88R7312 JAM-F
By: Campos H.B. No. 1523
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the establishment of a program administered by the
Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs and certain
county housing authorities to incentivize landlords to accept
tenants participating in the housing choice voucher program.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter K, Chapter 2306, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 2306.2586 to read as follows:
Sec. 2306.2586. HOUSING MOBILITY PROGRAM; LOANS AND GRANTS.
(a) The department shall establish a housing mobility program to
provide to county housing authorities of counties with a population
of more than 500,000 loans and grants to incentivize landlords to
accept tenants participating in the housing choice voucher program
under Section 8, United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C.
Section 1437f).
(b) The department may use any available revenue, including
legislative appropriations, appropriation transfers from the
trusteed programs within the office of the governor, including
authorized appropriations from the Texas Enterprise Fund,
available federal funds, and any other statutorily authorized and
appropriate funding sources transferred from the trusteed programs
within the office of the governor, to provide loans and grants under
the housing mobility program created under this section. The
department shall solicit and accept gifts and grants for the
purposes of this section. The department shall use gifts and grants
received for the purposes of this section before using any other
revenue.
(c) The department shall adopt rules to govern the
administration of the program, including rules that:
(1) provide for the allocation of any available
funding; and
(2) provide detailed guidelines regarding the scope of
the local programs in the counties described by Subsection (a).
SECTION 2. Subchapter D, Chapter 392, Local Government
Code, is amended by adding Section 392.068 to read as follows:
Sec. 392.068. HOUSING MOBILITY PROGRAM IN CERTAIN COUNTIES.
(a) A county housing authority in a county with a population of
more than 500,000 may apply for and receive loans or grants provided
by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs through
the housing mobility program established under Section 2306.2586,
Government Code, for purposes of incentivizing landlords to accept
tenants participating in the housing choice voucher program under
Section 8, United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. Section
1437f).
(b) An authority shall recruit families and landlords to
participate in the housing mobility program and shall coordinate
the implementation of housing mobility services to assist the
movement of tenants described by Subsection (a) from multifamily
housing into single-family housing under that program.
(c) A landlord may participate in the program only if the
landlord agrees to provide, for a period of not less than three
years, housing in single-family homes to families that:
(1) hold housing choice vouchers or are on the housing
choice voucher waitlist; or
(2) are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless and
qualify for housing choice vouchers.
(d) An authority shall:
(1) conduct an initial inspection and annual
subsequent inspections of each single-family home a landlord
proposes to include in the program; and
(2) coordinate with that landlord with respect to the
time and date of each inspection.
(e) An authority shall prepare and make publicly available
an inspection checklist that:
(1) includes a complete list specifying each item that
is required to be inspected for inclusion of the home in the
program, to determine whether the item is in satisfactory
condition; and
(2) clearly and conspicuously categorizes each listed
item as an item that:
(A) is required to be in satisfactory condition
for the property to pass inspection;
(B) may be in noncompliance only if the landlord
agrees to bring the item into compliance not later than the 30th day
after the date of the inspection; or
(C) may be in noncompliance only if the landlord
agrees to bring the item into compliance before the next annual
inspection.
(f) An authority may award to a landlord a grant in an amount
not to exceed $5,000 to be used to rehabilitate, for purposes of an
initial inspection, any single-family home the landlord proposes to
include in the program. A landlord may not receive more than one
grant under this section for each single-family home proposed for
inclusion in the program by the landlord. If a home for which a
landlord received a grant under this section does not pass the
initial inspection, the landlord must repay the grant not later
than the 30th day after the date of the failed inspection.
(g) An authority shall screen and rank prospective tenants
based on:
(1) credit history;
(2) residential references;
(3) criminal history;
(4) civil judgment history;
(5) employment verification;
(6) household income;
(7) a personal interview with the applicant and any
co-applicant;
(8) a personal statement by the applicant regarding
other household members;
(9) responses to questions tailored to the specific
applicant; and
(10) any additional criteria recommended by landlords
participating in the program.
(h) A prospective tenant who ranks in the top 10 percent of
applicants in the rankings described by Subsection (g) is
automatically eligible to participate in the program.
(i) An authority shall:
(1) require tenants in the program to attend a class
that presents information regarding:
(A) lease requirements and landlord
expectations;
(B) clarification of tenant liabilities
regarding repairs and maintenance;
(C) the importance of property management and
lawn maintenance;
(D) the role of neighborhood associations and
home ownership associations;
(E) utility assistance programs;
(F) early departure consequences;
(G) the tenant eviction process; and
(H) the lease renewal process; and
(2) produce and mail to tenants a quarterly newsletter
containing the same information presented in the class under
Subdivision (1).
(j) For a single-family home that is subject to the program,
a landlord may not charge rent that exceeds:
(1) 120 percent of the median rent for similar units in
the same zip code, if the property is located in a school district
assigned an overall performance rating of A or B for the most
recently completed school year by the commissioner of education
under Section 39.054, Education Code; or
(2) 100 percent of the median rent for similar units in
the same zip code, if the property is located in a school district
assigned an overall performance rating of C, D, or F for the most
recently completed school year by the commissioner of education
under Section 39.054, Education Code.
(k) An authority shall:
(1) collect the tenant's rental deposit and share of
the first month's rent and deliver the deposit amount and full
amount of the first month's rent to the landlord on or before the
move-in date;
(2) deliver the full amount of the monthly rent to the
landlord on or before the first day of each month; and
(3) collect the tenant's share of the monthly rent
within the first five days of the month.
(l) An authority shall receive all complaints by tenants and
landlords and seek amicable and timely resolutions to complaints.
(m) If an action of or failure to take action by a tenant
results in an unpaid fine, fee, or charge assessed by a neighborhood
association, homeowners association, municipal department, county
agency, utility company, or other legal entity against a landlord
with respect to a single-family home that is included in the
program, the authority shall:
(1) pay the fine, fee, or charge; or
(2) reimburse the landlord for the payment of the
fine, fee, or charge not later than the 30th day after the date the
landlord makes the payment.
(n) An authority may initiate an eviction proceeding due to
late payment, nonpayment, noncompliance with the lease, written
request of the landlord, or any other reason considered appropriate
and legal by the authority.
(o) A tenant shall provide notice of any departure or
nonrenewal of a lease on or before the 30th day before the tenant
vacates a single-family home under the program.
(p) In addition to any other amount paid under this section,
an authority may pay to a landlord an amount not to exceed:
(1) two months' rent for lost rent due to tenant
eviction, early lease termination, or last minute nonrenewal of a
lease; and
(2) $2,500 to repair tenant-caused property damage if
the repair costs exceed the tenant's security deposit.
SECTION 3. The Texas Department of Housing and Community
Affairs shall establish the housing mobility program required under
Section 2306.2586, Government Code, as added by this Act, not later
than January 1, 2024.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.