House Bill 0761e1

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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to community-based development

  3         organizations; creating the "Community-Based

  4         Development Organization Act"; providing

  5         legislative findings and intent; providing

  6         eligibility requirements for administrative and

  7         operating grants to community-based development

  8         organizations; providing for award of grants by

  9         the Department of Community Affairs for housing

10         and economic development projects; providing a

11         three-tiered plan; providing a description of

12         activities eligible for funding; providing

13         application requirements; providing reporting

14         and evaluation requirements; authorizing the

15         Department of Community Affairs to adopt rules;

16         providing an appropriation; providing an

17         effective date.

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19  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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21         Section 1.  This act may be cited as the

22  "Community-Based Development Organization Assistance Act."

23         Section 2.  Legislative findings and intent.--

24         (1)  The Legislature finds that:

25         (a)  Significant declines and consistently depressed

26  appraised values make it impossible for business enterprises,

27  including community-based development organizations, to

28  generate sufficient revenues from business or real estate

29  ventures in low-income neighborhoods to fund the redevelopment

30  costs and other administrative expenses needed to foster new

31  developments in these hard-to-develop areas.


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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1         (b)  This deterioration contributes to the decline of

  2  neighborhoods in both rural and urban areas, causes a

  3  reduction of the value of property comprising the tax base of

  4  local communities, and eventually requires the expenditure of

  5  disproportionate amounts of public funds for health, social

  6  services, and police protection to prevent the development of

  7  slums and the social and economic disruption found in slum

  8  communities.

  9         (c)  The available means of eliminating or reducing

10  these deteriorating economic conditions and encouraging local

11  resident participation and support is to provide support

12  assistance and resource investment to community-based

13  development organizations. The Legislature also finds that

14  community-based development organizations can contribute to

15  the creation of jobs in response to federal welfare reform and

16  state WAGES Program legislation, and economic development

17  activities related to urban and rural economic initiatives.

18         (2)  The intent of this legislation is to provide

19  community-based development organizations with the necessary

20  administrative and operating funds to retain project staff to

21  plan, implement, and manage job-generating and community

22  revitalization developments in distressed neighborhoods.  This

23  assistance will strengthen the community-based development

24  organizations, assist local governments to enhance and expand

25  revitalization efforts, and contribute to expanding the base

26  of commerce, business, and affordable housing that will serve

27  persons with very low incomes or low incomes, or WAGES

28  recipients, using a bottom-up approach.

29         Section 3.  Eligibility for

30  assistance.--Community-based development organizations that

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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1  meet the following requirements shall be eligible for

  2  assistance.

  3         (1)  The community-based development organization must

  4  be a nonprofit corporation under state law and s. 501(c)(3) of

  5  the United States Internal Revenue Code.

  6         (2)  A majority of the board members of the

  7  community-based development organization must be elected by

  8  those members of the corporation who are stakeholders,

  9  comprising a mix of service area residents, area business

10  property owners, area employees, and low-income residents.

11  The board of a Community-based development organization shall

12  include low-income residents.

13         (3)  The community-based development organization must

14  maintain a service area in which economic and housing

15  development projects are located and must further meet one or

16  more of the following criteria:

17         (a)  The area has been designated pursuant to s.

18  163.355, Florida Statutes, as a slum area or a blighted area,

19  as defined in s. 163.340, Florida Statutes, or is located

20  completely within the boundaries of a slum area or a blighted

21  area.

22         (b)  The area is a community development block grant

23  program area in which community development block grant funds

24  are currently being spent or have been spent during the last 3

25  years as certified by the local government in which the

26  service area is loca ted.

27         (c)  The area is a neighborhood housing service

28  district.

29         (d)  The area is contained within a state an enterprise

30  zone designated on or after July 1, 1995, in accordance with

31  s. 290.0065.


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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1         (e)  The area is contained in federal empowerment zones

  2  and enterprise communities.

  3         Section 4.  Three-tiered plan.--The Department of

  4  Community Affairs is authorized to award core administrative

  5  and operating grants.  Administrative and operating grants

  6  shall be used for staff salaries and administrative expenses

  7  for eligible community-based development organizations

  8  selected through a competitive three-tiered process for the

  9  purpose of housing and economic development projects.  The

10  department shall adopt by rule a set of criteria for

11  three-tiered funding that shall ensure equitable geographic

12  distribution of the funding throughout the state. This

13  three-tiered plan shall include emerging, intermediate, and

14  mature community-based development organizations recognizing

15  the varying needs of the three tiers.  Funding shall be

16  provided for core administrative and operating grants for all

17  levels of community-based development organizations.  Priority

18  shall be given to those organizations that demonstrate

19  community-based productivity and high performance as evidenced

20  by past projects developed with stakeholder input that have

21  responded to neighborhood needs, and have current projects

22  located in high-poverty neighborhoods, and to emerging

23  community-based development corporations that demonstrate a

24  positive need identified by stakeholders.  Persons, equipment,

25  supplies, and other resources funded in whole or in part by

26  grant funds shall be utilized to further the purposes of this

27  act, and may be utilized to further the goals and objectives

28  of the Front Porch Florida Initiative. The one-time

29  appropriation provided in this act shall be distributed by the

30  Department of Community Affairs, to be used in a constructive

31  manner by community-based development organizations across the


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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1  state. Thereafter, each community-based development

  2  organization shall be eligible to apply for a grant of up to

  3  $50,000 per year for a period of 5 years.

