DHAC 2008 Legislative "Watch List'

An IHDA task force has been working on a state Supportive Housing Policy which would lay out long-term construction and service goals and outline quality control standards.

IHDA has a proposal before it to help fund services and provide subsidized grants to Neighborhood Housing Services in Elgin and Affordable Housing of Lake County. Each organization would receive $200,000 in service grants and $200,000 in subsidy funding. The goal of the effort is to significantly expand rehab work in the Elgin/Carpentersville area and the far Northern suburbs as well as to expand homeowner counseling in both areas. Longer term the goal is to have IHDA provide yearly support to at least five such efforts statewide.

With inflows into the Affordable Housing Trust Fund expected to drop sharply in FY 2009, some action will be needed to preserve dollars for new construction and rehab. Removing the $11 million burden that Homelessness Prevention funding creates would be a big step forward. Making sure that supportive Housing service dollars were not charged to the Trust fund would be another step in the right direction.

CM2020, the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus, the MPC and ULI have successfully shown the benefits of helping communities prepare long-term affordable housing action plans. The cost of providing technical assistance to create such plans is about $40,000 per community, a huge bargain when you consider that the cost of building one new affordable unit is running $200,000 and one rehab unit $40,000-$60,000. Well crafted plans can lead to the creation of hundreds of affordable units. If IHDA and CMAP were each to contribute $200,000 - $250,000 to such a project, it could be successfully initiated based on the experience of CM2020 and the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus.

Provide for geographic set asides of housing dollars from all sources. For example, return a pre-determined proportion of all dollars contributed through the RETT and RSHP to each local jurisdiction. Or (if applicable), set aside a pre-determined proportion of all state capital budget dollars to each local jurisdiction. In each case, a percentage would remain unallocated for state-wide use, and any funds not expended within a pre-determined period of time would be forfeited for state-wide use.

It would also have the effect of better engaging/investing housing groups from around the state in program and policy issues, and more equally sharing the responsibility of affordable housing.

RETT- Real Estate Transfer Tax
RSHP - Rental Support Housing Program

Enables local units of government to enact a revenue source (such as a document recording fee or tax) in order to create and maintain an ongoing dedicated funding source for a local housing trust funds.

This would avoid obstacles and delays that can undermine momentum at the local level to generate funds for affordable housing.

Strengthen policies/protections on reverse mortgages to reduce abuse through state legislation

Through progressive reform of the Illinois Real Estate Transfer Tax generate approximately an additional $44 million annually for the Illinois Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

Ensure full appropriation for the Rental Housing Support Program

This legislation would allow for allocations of TIF dollars to be dedicated to existing or new/administering agencies for rent subsidies, purchase price assistance, and related technical assistance/training. These dollars would then be returned to generating or adjacent TIF Districts to owners who set aside qualifying units for eligible tenants, or to developers with buyers of for-sale housing. Benefits would be targeted to households at or below 80% AMI, but when funding is channeled through existing Rental Assistance Programs, extremely low-income people could benefit.

This would be enabling legislation and would not require a dedication of new state/local resources. More information is available at www.AffordableHousingInnovation.org