By: Márquez, Guillen, Longoria, González, H.B. No. 217
      Raymond, et al.
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  rel
  ating to the services provided by a colonia self-help center.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Sections 2306.586(a), (b), (c), and (d),
  Government Code, are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The purpose of a self-help center is to assist
  individuals and families of low income and very low income to
  finance, refinance, construct, improve, or maintain a safe,
  suitable home and otherwise improve living conditions in the
  colonias' designated service area or in another area the department
  has determined is suitable.
         (b)  A self-help center shall set a goal to improve the
  living conditions of residents in the colonias designated under
  Section 2306.583(b) [2306.583(a)(2)] within a two-year period
  after a contract is awarded under this subchapter.
         (c)  A self-help center may serve individuals and families of
  low income and very low income by:
               (1)  providing assistance in obtaining loans or grants
  to build a home;
               (2)  teaching construction skills necessary to repair
  or build a home;
               (3)  providing model home plans;
               (4)  operating a program to rent or provide tools for
  home construction and improvement for the benefit of property
  owners in colonias who are building or repairing a residence or
  installing necessary residential infrastructure;
               (5)  helping to obtain, construct, access, or improve
  the service and utility infrastructure designed to service
  residences in a colonia, including potable water, wastewater
  disposal, drainage, streets, and utilities;
               (6)  surveying or platting residential property that an
  individual purchased without the benefit of a legal survey, plat,
  or record;
               (7)  providing credit and debt counseling related to
  home purchase and finance;
               (8)  applying for grants and loans to provide housing
  and other needed community improvements;
               (9)  providing other services that the self-help
  center, with the approval of the department, determines are
  necessary to assist colonia residents in improving their [physical]
  living conditions, including help in:
                     (A)  obtaining suitable alternative housing
  outside of a colonia's area; and
                     (B)  performing the following authorized public
  service activities under Title 1 of the Housing and Community
  Development Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. Section 5301 et seq.):
                           (i)  securing employment;
                           (ii)  establishing or expanding a small
  business; or
                           (iii)  managing personal finances;
               (10)  providing assistance in obtaining loans or grants
  to enable an individual or a family to acquire fee simple title to
  property that originally was purchased under a contract for a deed,
  contract for sale, or other executory contract; and
               (11)  providing monthly programs to educate
  individuals and families on their rights and responsibilities as
  property owners.
         (d)  A self-help center may not provide grants, financing, or
  mortgage loan services to purchase, build, rehabilitate, or finance
  construction or improvements to a home or otherwise improve living
  conditions in a colonia if water service and suitable wastewater
  disposal are not available.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.