|
INTRODUCED
|
HOUSE COMMITTEE
SUBSTITUTE
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
SECTION 1. Chapter 379C,
Local Government Code, is amended by adding Section 379C.015 to read as
follows:
Sec. 379C.015.
PARTICIPATION IN COUNTY LAND BANK PROGRAM. (a) A land bank established or
approved by the governing body of a municipality under this chapter may
participate in a land bank program established or approved by a county
under Chapter 388 if the participation of the municipality in the county
land bank program is incorporated into each entity's land bank
demonstration plan under Sections 379C.006 and 388.005, as applicable.
(b) The authority of a
municipally established land bank participating in a program established
under Chapter 388 is limited to the powers granted under this chapter.
|
|
SECTION 1. Subtitle A, Title
12, Local Government Code, is amended by adding Chapter 379F to read as
follows:
|
SECTION 2. Subtitle B, Title
12, Local Government Code, is amended by adding Chapter 388 to read as
follows:
|
|
CHAPTER 379F. URBAN LAND
BANK DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM
|
CHAPTER 388. LAND BANK
DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM
|
|
Sec. 379F.001. SHORT
TITLE. This chapter may be cited as the Urban Land Bank Demonstration
Program Act.
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
|
Sec. 379F.002.
APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies only to counties that:
(1) have a population of
1.18 million or more; and
(2) have a total area of
less than 1,300 square miles.
|
Sec. 388.001.
APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies only to a county that:
(1) contains a majority of the territory of a
home-rule municipality that has a population of 1.18 million or
more; and
(2) has a total area of
less than 1,300 square miles.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.002.
DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Community
housing development organization" or "organization" means an
organization that:
(A) meets the definition
of a community housing development organization in 24 C.F.R. Section 92.2;
and
(B) is certified by the
county as a community housing development organization.
(2) "Land bank"
means an entity established or approved by the governing body of a county
for the purpose of acquiring, holding, and transferring unimproved real
property under this chapter.
(3) "Land bank
demonstration plan" or "plan" means a plan adopted by the
governing body of a county as provided by Section 388.005.
(4) "Land bank
demonstration program" or "program" means a program adopted
under Section 388.003.
(5) "Low income
household" means a household with a gross income of not greater than
115 percent of the area median family income, adjusted for household size,
for the county, as determined annually by the United States Department of
Housing and Urban Development.
(6) "Qualified
participating developer" means a developer who meets the requirements
of Section 388.004 and includes a qualified organization under Section
388.013.
|
|
Sec. 379F.003. URBAN LAND
BANK DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. (a) The governing body of a county may adopt
an urban land bank demonstration
program in which the officer charged with selling real property ordered
sold pursuant to foreclosure of a tax lien may sell certain eligible real
property by private sale for purposes of affordable housing development as
provided by this chapter.
(b) The governing body of
a county that adopts an urban land
bank demonstration program shall establish or approve a land bank for the
purpose of acquiring, holding, and transferring unimproved real property
under this chapter.
|
Sec. 388.003. LAND BANK
DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM. (a) The governing body of a county may adopt a
land bank demonstration program in which the officer charged with selling
real property ordered sold pursuant to foreclosure of a tax lien may sell
certain eligible real property by private sale for purposes of affordable
housing development as provided by this chapter.
(b) The governing body of
a county that adopts a land bank demonstration program shall establish or
approve a land bank for the purpose of acquiring, holding, and transferring
unimproved real property under this chapter.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.004. QUALIFIED
PARTICIPATING DEVELOPER. To qualify to participate in a land bank
demonstration program, a developer must:
(1) have built one or
more housing units within the three-year period preceding the submission of
a proposal to the land bank seeking to acquire real property from the land
bank;
(2) have a development
plan approved by the county for the land bank property; and
(3) meet any other
requirements adopted by the county in the land bank demonstration plan.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.005. LAND BANK
DEMONSTRATION PLAN. (a) A county that adopts a land bank demonstration
program shall operate the program in conformance with a land bank
demonstration plan.
