Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1114 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R8273 JAM-F
2	2	By: Lucio S.B. No. 1114
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to financial assistance provided for the demolition and
8	8	replacement of unsafe housing and the purchase of manufactured
9	9	homes by individuals and families of very low income.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subchapter AA, Chapter 2306, Government Code, is
12	12	amended by adding Sections 2306.6024 and 2306.6025 to read as
13	13	follows:
14	14	Sec. 2306.6024. TEXAS SAFE HOME PROGRAM. (a) The division
15	15	shall establish and administer a program to provide financial
16	16	assistance for the demolition and replacement of owner-occupied
17	17	single-family homes that are in a condition that poses a risk to the
18	18	health and safety of the occupants.
19	19	(b) The Manufactured Housing Board shall adopt rules to
20	20	implement the program described by this section. Rules adopted
21	21	under this section must establish:
22	22	(1) procedures and forms for nominating a household
23	23	for participation in the program;
24	24	(2) eligibility criteria for participation in the
25	25	program, including criteria based on:
26	26	(A) the financial need of the household;
27	27	(B) the physical condition of the home; and
28	28	(C) other criteria the Manufactured Housing
29	29	Board considers necessary;
30	30	(3) procedures for evaluating a household's
31	31	eligibility for participation in the program;
32	32	(4) a system that:
33	33	(A) prioritizes and maximizes the allocation of
34	34	available funds; and
35	35	(B) includes the assignment of eligible
36	36	households to specific funding priority levels that are designed to
37	37	ensure the most effective use of funds for the most exigent
38	38	circumstances; and
39	39	(5) the manner in which a nomination must be made and
40	40	the manner in which households will be assigned to a specific
41	41	funding priority level under the system described by Subdivision
42	42	(4).
43	43	(c) Funding priority levels described by Subsection
44	44	(b)(4)(B) must give high priority to:
45	45	(1) households with children, the elderly, or persons
46	46	with disabilities;
47	47	(2) households whose health and safety are at greatest
48	48	risk due to the continued occupancy of a home described by
49	49	Subsection (a); and
50	50	(3) households that:
51	51	(A) are eligible for and will receive third-party
52	52	contributions, including volunteer labor or additional loans,
53	53	grants, or other financial assistance; or
54	54	(B) will contribute labor in the demolition or
55	55	construction of the home.
56	56	(d) A household may be nominated for participation in the
57	57	program by a mayor, fire chief, fire marshal, volunteer fire chief,
58	58	county commissioner, or county judge filing a nomination with the
59	59	division.
60	60	(e) On receipt of a nomination regarding a household, the
61	61	division shall determine whether the household is eligible to
62	62	participate in the program. If the household is eligible, the
63	63	division shall establish a funding priority level for the
64	64	household.
65	65	(f) A household may not be required to participate in the
66	66	program.
67	67	(g) In determining whether a nominated household is
68	68	eligible for participation in the program and for the purpose of
69	69	establishing a funding priority level for the household, an
70	70	inspector with the division shall inspect the home with the
71	71	homeowner and with the person who nominated the household or that
72	72	person's designee.
73	73	(h) Financial assistance administered under this section
74	74	may be provided in the form of a grant, partial grant, loan, or
75	75	forgivable loan.
76	76	(i) The division shall establish the Texas safe home trust
77	77	fund. The Texas safe home trust fund:
78	78	(1) is a fund:
79	79	(A) administered by the division; and
80	80	(B) placed with the Texas Treasury Safekeeping
81	81	Trust Company;
82	82	(2) consists of:
83	83	(A) money deposited to the fund under Section
84	84	158.056, Tax Code;
85	85	(B) appropriations or transfers made to the fund;
86	86	(C) unencumbered fund balances;
87	87	(D) public or private gifts, grants, or
88	88	donations;
89	89	(E) investment income, including all interest,
90	90	dividends, capital gains, or other income from the investment of
91	91	any portion of the fund;
92	92	(F) repayments received on loans made from the
93	93	fund; and
94	94	(G) funds from any other source; and
95	95	(3) may be used only to support the programs
96	96	established under this section and Section 2306.6025.
97	97	(j) The division shall attempt to secure an agreement with:
98	98	(1) private lending institutions for below market rate
99	99	loans for use in the program; and
100	100	(2) manufacturers of manufactured housing for the
101	101	provision of HUD-code manufactured homes at a discounted price.
102	102	(k) An entity that enters into an agreement with the
103	103	division under Subsection (j) may:
104	104	(1) be designated as an "Official Partner of the State
105	105	of Texas for Safe and Affordable Homes"; and
106	106	(2) use the designation described by Subdivision (1)
107	107	in advertising and promotion.
108	108	(l) The division may enter into a contract for the
109	109	administration of the program.
