By: Farias (Senate Sponsor - Uresti) H.B. No. 3215
(In the Senate - Received from the House May 13, 2009;
May 14, 2009, read first time and referred to Committee on
Intergovernmental Relations; May 23, 2009, reported favorably by
the following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 0; May 23, 2009, sent to
printer.)
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the establishment of a down payment assistance program
for certain professional educators by the Texas State Affordable
Housing Corporation.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter Y, Chapter 2306, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 2306.5622 to read as follows:
Sec. 2306.5622. PROFESSIONAL EDUCATORS DOWN PAYMENT
ASSISTANCE PROGRAM IN CERTAIN COUNTIES. (a) In this section:
(1) "Low-wealth school district" means a school
district that:
(A) has a low wealth per student, as determined
jointly by the commissioner of education and the corporation; and
(B) is located in a county with a population of
more than one million and in which more than 80 percent of the
population resides in a single municipality.
(2) "Professional educator" means a classroom
teacher, full-time paid teacher's aide, full-time librarian,
full-time counselor certified under Subchapter B, Chapter 21,
Education Code, or full-time school nurse.
(3) "Wealth per student" means the taxable value of
property in a school district, as determined under Subchapter M,
Chapter 403, divided by the number of students enrolled in the
district.
(b) The corporation, in consultation with the commissioner
of education and low-wealth school districts, shall establish a
program providing to eligible professional educators down payment
assistance in the form of deferred forgivable second-lien loans.
Loans provided under this section must:
(1) with a total matching amount not to exceed $4,000
as described by this subdivision, match each dollar of an eligible
professional educator's down payment contribution toward the
purchase of a home, with:
(A) a mandatory contribution, as funds are
available and not to exceed $2,000, from the corporation; and
(B) an additional optional contribution, not to
exceed $2,000, from the applicable low-wealth school district; and
(2) be forgiven at the rate of one-third of the
original balance of the loan for each year that the professional
educator remains employed by the district after the issuance of the
loan.
(c) To be eligible for down payment assistance under this
section, a professional educator must:
(1) be employed by a low-wealth school district for
the six-month period preceding the application date;
(2) have an income that does not exceed the greater of:
(A) 115 percent of area median family income,
adjusted for family size; or
(B) the maximum amount permitted by Section
143(f), Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
(3) meet the creditworthiness and purchase price
standards established by corporation rule;
(4) complete a homebuyer education course;
(5) occupy the purchased home as the educator's
primary residence; and
(6) purchase a home in the low-wealth school district
in which the professional educator is employed.
(d) A professional educator who receives down payment
assistance through a second-lien loan under this section shall
repay the outstanding balance of the loan if the person:
(1) ceases to be a professional educator employed by
the low-wealth school district in which the home is located; or
(2) ceases to occupy the home as the educator's primary
residence.
(e) The corporation may contract with the State Board for
Educator Certification, the Texas Education Agency, or other
agencies of the state or with private entities to:
(1) determine whether applicants qualify as
professional educators under this section; or
(2) otherwise administer all or part of this section.
(f) The board of directors of the corporation may set and
collect from each applicant any fees the board considers reasonable
and necessary to cover the expenses of administering the program.
(g) The board of directors of the corporation shall adopt
program guidelines governing:
(1) the administration of the program;
(2) the issuance of down payment assistance under the
program;
(3) creditworthiness and purchase price standards;
and
(4) the verification of occupancy of the home as the
professional educator's principal residence.
(h) The corporation shall ensure that down payment
assistance under this section is structured in a way that complies
with any requirements associated with the source of the funds used
for the assistance.
(i) The corporation may solicit and accept funding for the
program from the following sources:
(1) low-wealth school districts;
(2) gifts and grants for the purposes of this section;
(3) any state or federal programs that provide money
that may be used for the purposes of this section; and
(4) amounts received by the corporation in any
repayments of loans made under this section.
SECTION 2. The Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation
shall adopt the program guidelines required by Section
2306.5622(g), Government Code, as added by this Act, not later than
December 1, 2009.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
* * * * *