Using funding from the Housing Trust Fund (HFT) account, the department may make competitive grant or loan awards to projects in need of major building improvements, preservation repairs, or system replacements. The department must solicit and review applications and evaluate projects based on the outlined criteria.
The Affordable Housing Program, shall now be the Housing Trust Fund Program. Definitions are clarified, including “extremely-low income, “first-time home buyer,” and “contracted amount.” Activities eligible for the Housing Trust Fund are amended and further specified.
The Housing Portfolio Monitoring Account is created in the state treasury. Funds in the account may be spent only after appropriation, and expenditures may be used only for costs associated with compliance and monitoring activities of the department.
The department must prioritize applications that increase the total number of units of affordable housing in the state. Preference is given for applications with early learning centers.
The department must make an annual report for each funding cycle which includes the following:
- The number of homeownership and multifamily rental projects funded;
- The percentage of funding allocated to homeownership and multifamily rental projects; and
- For both homeownership and multifamily rental projects, the total number of households being served separated by AMI
All HTF loan or grant recipients must provide certified final development cost reports to the department.
This program shall be overseen by the Department of Commerce.
