By Naishtat H.B. No. 3340 76R13010 KEL-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to a rental housing pilot program to expand long-term care 1-3 housing options for elderly residents of this state with low, very 1-4 low, or extremely low income. 1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-6 SECTION 1. DEFINITION. In this Act, "department" means the 1-7 Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs. 1-8 SECTION 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM. (a) The Texas 1-9 Department of Housing and Community Affairs, in coordination with 1-10 the Texas Department of Human Services, nonprofit organizations, 1-11 public housing authorities, and any other entity with an interest 1-12 in housing issues, shall develop and implement a rental housing 1-13 pilot program to expand long-term care options for elderly 1-14 residents of this state. The pilot program shall provide 1-15 subsidized multifamily rental housing for elderly residents with 1-16 low, very low, or extremely low income and shall coordinate 1-17 services needed by those residents. 1-18 (b) To the greatest extent possible, the department shall 1-19 coordinate the pilot program with the funding sources of the Texas 1-20 Department of Human Services, nonprofit organizations, public 1-21 housing authorities, and other interested entities. 1-22 SECTION 3. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS. (a) To qualify for 1-23 subsidized multifamily rental housing under the pilot program, a 1-24 person must: 2-1 (1) be an elderly resident of this state; 2-2 (2) satisfy predetermined needs criteria established 2-3 by the Texas Department of Human Services; 2-4 (3) satisfy income eligibility criteria established by 2-5 the department; and 2-6 (4) have sufficient financial resources to pay a part 2-7 of the person's monthly rental charge. 2-8 (b) To participate in the pilot program, an entity must 2-9 demonstrate that it uses sources of low-income housing funds, such 2-10 as tax credits and tax-exempt bonds, to offer multifamily housing 2-11 at rental rates that are at or below the applicable fair market 2-12 rent prescribed by the United States Department of Housing and 2-13 Urban Development. 2-14 SECTION 4. AFFORDABLE PARTICIPANT CONTRIBUTIONS. The 2-15 department shall require a participating elderly resident of this 2-16 state to pay from the participant's financial resources as rent an 2-17 amount that is not more than 30 percent of the participant's gross 2-18 income or the amount specified by the United States Department of 2-19 Housing and Urban Development for the Section 8 rental assistance 2-20 program. 2-21 SECTION 5. EVALUATION AND REPORT. Not later than December 2-22 15, 2000, the department shall submit a report to the governor, 2-23 lieutenant governor, and speaker of the house of representatives 2-24 that evaluates the effectiveness of the pilot program established 2-25 under this Act. The report must include the department's 2-26 recommendations with respect to providing subsidized multifamily 2-27 rental housing for and coordinating services needed by elderly 3-1 residents of this state with low, very low, or extremely low 3-2 income. 3-3 SECTION 6. TERMINATION; EXPIRATION. The pilot program ends 3-4 and this Act expires September 1, 2001. 3-5 SECTION 7. EMERGENCY. The importance of this legislation 3-6 and the crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 3-7 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 3-8 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 3-9 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended, 3-10 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its 3-11 passage, and it is so enacted.