(b) The governing body of
a county that adopts a land bank demonstration program shall adopt a plan
annually. The plan may be amended from time to time.
(c) In developing the
plan, the county shall consider any other housing plans adopted by the
county, including any fair housing plans and policies adopted or agreed to
by the county.
(d) The plan must include
the following:
(1) a list of community
housing development organizations eligible to participate in the right of
first refusal provided by Section 388.013;
(2) a list of the parcels
of real property that may become eligible for sale to the land bank during
the upcoming year;
(3) the county's plan for
affordable housing development on those parcels of real property; and
(4) the sources and
amounts of funding anticipated to be available from the county for
subsidies for development of affordable housing in the county, including
any money specifically available for housing developed under the program,
as approved by the governing body of the county at the time the plan is
adopted.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.006. PUBLIC
HEARING ON PROPOSED PLAN. (a) Before adopting a plan, a county shall hold
a public hearing on the proposed plan.
(b) The county clerk or
the county clerk's designee shall provide notice of the hearing to all
community housing development organizations and to neighborhood
associations identified by the county as serving the neighborhoods in which
properties anticipated to be available for sale to the land bank under this
chapter are located.
(c) The county clerk or
the county clerk's designee shall make copies of the proposed plan
available to the public not later than the 60th day before the date of the
public hearing.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.007. PRIVATE
SALE TO LAND BANK. (a) Notwithstanding any other law and except as
provided by Subsection (g), property that is ordered sold pursuant to
foreclosure of a tax lien may be sold in a private sale to a land bank by
the officer charged with the sale of the property without first offering
the property for sale as otherwise provided by Section 34.01, Tax Code, if:
(1) the market value of
the property as specified in the judgment of foreclosure is less than the
total amount due under the judgment, including all taxes, penalties, and
interest, plus the value of nontax liens held by a taxing unit and awarded
by the judgment, court costs, and the cost of the sale;
(2) the property is not
improved with a habitable building or buildings or an uninhabitable
building or buildings that are occupied as a residence by an owner or
tenant who is legally entitled to occupy the building or buildings;
(3) there are delinquent
taxes on the property for a total of at least five years; and
(4) the county has
executed with the other taxing units that are parties to the tax suit an
interlocal agreement that enables those units to agree to participate in
the program while retaining the right to withhold consent to the sale of
specific properties to the land bank.
(b) The property may be
sold to a land bank, regardless of current zoning, and on development may
be zoned for more than one use that must include residential housing in
accordance with this chapter, provided that the requirements of Subsection
(a) are satisfied.
(c) A sale of property for
use in connection with the program is a sale for a public purpose.
(d) If the person being
sued in a suit for foreclosure of a tax lien does not contest the market
value of the property in the suit, the person waives the right to challenge
the amount of the market value determined by the court for purposes of the
sale of the property under Section 33.50, Tax Code.
(e) For any sale of
property under this chapter, each person who was a defendant to the
judgment, or that person's attorney, shall be given, not later than the
90th day before the date of sale, written notice of the proposed method of
sale of the property by the officer charged with the sale of the property.
Notice shall be given in the manner prescribed by Rule 21a, Texas Rules of
Civil Procedure.
(f) After receipt of the
notice required by Subsection (e) and before the date of the proposed sale,
the owner of the property subject to sale may file with the officer charged
with the sale a written request that the property not be sold in the manner
provided by this chapter.
(g) If the officer
charged with the sale receives a written request as provided by Subsection
(f), the officer shall sell the property as otherwise provided in Section
34.01, Tax Code.
(h) The owner of the
property subject to sale may not receive any proceeds of a sale under this
chapter. However, the owner does not have any personal liability for a
deficiency of the judgment as a result of a sale under this chapter.
(i) Notwithstanding any
other law, if consent is given by the taxing units that are a party to the
judgment, property may be sold to the land bank for less than the market
value of the property as specified in the judgment or less than the total
of all taxes, penalties, and interest, plus the value of nontax liens held
by a taxing unit and awarded by the judgment, court costs, and the cost of
the sale.
