BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1413|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 1413
Author: Leno (D), et al.
Amended: 5/10/16
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANS. & HOUSING COMMITTEE: 9-0, 4/26/16
AYES: Beall, Allen, Gaines, Galgiani, Leyva, McGuire, Mendoza,
Roth, Wieckowski
NO VOTE RECORDED: Cannella, Bates
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTE: 5-2, 5/27/16
AYES: Lara, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza
NOES: Bates, Nielsen
SUBJECT: School districts: employee housing
SOURCE: Ed Lee, Mayor, City and County of San Francisco
DIGEST: This bill establishes the Teacher Housing Act of 2016
and provides that a school district may establish and implement
programs that address the housing needs of teachers and school
district employees who face challenges in securing affordable
housing.
ANALYSIS: Existing federal law requires low-income housing tax
credits (LIHTCs) to be utilized for residential units that are
for use by the "general public." If a residential unit is
provided only for a member of a social organization or provided
by an employer for its employees, the unit is not for use by the
general public and not eligible for federal LIHTCs, and by
extension, state LIHTCs. A qualified low-income project does
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not fail to meet the general-public use requirement solely
because of occupancy restrictions or preferences that favor,
among other things: members of a specified group under a federal
program or state program or policy that supports housing for a
specified group.
Existing state law:
1)Establishes various housing programs, such as the Multifamily
Housing Program and Joe Serna Jr. Farmworker Housing Grant
Program administered by the Department of Housing and
Community Development and the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit
Program administered by the Tax Credit Allocation Committee
within the State Treasurer's Office, to help low-income
families and other specified groups.
2)Defines "rental housing development" as a structure or set of
structures with common financing, ownership, and management,
and which collectively contain five or more dwelling units,
including efficiency units. No more than one of the dwelling
units may be occupied as a primary residence by a person or
household who is the owner of the structure or structures.
This bill:
1)Establishes the Teacher Housing Act of 2016 to facilitate the
acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, and preservation of
affordable rental housing for teachers, school district
employees, and their families to allow teachers or school
district employees to access and maintain housing stability.
2)Defines "affordable rental housing" as a rental housing
development with rents restricted to levels that are
affordable to persons and families of low or moderate income,
but neither definition is restrictive to only projects with
five or more units as required under existing law.
3)Defines "teacher or school district employee" as any person
employed by:
a) A unified school district maintaining pre-kindergarten,
transitional kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12;
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b) An elementary school district maintaining
pre-kindergarten, transitional kindergarten, and grades 1
to 8; or
c) A high school district maintaining grades 9 to 12,
inclusive, but not limited to, certificated and classified
staff.
4)Provides that a school district may establish and implement
programs that address the housing needs of teachers and school
district employees who face challenges in securing affordable
housing. To the extent feasible, the school district may
establish and implement programs that, among other things, do
the following:
a) Leverage federal, state, and local public, private, and
nonprofit programs and fiscal resources.
b) Promote public and private partnerships.
c) Foster innovative financing opportunities.
d) Dedicate school district-owned land to the development
of affordable rental housing and restrict occupancy to
teachers and school district employees.
5)Creates, specifically, a state policy supporting housing for
teachers and school district employees, pursuant to the IRS
code, and permits school districts and developers in receipt
of local or state funds designated for affordable rental
housing to restrict occupancy to teachers and school district
employees on land owned by school districts, so long as that
housing does not violate any other applicable laws.
Comments
Purpose. According to the author, California places a high
value on its public education system, and the stability of
housing for school employees is critical to the overall success
and stability of each school in California. Students and the
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community at large are benefitted by teachers living in the
community in which they practice their profession. It ensures
stability, community involvement, and stronger ties between
teachers and their students and families. Lack of affordable
housing creates barriers to effective teaching and teacher
retention and the combination of teacher and housing shortages
demands innovative solutions. Twenty-five percent of teachers
nationwide point to housing incentives as an important factor in
their decision to return to teaching.
While there are programs in many communities to help people find
and attain affordable housing, middle-class earners like
teachers do not always qualify for them. This bill underscores
the critical role that teachers and other education
professionals play in the long-term success of our state by
allowing for the development of specific housing to keep these
hard-working professionals in our communities and our schools.
This bill provides clear authorization to school districts to
develop housing on district-owned property, which will enable
the districts facing the most acute teacher shortages to
directly address the lack of affordable housing that is forcing
teachers out of our communities and out of a vital profession.
Investors require clear state law before getting on board with
new and innovative projects, especially in an area as expensive
as San Francisco. Unlike the higher education code, which
covers faculty housing in detail, K-12's silence on this issue
is a cause for great concern for financial markets when facing a
decision of whether to embark upon multi-billion dollar housing
projects.
Necessary state authority. According to the source, Mayor Ed
Lee of the City and County of San Francisco, express state
statutory authority is necessary to permit school districts to
construct teacher-only housing on their property. Developers
are not permitted to use federal LIHTCs for these projects
because these projects are not available to the general public.
Because state credits can only be awarded to projects that
receive federal credits, state LIHTCs also cannot be used to
fund teacher-only housing.
By declaring a state policy supporting housing for teachers/school
district employees, these housing projects could qualify under
federal law as general public housing and therefore be eligible
for both federal and state LIHTCs.
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FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:NoLocal: No
According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:
Cost pressure: To the extent this bill results in additional
affordable housing projects targeting teachers and school
personnel, greater demand would be placed on limited existing
housing resources leading to greater competition for receiving
certain financial benefits such as state low-income housing
tax credits. According to the State Treasurer's Office, state
credits are oversubscribed by roughly a 2 to 1 ratio.
SUPPORT: (Verified5/27/16)
Ed Lee, Mayor, City and County of San Francisco (source)
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
California Apartment Association
California Federation of Teachers
California Teachers Association
Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California
San Francisco Unified School District
OPPOSITION: (Verified5/27/16)
None received
Prepared by:Alison Dinmore / T. & H. / (916) 651-4121
5/28/16 16:46:11
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