By Ellis S.C.R. No. 58 75R9461 CDD-D CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, In an era of devolution, budget cutting, and 1-2 reinventing government, fewer public dollars are available to 1-3 address pressing social problems and federal housing programs, in 1-4 particular, have endured deep budget cuts; and 1-5 WHEREAS, Affordable housing for low-income and 1-6 moderate-income individuals and families is a critical community 1-7 infrastructure need in Texas' urban centers, where some of the 1-8 densest populations of low-income Texans live; and 1-9 WHEREAS, An overwhelming majority of public, private, and 1-10 nonprofit partners involved in affordable housing in the state's 1-11 largest cities have found that their community's need for 1-12 affordable housing has out-paced the supply of housing stock; and 1-13 WHEREAS, Expanding financial incentives for developers to 1-14 build affordable housing, such as offering low-interest loans and 1-15 tax relief, would help increase the available supply; and 1-16 WHEREAS, One strategy to raise funds and fill the "capital 1-17 gap" in underfinanced housing markets is to invest pension funds in 1-18 a way that both meets the needs of pension plan members and creates 1-19 a corollary benefit to the community at large; and 1-20 WHEREAS, Although 22 states, including Texas, have statutes 1-21 authorizing their public pension funds to invest in Economically 1-22 Targeted Investments (ETIs), and housing investments dominate the 1-23 ETI field nationwide, Texas is not among the 19 states that have 1-24 pension funds invested in affordable housing; and 2-1 WHEREAS, Housing investments are considered to be among the 2-2 easiest to make because federal housing and tax law are friendly 2-3 toward ETIs and the housing unit serves as collateral, yet the only 2-4 ETI in which Texas public pension funds are invested is the Texas 2-5 Growth Fund, an investment fund established to foster job creation 2-6 and economic growth; and 2-7 WHEREAS, With the shrinkage of federal housing dollars and 2-8 the potential for pension fund investments to fill a gap in this 2-9 underfinanced area of the economy, there is an urgent need to 2-10 identify sound investment alternatives for public pension funds 2-11 that would support safe, decent, affordable housing for low-income 2-12 and moderate-income individuals and families; now, therefore, be it 2-13 RESOLVED, That the 75th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-14 hereby direct the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs 2-15 to establish an Intergovernmental Task Force on Housing Investment 2-16 to examine potential investment products for affordable housing, 2-17 including the advisability of the creation of an intermediary 2-18 organization similar to the Texas Growth Fund; and, be it further 2-19 RESOLVED, That the task force be composed of, but not limited 2-20 to, one representative from the Employees Retirement System of 2-21 Texas, the Teacher Retirement System of Texas, the Judicial 2-22 Retirement System of Texas, the Texas County and District 2-23 Retirement System, and the Texas Municipal Retirement System, 2-24 appointed by the administrative head of each system; one 2-25 representative from the Texas Department of Housing and Community 2-26 Affairs, the Texas Association of Public Employee Retirement 2-27 Systems, the State Pension Review Board, and the Bond Review Board, 3-1 appointed by the administrative head of each entity; one 3-2 representative from the Senate, appointed by the lieutenant 3-3 governor; one representative from the House of Representatives, 3-4 appointed by the speaker; and two representatives from statewide 3-5 community development organizations, appointed by the governor; 3-6 and, be it further 3-7 RESOLVED, That the task force be staffed by the Texas 3-8 Department of Housing and Community Affairs; and, be it further 3-9 RESOLVED, That the task force submit a full report, including 3-10 findings and recommendations, to the 76th Legislature when it 3-11 convenes in January 1999; and, be it further 3-12 RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official 3-13 copy of this resolution to the executive director of the Texas 3-14 Department of Housing and Community Affairs.