(j) The deed of
conveyance of the property sold to a land bank under this section conveys
to the land bank the right, title, and interest acquired or held by each
taxing unit that was a party to the judgment, subject to the right of
redemption.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.008. SUBSEQUENT
RESALE BY LAND BANK. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), each
subsequent resale of property acquired by a land bank under this chapter
must comply with the conditions of this section.
(b) Notwithstanding any
other law, this section does not apply to property sold to an eligible
adjacent property owner under Section 388.011.
(c) Except as provided by
Subsection (d), the land bank must sell a property to a qualified
participating developer within the four-year period following the date of
acquisition for the purpose of construction of affordable housing for sale
or rent to low income households.
(d) Before the completion
of the four-year period described by Subsection (c), the land bank may,
subject to Section 388.011:
(1) transfer property
that the land bank determines is not appropriate for residential
development to the taxing units described by Subsection (c); or
(2) sell property
described by Subdivision (1) to a political subdivision or a nonprofit
organization.
(e) If after four years a
qualified participating developer has not purchased the property, the
property shall be transferred from the land bank to the taxing units who
were parties to the judgment for disposition as otherwise allowed under the
law.
(f) Unless the county
increases the amount in its plan, the number of properties acquired by a
qualified participating developer under this section on which development
has not been completed may not at any given time exceed three times the
annual average residential production completed by the qualified
participating developer during the preceding two-year period as determined
by the county.
(g) The deed conveying a
property sold by the land bank must include a right of reverter so that if
the qualified participating developer does not apply for a construction
permit and close on any construction financing within the three-year period
following the date of the conveyance of the property from the land bank to
the qualified participating developer, the property will revert to the land
bank for subsequent resale in accordance with this chapter or conveyance to
the taxing units who were parties to the judgment for disposition as
otherwise allowed under the law. If the property is replatted under Section
388.012, the right of reverter applies to the entire property as replatted.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.009.
RESTRICTIONS ON OCCUPANCY AND USE OF PROPERTY. (a) The land bank shall
impose deed restrictions on property sold to qualified participating
developers requiring the development and sale, rental, or lease-purchase of
the property to low income households.
(b) Each land bank
property sold during any given fiscal year to be developed for sale must be
deed restricted for sale to low income households, and:
(1) at least 25 percent
of those land bank properties must be deed restricted for sale to
households with gross household incomes not greater than 60 percent of the
area median family income, adjusted for household size; and
(2) not more than 30
percent of those land bank properties may be deed restricted for sale to
households with gross household incomes greater than 80 percent of the area
median family income, adjusted for household size.
(c) If property is
developed for rental housing, the deed restrictions must be for a period of
not less than 15 years and must require that:
(1) 100 percent of the
rental units be occupied by households with incomes not greater than 60
percent of area median family income, based on gross household income,
adjusted for household size, for the county, as determined annually by the
United States Department of Housing and Urban Development;
(2) 40 percent of the units
be occupied by households with incomes not greater than 50 percent of area
median family income, based on gross household income, adjusted for
household size, for the county, as determined annually by the United States
Department of Housing and Urban Development; or
(3) 20 percent of the
units be occupied by households with incomes not greater than 30 percent of
area median family income, based on gross household income, adjusted for
household size, for the county, as determined annually by the United States
Department of Housing and Urban Development.
(d) The deed restrictions
under Subsection (c) must require the owner to file an annual occupancy
report with the county on a reporting form provided by the county. The
deed restrictions must also prohibit any exclusion of an individual or
family from admission to the development based solely on the participation
of the individual or family in the housing choice voucher program under
Section 8, United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f), as
amended.
(e) Except as otherwise
provided by this section, if the deed restrictions imposed under this
section are for a term of years, the deed restrictions shall renew
automatically.
