87R19479 JG-D
By: Morales Shaw, Minjarez H.B. No. 2371
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the evaluation of applications for certain financial
assistance administered by the Texas Department of Housing and
Community Affairs.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 2306.1114(a), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) Not later than the 14th day after the date an
application or a proposed application for housing funds described
by Section 2306.111 has been filed, the department shall provide
written notice of the filing of the application or proposed
application to the following persons:
(1) the United States representative who represents
the community containing the development described in the
application;
(2) members of the legislature who represent the
community containing the development described in the application;
(3) the presiding officer of the governing body of the
political subdivision containing the development described in the
application;
(4) any member of the governing body of a political
subdivision who represents the area containing the development
described in the application;
(5) the superintendent and the presiding officer of
the board of trustees of the school district containing the
development described in the application; and
(6) any neighborhood organization that is
[organizations] on record with the state or county in which the
development described in the application is to be located and that
has [whose] boundaries containing, immediately contiguous to, or
across the street from [contain] the proposed development site.
SECTION 2. Section 2306.6704(b-1), Government Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(b-1) The preapplication process must require the applicant
to provide the department with evidence that the applicant has
notified the following entities with respect to the filing of the
application:
(1) any neighborhood organization that is
[organizations] on record with the state or county in which the
development is to be located and that has [whose] boundaries
containing, immediately contiguous to, or across the street from
[contain] the proposed development site;
(2) the superintendent and the presiding officer of
the board of trustees of the school district containing the
development;
(3) the presiding officer of the governing body of any
municipality containing the development and all elected members of
that body;
(4) the presiding officer of the governing body of the
county containing the development and all elected members of that
body; and
(5) the state senator and state representative of the
district containing the development.
SECTION 3. Section 2306.6705, Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 2306.6705. GENERAL APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS. An
application must contain at a minimum the following written,
detailed information in a form prescribed by the board:
(1) a description of:
(A) the financing plan for the development,
including any nontraditional financing arrangements;
(B) the use of funds with respect to the
development;
(C) the funding sources for the development,
including:
(i) construction, permanent, and bridge
loans; and
(ii) rents, operating subsidies, and
replacement reserves; and
(D) the commitment status of the funding sources
for the development;
(2) if syndication costs are included in the eligible
basis, a justification of the syndication costs for each cost
category by an attorney or accountant specializing in tax matters;
(3) from a syndicator or a financial consultant of the
applicant, an estimate of the amount of equity dollars expected to
be raised for the development in conjunction with the amount of
housing tax credits requested for allocation to the applicant,
including:
(A) pay-in schedules; and
(B) syndicator consulting fees and other
syndication costs;
(4) if rental assistance, an operating subsidy, or an
annuity is proposed for the development, any related contract or
other agreement securing those funds and an identification of:
(A) the source and annual amount of the funds;
(B) the number of units receiving the funds; and
(C) the term and expiration date of the contract
or other agreement;
(5) if the development is located within the
boundaries of a political subdivision with a zoning ordinance,
evidence in the form of a letter from the chief executive officer of
the political subdivision or from another local official with
jurisdiction over zoning matters that states that:
(A) the development is permitted under the
provisions of the ordinance that apply to the location of the
development; or
(B) the applicant is in the process of seeking
the appropriate zoning and has signed and provided to the political
subdivision a release agreeing to hold the political subdivision
and all other parties harmless in the event that the appropriate
zoning is denied;
(6) if an occupied development is proposed for
rehabilitation:
(A) an explanation of the process used to notify
and consult with the tenants in preparing the application;
(B) a relocation plan outlining:
(i) relocation requirements; and
(ii) a budget with an identified funding
source; and
(C) if applicable, evidence that the relocation
plan has been submitted to the appropriate local agency;
(7) a certification of the applicant's compliance with
appropriate state and federal laws, as required by other state law
or by the board;
(8) any other information required by the board in the
qualified allocation plan; and
(9) evidence that the applicant has notified the
following entities with respect to the filing of the application:
(A) any neighborhood organization that is
[organizations] on record with the state or county in which the
development is to be located and that has [whose] boundaries
containing, immediately contiguous to, or across the street from
[contain] the proposed development site;
(B) the superintendent and the presiding officer
of the board of trustees of the school district containing the
development;
(C) the presiding officer of the governing body
of any municipality containing the development and all elected
members of that body;
(D) the presiding officer of the governing body
of the county containing the development and all elected members of
that body; and
(E) the state senator and state representative of
the district containing the development.
SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an application for low income housing tax credits that is
submitted to the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs
during an application cycle that is based on the 2022 qualified
allocation plan or a subsequent plan adopted by the governing board
of the department under Section 2306.67022, Government Code. An
application that is submitted during an application cycle that is
based on an earlier qualified allocation plan is governed by the law
in effect on the date the application cycle began, and the former
law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.