Vermont H 775: An act relating to creating the State Youth Council

Bill Text

BILLAS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.775
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H.775
Introduced by Representatives Mihaly of Calais, Charlton of Chester, Bartley
of Fairfax, Graning of Jericho, Krasnow of South Burlington,
and Marcotte of Coventry
Referred to Committee on
Date:
Subject: Housing; municipal and county government; special assessments;
indebtedness; revenue bonds; State Treasurer; credit facility; Vermont
Housing Special Fund
Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to create the
Rural Housing Finance Pilot Program and the off-site construction accelerator
pilot program; to authorize municipalities to issue revenue bonds backed by
special assessments for the purpose of financing a public improvement within
a special assessment district; to increase the financial cap on the Office of the
State Treasurer’s authority to establish a credit facility for purposes of funding
mobile home park infrastructure; to authorize the State Treasurer to retain
interest on loans issued using credit facility funds for the purpose of promoting
the increased availability of housing and the bulk purchasing of off-site
constructed housing; to authorize the State Treasurer to create an additional
credit facility of one percent for the bulk purchase of off-site constructed
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housing; and to create the Vermont Housing Special Fund for the purposes of
administering interest paid on loans issued using credit facility funds.
An act relating to creating tools for housing production
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
* * * Rural Housing Finance Pilot Program * * *
Sec. 1. RURALHOUSING FINANCE PILOT PROGRAM
(a) Creation.
(1) There is created the Rural Housing Finance Pilot Program to
stimulate the development of affordable housing in rural Vermont
communities. Under the Program, the Department of Housing and
Community Development may authorize for taxstabilization up to 300
housing units in eligible communities over a maximum application period of
three years.
(2) The Department of Housing and Community Development shall
work in collaboration with the Vermont Housing Finance Agency, the Vermont
Housing and Conservation Board, the Office of the State Treasurer, and the
Treasurer’s Local Investment Advisory Committee in carrying out the
provisions of this pilot program. The Department may enter into agreement
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with one or more of the abovementioned partners in carrying out specific
provisions of this section.
(3) The Vermont Housing Finance Agency, the Vermont Housing and
Conservation Board, and the Office of the State Treasurer shall provide
technical and administrative support to the Department of Housing and
Community Development in carrying out the provisions of this section.
(b) Administration. The Department of Housing and Community
Development shall administer the Program according to the requirements of
this section. Pursuant to 3 V.S.A. chapter 25, the Commissioner of Housing
and Community Development shall adopt any rules necessary for the
implementation, administration, and enforcement of this section.
(c) Application. The Department of Housing and Community
Development shall develop a simple application process for municipalities to
participate in the Program that requires the sponsoring municipality to
demonstrate compliance with the requirements of this subsection.
(1) Location. The proposed housing development will be located in a
sponsoring municipality with a population of fewer than 5,000 persons and
will not be located in a TIF district or a housing development site.
(2) Maximum size. A proposed housing development must be primarily
residential space and may include commercial space. The residential portion
of the proposed housing development shall not exceed 16 housing units. The
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commercial portion of the proposed housing development shall not exceed
5,000 square feet.
(3) Affordability. At least 15 percent or a minimum of two of the
proposed housing units shall be affordable housing units. Affordable housing
units shall be subject to covenants or restrictions that preserve their
affordability for a minimum of 15 years or longer as provided in municipal
bylaws.
(d) Selection. The Department of Housing and Community Development
shall develop a procedure for selecting from among the qualifying applications
under subsection (c) of this section that takes into consideration both the
overall affordability of the proposed housing units and the extent to which tax
stabilization facilitates that affordability. Using the selection procedure, the
Commissioner of Housing and Community Development shall recommend to
the Commissioner of Taxes up to 300 housing units for taxstabilization.
(e) Taxs