BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1246
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 12, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY
Mike Feuer, Chair
AB 1246 (Jones) - As Amended: May 5, 2009
PROPOSED CONSENT (As Proposed to Be Amended)
SUBJECT : HOUSING COOPERATIVE TRUST AND WORKFORCE HOUSING
COOPERATIVE TRUST
KEY ISSUES :
1)IN ORDER TO PROVIDE INCENTIVES FOR SPONSORS TO INVEST IN
AFFORDABLE WORKFORCE HOUSING PROJECTS, SHOULD EXISTING LAW BE
EXPANDED TO AUTHORIZE THE CREATION OF A NEW TYPE OF
COOPERATIVE HOUSING, THE "WORKFORCE HOUSING COOPERATIVE
TRUST"?
2)IN ORDER TO PROVIDE TRANSPARENCY TO DISSOLUTIONS OF
COOPERATIVES THAT HAVE RECEIVED PUBLIC FUNDING, SHOULD
EXISTING LAW BE AMENDED TO REQUIRE THAT HOUSING COOPERATIVES
THAT RECEIVED PUBLIC SUBSIDIES CONDUCT THEIR DISSOLUTIONS IN A
PUBLIC ARENA?
FISCAL EFFECT : As currently in print this bill is keyed
non-fiscal.
SYNOPSIS
This bill expands existing law, developed over 30 years ago,
that authorizes limited-equity cooperative housing, by creating
new opportunities for low- and moderate-income workforce
housing. Specifically, this bill authorizes the creation of a
new type of housing cooperative: the "workforce housing
cooperative trust." This bill additionally provides that, in
the event that a housing cooperative must dissolve, if it has
received public subsidies, the dissolution must take place in a
public and transparent manner, including a hearing and notice to
other cooperatives in the state. This bill is supported by
numerous housing cooperative groups and has no known opposition.
The bill was approved by a vote of 7-0 in the Assembly
Committee on Housing and Community Development on April 29,
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2009. There is no known opposition to the measure.
SUMMARY: Authorizes a new type of housing cooperative, the
workforce housing cooperative trust; and establishes a public
process for housing cooperatives to dissolve. Specifically,
this bill :
1)Revises the definition of "limited-equity housing cooperative"
in the Subdivided Lands law (Business & Professions Code
section 11000 et seq.) to also apply to "housing cooperative
trust" and "workforce housing cooperative trust."
2)Allows "housing cooperative trusts" and "workforce housing
cooperative trusts" to opt for the same exemptions as those
that are currently available to limited-equity housing
cooperatives.
3)Adds the following to the conditions a limited-equity housing
cooperative, housing cooperative trust, or workforce housing
cooperative trust must comply with in order to be exempt from
the Subdivided Lands law:
a) The Federal Home Loan Bank System, one of its members,
or a school district finances or subsidizes at least 50% of
the total construction or development cost, or $100,000,
whichever is less; and
b) The property occupied by the cooperative was sold or
leased by a state agency, city, county, or school district
for the development.
4)Permits a housing cooperative trust or workforce housing
cooperative trust that meets all of the exemption requirements
to elect to be subject to the Subdivided Lands law.
5)Revises the definition of "limited-equity housing cooperative"
in the Community Redevelopment Law (Health & Safety Code
section 33000 et seq.) to apply to "housing cooperative trust"
and "workforce housing cooperative trust."
6)Prohibits the articles of incorporation or the bylaws of a
limited-equity housing cooperative, housing cooperative trust,
or workforce housing cooperative trust, for the purpose of
returning the "transfer value" of a stock or membership
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interest in a trust from permitting the following:
a) A board of directors from returning the transfer value
either in full or in part to a member of the trust while he
or she still remains a member; and
b) An existing member of the board of directors from
accepting return of his or her transfer value either in
full or in part.
7)Specifies that the accumulated interest used in calculating
the transfer value of a membership's share be "simple".
