Bill Text: HI HR126 | 2022 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Urging All State And County Agencies To Follow The True Intent Of Chapter 201h, Hawaii Revised Statutes, And The Express Provisions Of Section 201h-38, Hawaii Revised Statutes, Rather Than Impose Additional Restrictions And Processes, To Address The Shortage Of Affordable Housing In Hawaii.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-03-31 - Resolution adopted in final form. [HR126 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2022-HR126-Amended.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.R. NO. |
126 |
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THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022 |
H.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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HOUSE RESOLUTION
URGING ALL STATE AND COUNTY AGENCIES TO FOLLOW THE TRUE INTENT OF CHAPTER 201H, HAWAII REVISED STATUTES, AND THE EXPRESS PROVISIONS OF SECTION 201H-38, HAWAII REVISED STATUTES, RATHER THAN IMPOSE ADDITIONAL RESTRICTIONS AND PROCESSES, TO ADDRESS THE SHORTAGE OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN HAWAII.
WHEREAS, as early as 1935, the Territory of Hawaii recognized the severe shortfall of affordable housing in the Territory when it passed Act 190, Session Laws of Hawaii 1935, creating the Hawaii Housing Authority (HHA); and
WHEREAS, in Act 105, Session Laws of Hawaii 1970, the State recognized the expense added by government regulation as one of the causes for the high cost of housing in Hawaii; and
WHEREAS, through Act 225, Session Laws of Hawaii 1976, the Legislature granted HHA the authority to develop, on its own behalf or in partnership with a qualified partner, housing projects that are exempt from all statutes, ordinances, charter provisions, and rules of any governmental agency relating to zoning and construction standards for subdivisions, development and improvement of land, and the construction and sale of homes thereon; and
WHEREAS, the State has continued to recognize its role in maintaining, financing, and developing affordable housing by the enactment of myriad statutes creating, reorganizing, and granting development powers to successor state agencies to HHA; and
WHEREAS, this process culminated in the enactment of chapter 201H, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), which established the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation (HHFDC), the current successor governmental entity to HHA; and
WHEREAS, HHFDC serves as the State's housing and finance development agency and is authorized by chapter 201H, HRS, to, on its own behalf or with an eligible developer, develop fee simple or leasehold property; construct dwelling units thereon; and sell, lease, or rent the dwelling units at the lowest possible price to qualified residents, nonprofit organizations, or governmental agencies; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to section 201H-38, HRS, HHFDC may develop affordable housing projects that are "exempt from all statutes, ordinances, charter provisions, and rules of any government agency relating to planning, zoning, construction standards for subdivisions, development and improvement of land, and the construction of dwelling units thereon"; provided that the housing projects are consistent with the purpose and intent of chapter 201H, HRS; do not contravene any safety standards, tariffs, or rates approved by the Public Utilities Commission for public utilities; and receive certain approvals; and
WHEREAS, it was and is the unequivocal policy of the Legislature and the stated purpose of section 201H-38, HRS, that qualifying affordable housing projects be exempt from all laws, rules, and regulations that impact development; and
WHEREAS, section 46-15.1, HRS, grants the counties the same housing powers and authority as those granted to HHFDC pursuant to chapter 201H, HRS, "insofar as those powers may be reasonably construed to be exercisable by a county for the purpose of developing, constructing, and providing low- and moderate-income housing"; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to section 46-15.1(f), HRS, the provisions of section 46-15.1, HRS, must be "construed liberally so as to effectuate the purpose of [section 46-15.1, HRS] in facilitating the development, construction, and provision of low- and moderate-income housing by the various counties"; and
WHEREAS, the term "low- and moderate-income housing", as used in section 46-15.1, HRS, applies to any housing project in which:
(1) All project units are offered for rent, of which at least:
(A) Twenty percent of the units are rented to households with an income of up to fifty percent of the area median income as determined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (AMI);
(B) Forty percent of the units are rented to households with an income of up to eighty percent of AMI; or
(C) Sixty percent of the units are rented to households with an income of up to one hundred forty percent of AMI;