(f) The land bank or the
governing body of the county may modify or add to the deed restrictions
imposed under this section. Any modifications or additions made by the
governing body of the county must be adopted by the county as part of its
plan and must comply with the restrictions set forth in Subsections (b), (c),
and (d).
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.010. LOT
EXCHANGE PERMITTED. (a) Notwithstanding Section 388.009, the land bank
may permit a qualified participating developer to exchange a property
purchased from the land bank with any other property owned by the developer
if:
(1) the developer agrees
to construct on the other property affordable housing for low income
households as provided by this chapter; and
(2) the other property
will be located in:
(A) a planned development
incorporating the property originally purchased from the land bank; or
(B) another location as
approved by the land bank.
(b) The land bank shall
adjust the deed restrictions under Section 388.009 for each of the
properties exchanged by the developer under this section.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.011. PROPERTY
DETERMINED TO BE INAPPROPRIATE FOR RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT: RIGHT OF FIRST
REFUSAL. (a) In this section, "eligible adjacent property
owner" means a person who:
(1) owns property located
adjacent to property owned by the land bank; and
(2) satisfies
eligibility requirements adopted by the land bank.
(b) Notwithstanding any
other right of first refusal granted under this chapter, if the land bank
determines that a property owned by the land bank is not appropriate for
residential development, the land bank first shall offer the property for
sale to an eligible adjacent property owner according to terms and
conditions developed by the land bank that are consistent with this
chapter.
(c) The land bank shall
sell the property to an eligible adjacent property owner, at whichever
value is lower:
(1) the fair market value
for the property as determined by the appraisal district in which the
property is located; or
(2) the sales price
recorded in the annual plan.
(d) Except as provided by
Subsection (e), an adjacent property owner that purchases property under
this section may not lease, sell, or transfer that property to another
person before the third anniversary of the date the adjacent property owner
purchased that property from the land bank.
(e) Subsection (d) does
not apply to the transfer of property purchased under this section if the
transfer:
(1) is made according to
a policy adopted by the land bank; and
(2) is made to a family
member of the eligible adjacent property owner or occurs as a result of the
death of the eligible adjacent property owner.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.012. REPLATTING
BY QUALIFIED PARTICIPATING DEVELOPER. The land bank may sell two adjacent
properties that are owned by the land bank to a qualified participating
developer if:
(1) at least one of the
properties is appropriate for residential development; and
(2) the developer agrees
to replat the two adjacent properties as one property that is appropriate
for residential development.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.013. RIGHT OF
FIRST REFUSAL TO QUALIFIED ORGANIZATIONS. (a) In this section,
"qualified organization" means a community housing development
organization that:
(1) contains within its
designated geographical boundaries of operation, as set forth in its
application for certification filed with and approved by the county, a
portion of the property that the land bank is offering for sale;
(2) has built at least
three single-family homes or duplexes or one multifamily residential
dwelling of four or more units in compliance with all applicable building
codes within the preceding two-year period and within the organization's
designated geographical boundaries of operation; and
(3) within the preceding
two-year period has built or rehabilitated housing units within a one-half
mile radius of the property that the land bank is offering for sale.
(b) Except as provided by
Section 388.011, the land bank shall first offer a property for sale to
qualified organizations.
(c) Notice must be
provided to the qualified organizations by certified mail, return receipt
requested.
(d) The county shall
specify in its plan that the period during which the right of first refusal
provided by this section may be exercised by a qualified organization is
six months from the date of the deed of conveyance of the property to the
land bank.
(e) During the specified
period, the land bank may not sell the property to a qualified
participating developer other than a qualified organization. If all
qualified organizations notify the land bank that they are declining to
exercise their right of first refusal during the specified period, or if an
offer to purchase the property is not received from a qualified
organization during that period, the land bank may sell the property to any
other qualified participating developer at the same price that the land
bank offered the property to the qualified organizations.
(f) In its plan, the
county shall establish the amount of additional time, if any, that a
property may be held in the land bank once an offer has been received and
accepted from a qualified organization or other qualified participating
developer.