8)Provides that, in any lawsuit against the board of directors
or the members for not complying with statutes that apply to a
limited-equity housing cooperative, housing cooperative trust,
or workforce housing cooperative trust, the plaintiff will be
awarded all attorneys fees and damages.
9)Prohibits a limited-equity housing cooperative, housing
cooperative trust, or workforce housing cooperative trust that
uses public funds from using any corporate funds to avoid
complying with state law or to pursue dissolution if the
intent or outcome is for some or all of the members to occupy
their units upon dissolution.
10) Prohibits members or the board of directors of a
limited-equity housing cooperative, housing cooperative trust,
or workforce housing cooperative trust from occupying units in
fee simple or as a rental once the trust has been dissolved.
11) Defines "workforce housing cooperative trust" as an
organization that meets the requirements of a limited-equity
housing cooperative in the Community Redevelopment Law (Health
& Safety Code section 33007.5) and complies with ALL of the
following:
a) Allows the governing board to be composed of two classes
of board members as follows:
i) One class is elected by the residents; and
ii) One class is appointed by sponsor
organizations including employer and employee
organizations, chambers of commerce, government entities,
unions, religious organizations, nonprofit organization,
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cooperative organizations, and other forms of
organizations.
b) Requires resident members to elect a majority of the
board members;
c) Allows sponsor organizations to appoint up to one less
than a majority of the board members;
d) Requires the numerical composition and class of the
sponsor and resident board members to be set in the
articles of incorporation and in the bylaws;
e) Requires the charter board of a workforce housing
cooperative trust to be made up only of sponsor board
members who will remain in place for the first three years
after the first resident occupancy;
f) Requires resident members to elect a majority of the
board members after three years of occupancy;
g) Prohibits the removal of the appointees of a sponsor
organization except for cause;
h) Allows for the issuance of separate classes of shares to
sponsor organizations that will be known as "workforce
housing shares" and may receive a rate of return of no more
than 10% simple interest pursuant to the articles of
incorporation or bylaws;
i) Provides a sponsor organization of a workforce housing
cooperative trust is entitled to perfect a security
interest in a cooperative interest or in sponsor shares it
has funded;
j) Requires the affirmative vote of at least a majority of
the resident-owner members of the shareholders and a
majority of each class of board members to amend the bylaws
and articles of incorporation;
aa) Provides the rights of the sponsor board members or the
sponsor may not be changed without the affirmative vote of
two-thirds of the sponsor board members;
bb) Provides that members of the board of directors shall
only be removed for cause;
cc) Provides that a workforce housing cooperative trust
shall be entitled to operate at multiple locations in order
to sponsor limited-equity housing cooperatives;
dd) Provides that a workforce housing cooperative trust may
either own or lease land for the purpose of developing a
limited-equity housing cooperative; and
ee) Allows a workforce housing cooperative trust to be
created when at least 51% of the occupied units in a
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multifamily property that is foreclosed support efforts to
buy the building or property.
12) Establishes the following procedure for dissolving a
limited-equity housing cooperative, housing cooperative trust,
or workforce housing cooperative trust:
a) Requires a public hearing conducted by the county in
which the limited-equity housing cooperative, housing
cooperative trust, or workforce housing cooperative trust
is located and paid for by the cooperative or trust that is
dissolving;
b) Requires the county to provide notice to all interested
parties at least 120 days prior to the date of the hearing;
c) Requires the notice to be mailed first-class, postage
prepaid, to all limited-equity housing cooperatives and
cooperative development organizations in the state in an
effort to create a merger with an existing limited-equity
housing cooperative;
d) Requires, to the extent possible, that any merger of a
dissolving cooperative or trust be with the geographically
closest cooperative or trust;
e) Provides that if a dissolving cooperative or trust does
not merge with an existing cooperative or trust, both of
the following must occur:
i) The public hearing process must ensure that any
dissolution plan is free of private inurement and meets
the requirements of state and federal law; and
ii) Any dissolved housing units held by the trust
or cooperative are made available through a public
lottery supervised by the county in which the cooperative
or trust is located.
f) Provides that any sponsor organization of a workforce
housing cooperative trust has the legal standing of a
member unless it revokes its sponsorship in writing;
g) Provides in any action taken against a board of
directors and its members based upon a breach of corporate
or fiduciary duties or a failure to comply with statutes
that apply to cooperatives or trusts, the prevailing party
will be awarded compensatory and punitive damages and
attorneys fees.
