By Ehrhardt H.B. No. 2737
Line and page numbers may not match official copy.
Bill not drafted by TLC or Senate E&E.
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to filing information about housing designed for persons
1-3 with disabilities and fair housing sponsor reports by Texas
1-4 Department of Housing and Community Affairs contractors, providing
1-5 for filing reports through the Internet and providing penalties for
1-6 failure to file.
1-7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-8 SECTION 1. Section 2306.077, Government Code, is amended to
1-9 read as follows:
1-10 Sec. 2306.077. Internet Availability. (a) In this section,
1-11 "Internet" means the largest, nonproprietary, nonprofit,
1-12 cooperative, public computer network, popularly known as the
1-13 Internet.
1-14 (b) The department, to the extent it considers it to be
1-15 feasible and appropriate, shall make information on the
1-16 department's programs, public hearings, and scheduled public
1-17 meetings available to the public on the Internet.
1-18 (c) The access to information allowed by this section is in
1-19 addition to the public's free access to the information through
1-20 other electronic or print distribution of the information and does
1-21 not alter, diminish, or relinquish any copyright or other
1-22 proprietary interest or entitlement of this state or a private
2-1 entity under contract with this state.
2-2 (d) The department shall provide for the filing through the
2-3 Internet of annual housing sponsor reports required in Section
2-4 2306.072.
2-5 (e) The department shall establish a system that will allow
2-6 reporting through the Internet of vacant rental housing units
2-7 designed for persons with disabilities and funded by the
2-8 department.
2-9 (1) The department shall require owners of all rental
2-10 occupied housing funded in whole or in part through the programs of
2-11 the department containing twenty (20) of more rental units to
2-12 report the cost and availability of housing that is designed to
2-13 accomodate persons with disabilities.
2-14 (A) The system shall permit property owners to
2-15 enter the following data on the department's web site:
2-16 (i) the name (if any) of the property;
2-17 (ii) the street address of the property;
2-18 (iii) the number of bedrooms in the
2-19 apartment or house;
2-20 (iv) the monthly rent charged for the
2-21 unit;
2-22 (v) the special features that characterize
2-23 the unit's suitability for housing for a person with disabilities;
2-24 (vi) the property manager or agent to whom
2-25 calls of inquiry by perspective tenants should be directed;
2-26 (vii) whether the units are vacant or
3-1 occupied.
3-2 (3) This information shall be available to the public
3-3 by the department in printed and electronic format free of charge.
3-4 (2) The department, by rule, shall establish policies
3-5 to require posting of the information provided in subsection (A) by
3-6 all owners of rental occupied housing funded in whole or in part by
3-7 the department containing twenty (20) or more rental units at least
3-8 once a month during any month in which a rental unit designed for
3-9 persons with disabilities becomes vacant.
3-10 SECTION 2. Section 2306.072, Government Code, is amended to
3-11 read as follows:
3-12 Sec. 2306.072. Annual Low Income Housing Report. (a) Not
3-13 later than March 1 of each year, the director shall prepare and
3-14 submit to the board an annual report of the department's housing
3-15 activities for the preceding year.
3-16 (b) Not later than the 30th day after the date the board
3-17 receives the report, the board shall submit the report to the
3-18 governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of
3-19 representatives, and members of any legislative oversight
3-20 committee.