110	110	(m) Not later than September 1 of each year, the division
111	111	shall submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker
112	112	of the house of representatives, and the state fire marshal a report
113	113	that documents for the preceding state fiscal year the number of
114	114	households that participated in the program, the nature of the
115	115	financial assistance provided under the program, and the amounts of
116	116	public and private financial assistance administered through the
117	117	program.
118	118	Sec. 2306.6025. MANUFACTURED HOME PURCHASE ASSISTANCE
119	119	PROGRAM. (a) The division shall establish a program to provide
120	120	financial assistance to eligible persons for the purchase of new
121	121	manufactured homes from a retailer licensed under Chapter 1201,
122	122	Occupations Code.
123	123	(b) The Manufactured Housing Board shall adopt rules
124	124	governing:
125	125	(1) the administration of the program;
126	126	(2) the issuance of financial assistance under the
127	127	program;
128	128	(3) eligibility criteria for participation in the
129	129	program, including creditworthiness and purchase price criteria;
130	130	(4) exceptions to the residency requirement under
131	131	Subsection (c)(1), including death, loss of employment, or other
132	132	exigent circumstances; and
133	133	(5) the structure of the financial assistance provided
134	134	under this section, which may include secured or unsecured deferred
135	135	forgivable loans.
136	136	(c) To be eligible for financial assistance under this
137	137	section, a person must:
138	138	(1) reside in this state on the date on which an
139	139	application for financial assistance under this section is filed;
140	140	(2) be an individual or family of very low income;
141	141	(3) except as provided by the division program
142	142	guidelines or rules, continuously occupy the purchased
143	143	manufactured home as the person's primary residence for at least
144	144	two years following the date of purchase of the home; and
145	145	(4) satisfy any other requirements established by the
146	146	Manufactured Housing Board.
147	147	(d) When adopting additional rules on homeowner
148	148	eligibility, the Manufactured Housing Board may consider giving
149	149	priority in allocating financial assistance under this section to:
150	150	(1) a person who is currently serving in the military
151	151	or who is a veteran;
152	152	(2) a person who is at least 65 years of age;
153	153	(3) a person who has not owned a home during the three
154	154	years before the date on which an application is filed under this
155	155	section;
156	156	(4) a person who is replacing an existing manufactured
157	157	home used as the person's primary residence that was manufactured
158	158	more than 15 years before the date on which an application is filed
159	159	under this section;
160	160	(5) a person buying a manufactured home that is an
161	161	"Energy Star" qualified manufactured home or that conforms to the
162	162	energy efficiency standards or program jointly operated by the
163	163	United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and the
164	164	United States Department of Energy; and
165	165	(6) a person who will install the home in a county with
166	166	a population of 150,000 or less.
167	167	(e) For each manufactured home purchased with financial
168	168	assistance under this section, the assistance may not exceed the
169	169	lesser of:
170	170	(1) $35,000;
171	171	(2) 50 percent of the total purchase price of the
172	172	manufactured home; or
173	173	(3) 50 percent of the total purchase price of the
174	174	manufactured home and the real property on which a manufactured
175	175	home has been installed, if a real property election has been
176	176	perfected under Section 1201.222(a), Occupations Code.
177	177	(f) Financial assistance provided under this section to
178	178	purchase a home having a primary loan associated with the purchase,
179	179	if the loan does not involve the use of real property as security,
180	180	must be provided by a lender that:
181	181	(1) makes consumer loans on manufactured homes in this
182	182	state in conformance with Chapter 347, Finance Code; or
183	183	(2) is a federally insured depository institution.
184	184	(g) A lender must comply with applicable requirements of
185	185	state and federal law if the loan involves the use of real property
186	186	as security.
187	187	(h) The division may fund the program with:
188	188	(1) money appropriated to the division for that
189	189	purpose;
190	190	(2) money deposited to the Texas safe home trust fund
191	191	under Section 158.056, Tax Code; and
192	192	(3) funds from any other source.
193	193	(i) A person who receives financial assistance through a
194	194	second lien loan under this section shall repay the outstanding
195	195	balance of the loan if the person ceases to occupy the manufactured
196	196	home as the person's primary residence.
197	197	(j) The division shall award financial assistance under the
198	198	program on a first-come, first-served basis. The division may
199	199	publish on its Internet website notice that the division is
200	200	accepting applications for the program.
201	201	(k) The division may reserve for payment of administrative
202	202	expenses not more than five percent of money received for the
203	203	program under this section.
204	204	(l) The division may coordinate with local government
205	205	officials and utility providers to promote awareness of the program
206	206	and to receive recommendations of persons potentially eligible to
207	207	participate in the program.
208	208	SECTION 2. Section 158.056, Tax Code, is amended by adding
209	209	Subsection (c) to read as follows:
210	210	(c) The comptroller shall deposit 100 percent of the tax
211	211	imposed under this section to the credit of the Texas safe home
212	212	trust fund established under Section 2306.6024, Government Code,
213	213	for use only for the purposes authorized by Subsection (i) of that
214	214	section.
215	215	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.