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EXISTING LAW :
1)Defines a "limited-equity housing cooperative" as a
corporation organized on a cooperative basis that meets ALL of
the following criteria (a through e):
a) The corporation is ANY of the following:
i) Organized as a nonprofit public benefit corporation;
ii) Holds title to real property as the beneficiary of a
trust providing for distribution for public or charitable
purpose upon termination of the trust;
iii) Holds a title to real property subject to conditions
that will result in reversion to a public or charitable
entity upon dissolution of the corporation;
iv) Holds a leasehold interest, of at least 20
years duration conditioned on the corporation's continued
qualification as a limited-equity cooperative and
providing for reversion to a public entity or a
charitable corporation;
b) Its articles of incorporation or bylaws require that the
purchase price and sale of the stock or membership interest
of the resident owners is no more than the "transfer value"
as determined by the bylaws and must not exceed the
aggregate of the following:
i) The amount paid for the membership or shares by
the first occupant of the unit involved, as shown in the
books of the corporation;
ii) The value of any improvements as determined by
the board of directors installed at the expense of the
member with prior approval of the board of directors; and
iii) The accumulated interest or inflation
allowance at a rate, which may be based on a
cost-of-living index, an income index, or market-interest
index, but shall not exceed a 10% annual increase on the
membership share by the first occupant of the unit.
c) Its articles of incorporation or bylaws require the
board of directors to sell the stock or membership interest
to a new member or resident shareholder at a price that
does not exceed the "transfer value" as described above;
d) Its "corporate equity," defined as the excess of the
current fair market value of the corporation's real
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property over the sum of the current transfer values of all
shares or membership interests, reduced by the principal
balance of the outstanding encumbrances upon the corporate
real property, is applied as follows:
i) The corporate equity must not be distributed to
members if any encumbrances remain outstanding except for
the following purposes and only as authorized by the
board of directors as provided by the limitations of the
articles of incorporation or bylaws:
(1) for the benefit of the corporation or
improvement of the property;
(2) for the corporation to acquire additional
property; and
(3) for public benefit or charitable purposes.
ii) Requires upon the sale of the property,
dissolution of the corporation, termination of the trust
or reverse of the title to the real property the
"corporate equity" is required by the articles, bylaws,
or trust or title to be paid out, or the title to the
property transferred, subject to any encumbrances and
liens for the transfer value or membership interest, to
use for the public or charitable purpose.
e) Amendment of the bylaws and articles of incorporation
requires an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the
resident-owners members or shareholders. (Health & Safety
Code section 33007.5).
2)Provides that a limited-equity housing cooperative is exempt
from the Subdivided Lands law (Business & Professions Code
section 11000 et seq.) if the cooperative complies with ALL of
the following conditions:
a) A public entity (as specified) directly finances or
subsidizes at least 50% of the total construction or
development cost, or $100,000, whichever is less, of the
limited-equity housing cooperative, or the real property on
which the limited-equity housing cooperative will be
located was sold by the Department of Transportation (or
other state agency or school district) for the development
of a limited-equity housing cooperative and has a
regulatory agreement approved by the Department of Housing
and Community Development (HCD) for the term of the
permanent financing;
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b) No more than 20% of the total development cost of a
limited-equity mobilehome park and no more than 10% of the
total development cost of other limited-equity housing
cooperatives is provided by the members;
c) A regulatory agreement for at least the term of the
permanent financing or subsidy is duly executed between the
recipients of the financing and either a federal or state
agency as specified or a local public agency providing the
financing under a regulatory agreement that meets HCD's
standards and that provides at least all of the following:
i) Assurances for completion of the common areas and
facilities to be owned or leased by the limited-equity
housing cooperative are in writing unless a construction
agreement contains these assurances;
ii) Governing instruments for the organization and
operation of the cooperative by its members;
iii) There is on going fiscal management of the
cooperative;
iv) Membership information is distributed to any
perspective purchaser prior to purchase;
d) The federal, state or local public agency that executes
a regulatory agreement must be satisfied with the governing
documents of a limited-equity housing cooperative and other
agreements as specified; and
e) Any federal or state agency that is providing a subsidy
to the limited-equity housing cooperative must receive a
legal opinion that the cooperative meets all the exemption
requirements. (Business & Professions Code section
11003.4(b).)
