sanitary housing;
     (e) Age or infirmity; and
     (f) Applicable federal, state, and local requirements.
     The state auditor shall audit the books, records, and affairs of the commission annually to determine, among other things, if the use of bond proceeds complies with the general plan of housing finance objectives including compliance with the objective for the use of financing assistance ((for implementation of cost-effective energy efficiency measures in dwellings)) to increase the supply of affordable and decent housing throughout the state.

Sec. 6   RCW 43.180.070 and 1999 c 372 s 11 and 1999 c 131 s 1 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     The commission shall adopt a general plan of housing finance objectives to be implemented by the commission during the period of the plan. The commission may exercise the powers authorized under this chapter prior to the adoption of the initial plan. In developing the plan, the commission shall consider and set objectives for:
     (1) The use of funds for single-family and multifamily housing;
     (2) The use of funds to promote increased housing density;
     (3) The use of funds for new construction, rehabilitation, including refinancing of existing debt, and home purchases;
     (((3))) (4) The housing needs of low-income and moderate-income persons and families, and of elderly persons or ((mentally or physically handicapped)) persons with disabilities or mental illness;
     (((4))) (5) The use of funds in coordination with federal, state, and local housing programs for low-income persons;
     (((5))) (6) The use of funds in urban, rural, suburban, and special areas of the state;
     (((6))) (7) The use of financing assistance to stabilize and upgrade declining urban neighborhoods;
     (((7))) (8) The use of financing assistance for economically depressed areas, areas of minority concentration, reservations, and in mortgage-deficient areas;
     (((8))) (9) The geographical distribution of bond proceeds so that the benefits of the housing programs provided under this chapter will be available to address demand on a fair basis throughout the state;
     (((9))) (10) The use of financing assistance for implementation of cost-effective energy efficiency measures in dwellings.
     The plan shall include an estimate of the amount of bonds the commission will issue during the term of the plan and how bond proceeds will be expended.
     The plan shall be adopted by resolution of the commission following at least one public hearing thereon, notice of which shall be made by mailing to the clerk of the governing body of each county and by publication in the Washington State Register no more than forty and no less than twenty days prior to the hearing. A draft of the plan shall be made available not less than thirty days prior to any such public hearing. ((At least every two years,)) The commission shall report to the legislature annually regarding implementation of the plan. The commission shall update the plan every two years.
     ((The commission may periodically update the plan.))
     The commission shall adopt rules designed to result in the use of bond proceeds in a manner consistent with the plan. The commission may periodically update its rules.
     This section is designed to deal only with the use of bond proceeds and nothing in this section shall be construed as a limitation on the commission's authority to issue bonds.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   A new section is added to chapter 43.180 RCW to read as follows:
     The commission must adopt rules to assure that tax exempt bonds issued under this chapter for multifamily affordable housing developments be awarded first to qualified applications submitted by qualified nonprofit organizations. In awarding tax exempt bonds, the commission shall give priority to projects that:
     (1) Utilize or will utilize state or federal government rental subsidies for at least fifty percent of the housing units;
     (2) Leverage other public or private sources of financing; and
     (3) Are located in areas targeted by the federal government or by the local government in official housing policy documents.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   A new section is added to chapter 81.04 RCW to read as follows:
     Affordable housing developments funded by the Washington housing trust fund under chapters 43.185 and 43.185A RCW are exempt from department of transportation rules regarding commercial relocation. The department must minimize impacts of department activities to affordable housing projects funded by the housing trust fund. The department must work with the department of community, trade, and economic development to develop reasonable relocation standards and requirements for such housing projects.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   A new section is added to chapter 43.185 RCW to read as follows:
     The nonprofit equity account is created in the custody of the state treasurer. All receipts from amounts appropriated from the Washington housing trust fund specifically to this account must be deposited into the account. Expenditures from the account must be used to facilitate the use of tax exempt bonds by qualified nonprofit organizations through the Washington state housing finance commission. Only the director or the director's designee may authorize expenditures from the account. The account is subject to allotment procedures under chapter 43.88 RCW, but an appropriation is not required for expenditures.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 10   A new section is added to chapter 43.185 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The housing communities program is created within the department to provide technical assistance and organizational capacity building programs to private, community-based nonprofit organizations that primarily serve communities of color or multilingual communities. The housing communities program must provide asset management, resource acquisition, and general housing development training to such nonprofit organizations with the goal of assisting them to add affordable housing development into their organizational missions and workplans, or expand their current affordable housing programs to further meet the needs of their communities.
     (2) The department shall contract with two or more experienced housing nonprofit organizations, with at least one located west of the Cascade mountains and one located east of the Cascade mountains, that have proven expertise in developing affordable housing projects to implement the housing communities program and provide organizational training and peer mentoring through the program in regions defined by the department.

Sec. 11   RCW 84.36.560 and 2007 c 301 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The real and personal property owned or used by a nonprofit entity in providing rental housing for very low-income households or used to provide space for the placement of a mobile home for a very low-income household within a mobile home park is exempt from taxation if:
     (a) The benefit of the exemption inures to the nonprofit entity;
     (b) At least seventy-five percent of the occupied dwelling units in the rental housing or lots in a mobile home park are occupied by a very low-income household; and
     (c) The rental housing or lots in a mobile home park were insured, financed, or assisted in whole or in part through one or more of the following sources:
     (i) A federal or state housing program administered by the department of community, trade, and economic development;
     (ii) A federal housing program administered by a city or county government;
     (iii) An affordable housing levy authorized under RCW 84.52.105; or
     (iv) The surcharges authorized by RCW 36.22.178 and 36.22.179 and any of the surcharges authorized in chapter 43.185C RCW.