  4         Section 5.  Eligible activities.--Activities eligible

  5  for assistance pursuant to this act include, but are not

  6  limited to:

  7         (1)  Preparing grant and loan applications, proposals,

  8  fundraising letters, and other documents essential to securing

  9  additional administrative or project funds to further the

10  purposes of this act.

11         (2)  Monitoring and administering grants and loans,

12  providing technical assistance to businesses, and any other

13  administrative tasks essential to maintaining funding

14  eligibility or meeting contractual obligations.

15         (3)  Developing local programs and home ownership

16  housing projects to encourage the participation of financial

17  institutions, insurance companies, attorneys, architects,

18  engineers, planners, law enforcement officers, developers, and

19  other professional firms and individuals providing services

20  beneficial to redevelopment efforts.

21         (4)  Providing technical, accounting, and financial

22  assistance and information to businesses and entrepreneurs

23  interested in locating, expanding, or operating in the service

24  area.

25         (5)  Coordinating with state, federal, and local

26  governments and other nonprofit organizations to ensure that

27  activities meet local plans and ordinances and to avoid

28  duplication of tasks.

29         (6)  Assisting service area residents in identifying

30  and determining eligibility for state, federal, and local

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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1  housing programs, including rehabilitation, weatherization,

  2  home ownership, rental assistance, or public housing programs.

  3         (7)  Developing, selling, owning, and managing

  4  subsidized affordable housing designed for persons with very

  5  low incomes or low incomes, or for WAGES recipients, or

  6  developing, selling, owning, and managing subsidized

  7  affordable industrial parks providing jobs to such persons.

  8         (8)  Obtaining technical assistance to build capacity

  9  to support community-based development organization projects.

10         Section 6.  Application requirements.--A

11  community-based development organization applying for a core

12  administrative and operating grant pursuant to this act must

13  submit a proposal to the Department of Community Affairs that

14  includes:

15         (1)  A map and narrative description of the service

16  areas for the community-based development organization.

17         (2)  A copy of the documents creating the

18  community-based development organization.

19         (3)  A listing of the membership of the board of the

20  community-based development organization, including individual

21  members' terms of office and the number low-income residents

22  on the board.

23         (4)  The organization's annual revitalization plan that

24  describes the expenditure of the funds, including goals,

25  objectives, and expected results, and has a clear relationship

26  to the local municipality's comprehensive plan.

27         (5)  Other supporting information that may be required

28  by the Department of Community Affairs to determine the

29  organization's capacity and productivity.

30         (6)  A description of the location, financing plan, and

31  potential impact of the business enterprises on residential,


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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1  commercial, or industrial development, that shows a clear

  2  relationship to the organization's annual revitalization plan

  3  and demonstrates how the proposed expenditures are directly

  4  related to the scope of work for the proposed projects in the

  5  annual revitalization plan.

  6         Section 7.  Reporting and evaluation

  7  requirements.--Community-based development organizations that

  8  receive funds under this act shall provide the following

  9  information to the Department of Community Affairs annually:

10         (1)  A listing of business firms and individuals

11  assisted by the community-based development organization

12  during the reporting period.

13         (2)  A listing of the type, source, purpose, and amount

14  of each individual grant, loan, or donation received by the

15  community-based development organization during the reporting

16  period.

17         (3)  The number of paid and voluntary positions within

18  the community-based development organization.

19         (4)  A listing of the salaries and administrative and

20  operating expenses of the community-based development

21  organization.

22         (5)  An identification and explanation of changes in

23  the boundaries of the target area.

24         (6)  The amount of earned income from projects,

25  programs, and development activities.

26         (7)  The number and description of projects in

27  predevelopment phase, projects under construction, ongoing

28  service programs, construction projects completed, and

29  projects at sell-out or lease-up and property management

30  phase, and a written explanation of the reasons that caused

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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1  any projects not to be completed for the projected development

  2  phase.

  3         (8)  The impact of the projects, as a result of

  4  receiving funding under this act, on residents in the target

  5  area, and the relationship of this impact to expected outcomes

  6  listed in the organization's annual revitalization plan.

  7         (9) The number of housing units rehabilitated or

  8  constructed at various stages of development, predevelopment

  9  phase, construction phase, completion and sell-out or lease-up

10  phase, and condominium or property management phase by the

11  community-based development organization within the service

12  area during the reporting period.

13         (10)  The number of housing units, number of projects,

14  and number of persons served by prior projects developed by

15  the organization, the amounts of project financing leverage

16  with state funds for each prior and current project, and the

17  incremental amounts of local and state real estate tax and

18  sales tax revenue generated directly by the projects and

19  programs annually.

20         (11)  The number of jobs, both permanent and temporary,

21  received by individuals who were directly assisted by the

22  community-based development organization through assistance to

23  the business such as a loan or other credit assistance.

24         (12)  An identification and explanation of changes in

25  the boundaries of the service area.

26         (13)  The impact of completed projects on residents in

27  the target area and the relationship of this impact to

28  expected outcomes listed in the organization's annual

29  revitalization plan.

30         (14)  Such other information as the Department of

31  Community Affairs requires.


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                                           HB 761, First Engrossed



  1         Section 8.  The Department of Community Affairs shall

  2  adopt rules for the administration of this act.

  3         Section 9.  There is hereby appropriated from the

  4  General Revenue Fund the sum of $1 million to be distributed

  5  as grants to community-based development organizations as

  6  provided by this act.

  7         Section 10.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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