1     
TAX INCREMENT FUNDING FOR STUDENT HOUSING

2     
2019 GENERAL SESSION

3     
STATE OF UTAH

4     
Chief Sponsor: Derrin R. Owens

5     
Senate Sponsor: Ralph Okerlund

6     

7     LONG TITLE
8     General Description:
9          This bill allows a community reinvestment agency to use the agency's housing
10     allocation for certain higher education student housing.
11     Highlighted Provisions:
12          This bill:
13          ▸     allows a community reinvestment agency to use the agency's housing allocation for
14     certain higher education student housing; and
15          ▸     makes technical and conforming changes.
16     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
17          None
18     Other Special Clauses:
19          None
20     Utah Code Sections Affected:
21     AMENDS:
22          17C-1-412, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2018, Chapter 312
23     

24     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
25          Section 1. Section 17C-1-412 is amended to read:
26          17C-1-412. Use of housing allocation -- Separate accounting required -- Issuance
27     of bonds for housing -- Action to compel agency to provide housing allocation.

28          (1) (a) An agency shall use the agency's housing allocation, if applicable, to:
29          (i) pay part or all of the cost of land or construction of income targeted housing within
30     the boundary of the agency, if practicable in a mixed income development or area;
31          (ii) pay part or all of the cost of rehabilitation of income targeted housing within the
32     boundary of the agency;
33          (iii) lend, grant, or contribute money to a person, public entity, housing authority,
34     private entity or business, or nonprofit corporation for income targeted housing within the
35     boundary of the agency;
36          (iv) plan or otherwise promote income targeted housing within the boundary of the
37     agency;
38          (v) pay part or all of the cost of land or installation, construction, or rehabilitation of
39     any building, facility, structure, or other housing improvement, including infrastructure
40     improvements, related to housing located in a project area where blight has been found to exist;
41          (vi) replace housing units lost as a result of the project area development;
42          (vii) make payments on or establish a reserve fund for bonds:
43          (A) issued by the agency, the community, or the housing authority that provides
44     income targeted housing within the community; and
45          (B) all or part of the proceeds of which are used within the community for the purposes
46     stated in Subsection (1)(a)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), or (vi);
47          (viii) if the community's fair share ratio at the time of the first adoption of the project
48     area budget is at least 1.1 to 1.0, make payments on bonds:
49          (A) that were previously issued by the agency, the community, or the housing authority
50     that provides income targeted housing within the community; and
51          (B) all or part of the proceeds of which were used within the community for the
52     purposes stated in Subsection (1)(a)(i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), or (vi);
53          (ix) relocate mobile home park residents displaced by project area development; [or]
54          (x) subject to Subsection (6), transfer funds to a community that created the agency[.];
55     or
56          (xi) pay for or make a contribution toward the acquisition, construction, or
57     rehabilitation of housing that:
58          (A) is located in the same county as the agency;

59          (B) a public nonprofit college or university owns; and
60          (C) only full-time students of the owner college or university, including the students'
61     immediate families, occupy.
62          (b) As an alternative to the requirements of Subsection (1)(a), an agency may pay all or
63     any portion of the agency's housing allocation to:
64          (i) the community for use as described in Subsection (1)(a);
65          (ii) a housing authority that provides income targeted housing within the community
66     for use in providing income targeted housing within the community;
67          (iii) a housing authority established by the county in which the agency is located for
68     providing:
69          (A) income targeted housing within the county;
70          (B) permanent housing, permanent supportive housing, or a transitional facility, as
71     defined in Section 35A-5-302, within the county; or
72          (C) homeless assistance within the county; or
73          (iv) the Olene Walker Housing Loan Fund, established under Title 35A, Chapter 8,
74     Part 5, Olene Walker Housing Loan Fund, for use in providing income targeted housing within
75     the community.
76          (2) The agency shall create a housing fund and separately account for the agency's
77     housing allocation, together with all interest earned by the housing allocation and all payments
78     or repayments for loans, advances, or grants from the housing allocation.
79          (3) An agency may:
80          (a) issue bonds to finance a housing-related project under this section, including the
81     payment of principal and interest upon advances for surveys and plans or preliminary loans;
82     and
83          (b) issue refunding bonds for the payment or retirement of bonds under Subsection
84     (3)(a) previously issued by the agency.
85          (4) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (4)(b), an agency shall allocate money to the
86     housing fund each year in which the agency receives sufficient tax increment to make a
87     housing allocation required by the project area budget.
88          (b) Subsection (4)(a) does not apply in a year in which tax increment is insufficient.
89          (5) (a) Except as provided in Subsection (4)(b), if an agency fails to provide a housing

90     allocation in accordance with the project area budget and, if applicable, the housing plan
91     adopted under Subsection 17C-2-204(2), the loan fund board may bring legal action to compel
92     the agency to provide the housing allocation.
93          (b) In an action under Subsection (5)(a), the court:
94          (i) shall award the loan fund board reasonable attorney fees, unless the court finds that
95     the action was frivolous; and
96          (ii) may not award the agency the agency's attorney fees, unless the court finds that the
97     action was frivolous.
98          (6) For the purpose of offsetting the community's annual local contribution to the
99     Homeless Shelter Cities Mitigation Restricted Account, the total amount an agency transfers in
100     a calendar year to a community under Subsections (1)(a)(x), 17C-1-409(1)(a)(v), and
101     17C-1-411(1)(d) may not exceed the community's annual local contribution as defined in
102     Section 35A-8-606.