(g) If more than one
qualified organization expresses an interest in exercising its right of
first refusal, the organization that has designated the most geographically
compact area encompassing a portion of the property shall be given
priority.
(h) In its plan, the
county may provide for other rights of first refusal for any other
nonprofit corporation exempted from federal income tax under Section
501(c)(3), Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, provided that the
preeminent right of first refusal is provided to qualified organizations as
provided by this section.
(i) The land bank is not
required to provide a right of first refusal to qualified organizations
under this section if the land bank is selling property that reverted to
the land bank under Section 388.008(g).
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.014. OPEN
RECORDS AND MEETINGS. The land bank shall comply with the requirements of
Chapters 551 and 552, Government Code.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.015. RECORDS;
AUDIT; REPORT. (a) The land bank shall keep accurate minutes of its
meetings and shall keep accurate records and books of account that conform
with generally accepted principles of accounting and that clearly reflect
the income and expenses of the land bank and all transactions in relation
to its property.
(b) The land bank shall
file with the county not later than the 90th day after the close of the
fiscal year annual audited financial statements prepared by a certified
public accountant. The financial transactions of the land bank are subject
to audit by the county.
(c) For purposes of
evaluating the effectiveness of the program, the land bank shall submit an
annual performance report to the county not later than November 1 of each
year in which the land bank acquires or sells property under this chapter.
The performance report must include:
(1) a complete and
detailed written accounting of all money and properties received and
disbursed by the land bank during the preceding fiscal year;
(2) for each property
acquired by the land bank during the preceding fiscal year:
(A) the street address of
the property;
(B) the legal description
of the property;
(C) the date the land
bank took title to the property;
(D) the name and address
of the property owner of record at the time of the foreclosure;
(E) the amount of taxes
and other costs owed at the time of the foreclosure; and
(F) the assessed value of
the property on the tax roll at the time of the foreclosure;
(3) for each property
sold by the land bank during the preceding fiscal year to a qualified
participating developer or eligible adjacent property owner:
(A) the street address of
the property;
(B) the legal description
of the property;
(C) the name and mailing
address of the purchaser;
(D) the purchase price
paid; and
(E) if sold to a
qualified participating developer:
(i) the maximum incomes
allowed for the households by the terms of the sale; and
(ii) the source and
amount of any public subsidy provided by the county to facilitate the sale
or rental of the property to a household within the targeted income levels;
(4) for each property
sold by a qualified participating developer during the preceding fiscal
year, the buyer's household income and a description of all use and sale
restrictions; and
(5) for each property
developed for rental housing with an active deed restriction, a copy of the
most recent annual report filed by the owner with the land bank.
(d) The land bank shall
maintain in its records for inspection a copy of the sale settlement
statement for each property sold by a qualified participating developer and
a copy of the first page of the mortgage note with the interest rate and
indicating the volume and page number of the instrument as filed with the
county clerk.
(e) The land bank shall
provide copies of the performance report to the taxing units who were
parties to the judgment of foreclosure and shall provide notice of the
availability of the performance report for review to the organizations and
neighborhood associations identified by the county as serving the
neighborhoods in which properties sold to the land bank under this chapter
are located.
(f) The land bank and the
county shall maintain copies of the performance report available for public
review.
|
|
No
equivalent provision.
|
Sec. 388.016.
PARTICIPATION IN MUNICIPAL LAND BANK PROGRAM. (a) A land bank established
or approved by the governing body of a county under this chapter may
participate in a land bank program established or approved by a
municipality under Chapter 379C if the participation of the county in the
municipal land bank program is incorporated into each entity's land bank
demonstration plan under Sections 379C.006 and 388.005, as applicable.
(b) The authority of a
county-established land bank participating in a program established under
Chapter 379C is limited to the powers granted under this chapter.
|
|
SECTION 2. This Act takes
effect September 1, 2015.
|
SECTION 3. Same as introduced
version.
|
|