     (2) If less than seventy-five percent of the occupied dwelling units within the rental housing or lots in the mobile home park are occupied by very low-income households, the rental housing or mobile home park is eligible for a partial exemption on the real property and a total exemption of the housing's or park's personal property as follows:
     (a) A partial exemption shall be allowed for each dwelling unit in the rental housing or for each lot in a mobile home park occupied by a very low-income household.
     (b) The amount of exemption shall be calculated by multiplying the assessed value of the property reasonably necessary to provide the rental housing or to operate the mobile home park by a fraction. The numerator of the fraction is the number of dwelling units or lots occupied by very low-income households as of December 31st of the first assessment year in which the rental housing or mobile home park becomes operational or on January 1st of each subsequent assessment year for which the exemption is claimed. The denominator of the fraction is the total number of dwelling units or lots occupied as of December 31st of the first assessment year the rental housing or mobile home park becomes operational and January 1st of each subsequent assessment year for which exemption is claimed.
     (3) If a currently exempt rental housing unit in a facility with ten units or fewer or mobile home lot in a mobile home park with ten lots or fewer was occupied by a very low-income household at the time the exemption was granted and the income of the household subsequently rises above fifty percent of the median income but remains at or below eighty percent of the median income, the exemption will continue as long as the housing continues to meet the certification requirements of a very low-income housing program listed in subsection (1) of this section. For purposes of this section, median income, as most recently determined by the federal department of housing and urban development for the county in which the rental housing or mobile home park is located, shall be adjusted for family size. However, if a dwelling unit or a lot becomes vacant and is subsequently rerented, the income of the new household must be at or below fifty percent of the median income adjusted for family size as most recently determined by the federal department of housing and urban development for the county in which the rental housing or mobile home park is located to remain exempt from property tax.
     (4) If at the time of initial application the property is unoccupied, or subsequent to the initial application the property is unoccupied because of renovations, and the property is not currently being used for the exempt purpose authorized by this section but will be used for the exempt purpose within two assessment years, the property shall be eligible for a property tax exemption for the assessment year in which the claim for exemption is submitted under the following conditions:
     (a) A commitment for financing to acquire, construct, renovate, or otherwise convert the property to provide housing for very low-income households has been obtained, in whole or in part, by the nonprofit entity claiming the exemption from one or more of the sources listed in subsection (1)(c) of this section;
     (b) The nonprofit entity has manifested its intent in writing to construct, remodel, or otherwise convert the property to housing for very low-income households; and
     (c) Only the portion of property that will be used to provide housing or lots for very low-income households shall be exempt under this section.
     (5) To be exempt under this section, the property must be used exclusively for the purposes for which the exemption is granted, except as provided in RCW 84.36.805.
     (6) The nonprofit entity qualifying for a property tax exemption under this section may agree to make payments to the city, county, or other political subdivision for improvements, services, and facilities furnished by the city, county, or political subdivision for the benefit of the rental housing. However, these payments shall not exceed the amount last levied as the annual tax of the city, county, or political subdivision upon the property prior to exemption.
     (7) As used in this section:
     (a) "Group home" means a single-family dwelling financed, in whole or in part, by one or more of the sources listed in subsection (1)(c) of this section. The residents of a group home shall not be considered to jointly constitute a household, but each resident shall be considered to be a separate household occupying a separate dwelling unit. The individual incomes of the residents shall not be aggregated for purposes of this exemption;
     (b) "Mobile home lot" or "mobile home park" means the same as these terms are defined in RCW 59.20.030;
     (c) "Occupied dwelling unit" means a living unit that is occupied by an individual or household as of December 31st of the first assessment year the rental housing becomes operational or is occupied by an individual or household on January 1st of each subsequent assessment year in which the claim for exemption is submitted. If the housing facility is comprised of three or fewer dwelling units and there are any unoccupied units on January 1st, the department shall base the amount of the exemption upon the number of occupied dwelling units as of December 31st of the first assessment year the rental housing becomes operational and on May 1st of each subsequent assessment year in which the claim for exemption is submitted;
     (d) "Rental housing" means a residential housing facility or group home that is occupied but not owned by very low-income households;
     (e) "Very low-income household" means a single person, family, or unrelated persons living together whose income is at or below ((fifty)) sixty percent of the median income adjusted for family size as most recently determined by the federal department of housing and urban development for the county in which the rental housing is located and in effect as of January 1st of the year the application for exemption is submitted; and
     (f) "Nonprofit entity" means a:
     (i) Nonprofit as defined in RCW 84.36.800 that is exempt from income tax under section 501(c) of the federal internal revenue code;
     (ii) Limited partnership where a nonprofit as defined in RCW 84.36.800 that is exempt from income tax under section 501(c) of the federal internal revenue code, a public corporation established under RCW 35.21.660, 35.21.670, or 35.21.730, a housing authority created under RCW 35.82.030 or 35.82.300, or a housing authority meeting the definition in RCW 35.82.210(2)(a) is a general partner; or
     (iii) Limited liability company where a nonprofit as defined in RCW 84.36.800 that is exempt from income tax under section 501(c) of the federal internal revenue code, a public corporation established under RCW 35.21.660, 35.21.670, or 35.21.730, a housing authority established under RCW 35.82.030 or 35.82.300, or a housing authority meeting the definition in RCW 35.82.210(2)(a) is a managing member.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 12   The sum of twenty-five thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2008, from the Washington housing trust fund solely for deposit into the nonprofit equity account created in section 9 of this act for the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 13   Sections 1 and 2 of this act expire February 1, 2009.