(2) All project units are offered for sale, of which at least fifty percent of the units are sold to households with an income of up to one hundred forty percent of AMI; and
(3) The project qualifies for federal tax exempt status under title 26 United States Code section 142(a)(7) and (d); and
WHEREAS, section 201H-57, HRS, defines the term "affordable housing" as "housing that is affordable to households with incomes at or below one hundred forty per cent of the median family income as determined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development"; and
WHEREAS, chapter 15-307, Hawaii Administrative Rules, which implements chapter 201H, HRS, requires, as a condition to processing pursuant to chapter 201H, HRS, that more than fifty percent of the total dwelling units in a project be reserved for persons or families whose incomes are identified as one hundred forty percent or less of AMI; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to the authority granted under section 46-15.1, HRS, the City and County of Honolulu and County of Kauai implemented their own county-level programs pursuant to chapter 201H, HRS (chapter 201H program); and
WHEREAS, the City and County of Honolulu's chapter 201H program, among other things, does not include as "affordable housing" units that are affordable to families with income levels greater than one hundred forty percent of AMI; and
WHEREAS, certain state and county agencies have been reluctant to provide the great deference required by the express provisions of section 201H-38, HRS, to housing projects qualified under chapter 201H, HRS, when applying statutes, ordinances, charter provisions, and rules of any governmental agencies relating to planning, zoning, construction standards for subdivision, development and improvement of land, and the construction of dwelling units thereon; and
WHEREAS, HHFDC commissioned the "Hawaii Housing Planning Study, 2019", which found that the State will need about 50,000 more housing units between 2020 and 2025; and
WHEREAS, according to the Honolulu Board of Realtors, the median sales price for single-family homes on Oahu for the month of January 2022 was $1,050,000; and
WHEREAS, data from the United States Census Bureau indicates that about 14,500 residents left Hawaii from July 2020 to July 2021; and
WHEREAS, Hawaii ranked fourth in the nation for the highest percentage decline in population for 2020 to 2021; and
WHEREAS, the loss of Hawaii's population is being driven, in part, by the high cost of living, including the high cost of housing; and
WHEREAS, according to a January 2021 Department of Business, Economic Development, and Tourism report titled "Brain Drain: Characteristics of Hawai‘i-Born Adults on the U.S. Mainland", the residents leaving Hawaii for the mainland are younger and more educated; and
WHEREAS, the loss of this segment of Hawaii's population jeopardizes the very fabric and future of the State and its communities; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2022, that all state and county agencies are urged to follow the true intent of chapter 201H, HRS, and the express provisions of section 201H-38, HRS, rather than impose additional restrictions and processes, to address the shortage of affordable housing in Hawaii; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the state and county agencies are urged to reaffirm their commitment to the intent and provisions of section 201H-38, HRS, to exempt qualifying projects from all laws, rules, and regulations impacting the development of affordable housing; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in processing housing development projects pursuant to chapter 201H, HRS, state and county agencies are urged to abide by the express provisions of section 201H-38, HRS, to exempt all qualifying housing projects under chapter 201H, HRS, from all statutes, ordinances, charter provisions, and rules of any governmental agency relating to planning, zoning, construction standards for subdivision, development and improvement of land, and the construction of dwelling units thereon in accordance with the intent, purpose, and express provisions of chapter 201H, HRS; provided that minimum health and safety requirements and other requirements are met; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Executive Director of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation, Executive Director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, mayor of each county, chairperson and members of the county council of each county, Executive Director of the Office of Housing at the City and County of Honolulu, Housing Administrator of the Office of Housing and Community Development of the County of Hawaii, Director of the Department of Housing and Human Concerns of the County of Maui, and Director of the Housing Agency of the County of Kauai.
Chapter 201H, HRS; Affordable Housing; State and County Agencies
