BILL REQ. #:  H-4750.1 

Read first time 01/23/08.   Referred to Committee on Insurance, Financial Services & Consumer Protection.

     AN ACT Relating to the creation of the homeownership security account to allow private organizations to contribute funds in support of financial education, and homeownership counseling and education; and adding new sections to chapter 43.320 RCW.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   A new section is added to chapter 43.320 RCW to read as follows:
     The homeownership security account is hereby created in the custody of the state treasurer. Expenditures from the account may be used solely for the purposes of preventing predatory lending and providing homeownership education, information, and counseling. Only the director of the department of financial institutions 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. 2   A new section is added to chapter 43.320 RCW to read as follows:
     The director of financial institutions or the director's designee may provide funds from the account for the establishment, administration, and implementation of financial literacy and education programs, including but not limited to:
     (1) Education and outreach programs that assist Washington citizens of all ages in understanding saving, investing, budgeting, and other skills necessary to obtain individual financial independence, fiscal responsibility, and financial management skills.
     (2) Unbiased information and counseling regarding residential mortgage transactions, nontraditional or subprime mortgages, predatory lending practices, gap financing and down payment assistance programs, or other financial products or practices in the marketplace relating to homeownership.
     The department may deliver the programs in subsections (1) and (2) of this section using grants, contracts, or interagency agreements with state and local governments and other nongovernmental organizations as necessary. The department may coordinate these programs with ongoing efforts by other public and private nonprofit entities to maximize the programs' effectiveness.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 43.320 RCW to read as follows:
     Contributions from either private or nonprofit organizations may be deposited in the homeownership security account created in section 1 of this act. More than fifty percent of the funds from this account must be used to assist low and moderate-income persons defined to be at or below eighty percent of county median income. Private contributors to this account may request that the department provide an accounting of their annual contributions to the account for the purpose of reporting the contributions to government and regulatory agencies, or for other purposes as required by the contributing organization.