Senate Bill sb0334e1

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    CS for CS for SB 334                           First Engrossed



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public housing; amending s.

  3         420.5087, F.S.; authorizing the Florida Housing

  4         Finance Corporation to waive annual

  5         recertification under certain conditions;

  6         amending s. 421.02, F.S.; clarifying a

  7         legislative finding with respect to the

  8         inability of private enterprise to revitalize

  9         blighted areas; public housing; amending s.

10         421.08, F.S.; authorizing a housing authority

11         to organize for the purpose of creating a

12         for-profit or not-for-profit corporation,

13         limited liability company, or similar entity to

14         develop and operate residential homes or

15         nonresidential projects; providing

16         qualifications for a family to live in such a

17         residential home; authorizing a corporation,

18         limited liability company, or similar entity

19         created by a housing authority to join with

20         other entities to develop and operate

21         residential or nonresidential projects;

22         ratifying certain prior actions of a housing

23         authority; authorizing the governing board of a

24         housing authority to implement its own policy

25         regarding per diem and travel expenses of its

26         officials, officers, employees, and board

27         members; amending s. 421.09, F.S.; providing

28         that the certain limitations regarding the

29         operation and management of a housing project

30         do not restrict the activities of a for-profit

31         or not-for-profit business entity created by


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    CS for CS for SB 334                           First Engrossed



 1         the housing authority under s. 421.08, F.S.;

 2         amending s. 421.23, F.S.; authorizing a housing

 3         authority to use certain pledged funds to pay

 4         liabilities arising from the operation of its

 5         housing projects; repealing s. 421.54, F.S.,

 6         relating to certain limitations on constructing

 7         housing projects in Orange and Seminole

 8         Counties; providing an effective date.

 9  

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

11  

12         Section 1.  Paragraph (m) of subsection (6) of section

13  420.5087, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

14         420.5087  State Apartment Incentive Loan

15  Program.--There is hereby created the State Apartment

16  Incentive Loan Program for the purpose of providing first,

17  second, or other subordinated mortgage loans or loan

18  guarantees to sponsors, including for-profit, nonprofit, and

19  public entities, to provide housing affordable to

20  very-low-income persons.

21         (6)  On all state apartment incentive loans, except

22  loans made to housing communities for the elderly to provide

23  for lifesafety, building preservation, health, sanitation, or

24  security-related repairs or improvements, the following

25  provisions shall apply:

26         (m)  Sponsors shall annually certify the adjusted gross

27  income of all persons or families qualified under subsection

28  (2) at the time of initial occupancy, who are residing in a

29  project funded by this program.  All persons or families

30  qualified under subsection (2) may continue to qualify under

31  subsection (2) in a project funded by this program if the


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    CS for CS for SB 334                           First Engrossed



 1  adjusted gross income of those persons or families at the time

 2  of annual recertification meets the requirements established

 3  in s. 142(d)(3)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as

 4  amended.  If the annual recertification of persons or families

 5  qualifying under subsection (2) results in noncompliance with

 6  income occupancy requirements, the next available unit must be

 7  rented to a person or family qualifying under subsection (2)

 8  in order to ensure continuing compliance of the project. The

 9  Corporation may waive the annual recertification if 100

10  percent of the units are set aside as affordable.

11         Section 2.  Subsection (2) of section 421.02, Florida

12  Statutes, is amended to read:

13         421.02  Finding and declaration of necessity.--It is

14  hereby declared that:

15         (2)  Blighted Slum areas in the state cannot be

16  revitalized cleared, nor can the shortage of safe and sanitary

17  dwellings for persons of low income be relieved, solely

18  through the operation of private enterprise, and that the

19  construction of housing projects for persons of low income, as

20  herein defined, would therefore not be competitive with

21  private enterprise.