3-21 (c) The report must include:
3-22 (1) a complete operating and financial statement of
3-23 the department;
3-24 (2) a comprehensive statement of the activities of the
3-25 department during the preceding year to address the needs
3-26 identified in the state low income housing plan prepared as
4-1 required by Section 2306.0721, including:
4-2 (A) a statistical and narrative analysis of the
4-3 department's performance in addressing the housing needs of
4-4 individuals and families of low and very low income;
4-5 (B) the ethnic and racial composition of
4-6 individuals and families applying for and receiving assistance from
4-7 each housing-related program operated by the department; and
4-8 (C) the department's progress in meeting the
4-9 goals established in the previous housing plan;
4-10 (3) an explanation of the efforts made by the
4-11 department to ensure the participation of individuals of low income
4-12 and their community-based institutions in department programs that
4-13 affect them;
4-14 (4) a statement of the evidence that the department
4-15 has made an affirmative effort to ensure the involvement of
4-16 individuals of low income and their community-based institutions in
4-17 the allocation of funds and the planning process;
4-18 (5) a statistical analysis, delineated according to
4-19 each ethnic and racial group served by the department, that
4-20 indicates the progress made by the department in implementing the
4-21 state low income housing plan in each of the uniform state service
4-22 regions;
4-23 (6) an analysis of fair housing opportunities in each
4-24 housing development that receives financial assistance from the
4-25 department.
4-26 (A) The basis of this analysis shall be an
5-1 annual Fair Housing Sponsor Report that shall be submitted by the
5-2 owner of each rental property that has received funds from the
5-3 department that contains 20 or more living units. The report shall
5-4 provide accurate reporting of the following information for the
5-5 property as of January 1 of the reporting year:
5-6 (i) The street address and municipality or
5-7 county in which the property is located;
5-8 (ii) The total number of units reported by
5-9 bedroom size;
5-10 (iii) The total number of units reported
5-11 by bedroom size that are designed for individuals who are
5-12 physically challenged or who have special needs and the number of
5-13 these individuals served annually as reported by each housing
5-14 sponsor;
5-15 (iv) The amount of rent charged for each
5-16 type of rental unit reported by bedroom size;
5-17 (v) The race or ethnicity of the heads of
5-18 tenant households;
5-19 (vi) The number of households receiving
5-20 rental assistance under the Section 8 rental assistance program
5-21 administered by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development;
5-22 (vii) The number of households that are
5-23 extremely low income, very low income, low income, moderate income
5-24 and other income; and
5-25 (viii) The telephone number of the
5-26 property management or leasing agent.
6-1 (B) The department, by rule, shall adopt
6-2 policies and procedures for the filing of the Fair Housing Sponsor
6-3 Report. The department shall provide that failure to file a Fair
6-4 Housing Sponsor Report in a timely manner shall cause a property
6-5 owner and investors in the property be prohibited from making
6-6 application for or receiving any funding or program benefit from
6-7 the department.
6-8 (C) The department shall have the power to fine
6-9 a housing sponsor up to $1,000 per instance for failure to file or
6-10 late filing of a Fair Housing Sponsor Report.
6-11 (D) The department shall maintain this data in
6-12 electronic format and it shall be a public record available to the
6-13 public at no cost.
6-14 (E) Utilizing data in the Fair Housing Sponsor
6-15 Reports and other data available to the department the department
6-16 shall prepare:
6-17 [(F)] (i) A statistical analysis of average
6-18 rents reported by county;
6-19 [(G)] (ii) The race or ethnic makeup of each
6-20 project as reported annually by each housing sponsor;
6-21 [(H)] (iii) The number of units occupied by
6-22 individuals receiving government-supported housing assistance as
6-23 reported by each housing sponsor;
6-24 [(I)] (iv) A statement as to whether the
6-25 department has been notified of a violation of the fair housing law
6-26 that has been filed with the United States Department of Housing
7-1 and Urban Development, the Commission on Human Rights, or the
7-2 United States Department of Justice; and
7-3 [(J)] (v) A statement as to whether the
7-4 development has any instances of material noncompliance with bond
7-5 indentures or deed restrictions discovered through the normal
7-6 monitoring activities and procedures that include meeting occupancy
7-7 requirements or rent restrictions imposed by deed restriction or
7-8 financing agreements; and
7-9 (7) a report on the geographic distribution of low
7-10 income housing tax credits, the amount of unused low income housing
7-11 tax credits, and the amount of low income housing tax credits
7-12 received from the federal pool of unused funds from other states.
7-13 SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
7-14 SECTION 4. The importance of this legislation and the
7-15 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
7-16 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
7-17 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
7-18 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.