22         Section 3.  Present subsection (8) of section 421.08,

23  Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (10), and a

24  new subsection (8) and subsection (9) are added to that

25  section, to read:

26         421.08  Powers of authority.--An authority shall

27  constitute a public body corporate and politic, exercising the

28  public and essential governmental functions set forth in this

29  chapter, and having all the powers necessary or convenient to

30  carry out and effectuate the purpose and provisions of this

31  


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    CS for CS for SB 334                           First Engrossed



 1  chapter, including the following powers in addition to others

 2  herein granted:

 3         (8)(a)  To organize for the purpose of creating a

 4  for-profit or not-for-profit corporation, limited liability

 5  company, or other similar business entity pursuant to all

 6  applicable laws of this state in which the housing authority

 7  may hold an ownership interest or participate in its

 8  governance in order to develop, acquire, lease, construct,

 9  rehabilitate, manage, or operate multifamily or single-family

10  residential projects. These projects may include

11  nonresidential uses and may use public and private funds to

12  serve individuals or families who meet the applicable income

13  requirements of the state or federal program involved; whose

14  income does not exceed 150 percent of the applicable median

15  income for the area, as established by the United States

16  Department of Housing and Urban Development; and who, in the

17  determination of the housing authority, lack sufficient income

18  or assets to enable them to purchase or rent a decent, safe,

19  and sanitary dwelling. These corporations, limited liability

20  companies, or other business entities may join partnerships,

21  joint ventures, or limited liability companies pursuant to

22  applicable laws or may otherwise engage with business entities

23  in developing, acquiring, leasing, constructing,

24  rehabilitating, managing, or operating such projects.

25         (b)  The creation by a housing authority of such a

26  corporation, limited liability company, or other business

27  entity that is properly registered pursuant to all applicable

28  laws before the effective date of this act is ratified and

29  validated if the creation of such corporation, limited

30  liability company, or other business entity would have been

31  valid had this act been in effect at the time such


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    CS for CS for SB 334                           First Engrossed



 1  corporation, limited liability company, or other business

 2  entity was created and registered.

 3         (c)  Proceedings or acts performed by a housing

 4  authority or a corporation, limited liability company, or

 5  other business entity authorized pursuant to paragraph (b) are

 6  ratified and validated if such proceedings or acts were in

 7  furtherance of the purposes set forth in this chapter and

 8  would have been valid had this act been in effect at the time

 9  such proceedings or acts were performed.

10         (9)  Notwithstanding s. 112.061, the governing board of

11  an authority may approve and implement policies for per diem,

12  travel, and other expenses of its officials, officers, board

13  members, employees, and authorized persons in a manner

14  consistent with federal guidelines.

15         Section 4.  Section 421.09, Florida Statutes, is

16  amended to read:

17         421.09  Operation not for profit.--

18         (1)  It is the policy of this state that each housing

19  authority shall manage and operate its housing projects in an

20  efficient manner so as to enable it to fix the rentals for

21  dwelling accommodations at the lowest possible rates

22  consistent with its providing decent, safe, and sanitary

23  dwelling accommodations, and that a no housing authority may

24  not shall construct or operate any such project for profit, or

25  as a source of revenue to the city.  To this end an authority

26  may not shall fix the rentals for dwellings in its project at

27  a no higher rate than it finds shall find to be necessary in

28  order to produce revenues that which, together with all other

29  available moneys, revenue, income, and receipts of the

30  authority from whatever sources derived, will be sufficient:

31  


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    CS for CS for SB 334                           First Engrossed



 1         (a)(1)  To pay, as they the same shall become due, the

 2  principal and interest on the debentures of the authority;

 3         (b)(2)  To meet the cost of, and to provide for,

 4  maintaining and operating the projects, including the cost of

 5  any insurance, and the administrative expenses of the

 6  authority; and

 7         (c)(3)  To create, during not less than the 6 years

 8  immediately succeeding its issuance of any debentures, a

 9  reserve sufficient to meet the largest principal and interest

10  payments that which will be due on such debentures in any one

11  year thereafter, and to maintain such reserve.

12         (2)  This section does not prohibit or restrict the

13  activities or operations of a business entity created under s.

14  421.08(8).

15         Section 5.  Section 421.23, Florida Statutes, is

16  amended to read:

17         421.23  Liabilities of authority.--In no event shall

18  The liabilities, whether ex contractu or ex delicto, of an

19  authority arising from the operation of its housing projects,

20  may not be paid payable from any funds other than the rents,

21  fees, or revenues of such projects and any grants or subsidies

22  paid to such authority by the Federal Government, unless other

23  funds are lawfully pledged by the authority's governing board.

24         Section 6.  Section 421.54, Florida Statutes, is

25  repealed.

26         Section 7.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

27  law.

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29  

30  

31  


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