3)Permits a limited-equity cooperative that meets all the
exemptions to choose to comply with the Subdivided Lands law
(Business & Professions Code section 11000 et seq.).
(Business & Professions Code section 1103.4(c).)
4)Requires the developer of the cooperative, if claiming an
exemption to the Subdivided Lands law, to notify Department of
Real Estate (DRE) on a form provided by DRE and which DRE will
keep for four years. (Business & Profession Code section
11003.4(d).)
COMMENTS : The author states, "This non-controversial bill
expands current law to create new opportunities for low- and
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moderate-income workforce housing." This bill is intended to
address two overriding interests. First, this bill will provide
clarity to sponsors and members of workforce housing cooperative
trusts and housing cooperative trusts. By providing clarity to
sponsors as to their legal rights in such cooperative trusts,
sponsors will be encouraged to provide funding that is essential
for these affordable housing cooperatives. Second, this bill
will require transparency when cooperatives that have received
public funding are being dissolved. Existing law allows
limited-equity housing cooperatives to dissolve in the same
manner as a private corporation, even when they have received
public funds. This bill would instead require cooperatives that
were funded in part by public subsidies to conduct their
dissolution process in a more public fashion, through a public
hearing, providing notice to other cooperatives, and allowing a
public lottery for dissolved units.
Background . A "limited-equity housing cooperative"
(cooperative) is a corporation that is organized as a nonprofit
public benefit corporation, and that holds title to real
property for the benefit of a trust. Cooperatives are made up
of members who own stock in the corporation. Cooperatives
usually receive public financing from a federal, state, or local
public agency. The public financing comes with a regulatory
agreement. The regulatory agreement must at the least provide
the following assurances: for the completion of the common area,
that the cooperative have governing documents, that there is
ongoing fiscal management of the cooperative, and that
prospective members receive all specified disclosures. If a
cooperative meets certain requirements, such as that 50% of the
total construction is financed by a public agency, then DRE can
grant it an exemption from the Subdivided Lands law (Business &
Professions Code section 11000 et seq.).
Members of a cooperative receive a variety of benefits,
including personal income tax deductions, lower turnover rates,
lower real estate tax assessments (in some areas), controlled
maintenance costs, and resident participation and control.
Rather than making a mortgage payment each month, each member
pays his or her share of the total operating costs of the
corporation. By design, the transfer value of an owner's
membership in the cooperative is limited in order to keep the
housing affordable. The transfer value of a membership must be
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defined in the articles of incorporation or bylaws of the
cooperative and are further limited by state law. The transfer
value of a member's share is the aggregate of the amount the
first occupant paid for the share, the value of any improvements
made by the member (and that were approved by the board of
directors) to the share, and the accumulated interest on the
share (not to exceed a 10% annual increase on the amount
originally paid for the share).
Purpose of this bill . According to the author, the existing law
authorizing limited-equity housing cooperatives was created 30
years ago, but since then the demand for affordable and
conveniently located housing has changed. Existing law has also
not kept up with changes in public and private finance
opportunities in the marketplace for limited-equity housing
cooperatives. The supply of entry-level affordable housing is
far below demand for low- to moderate-income working
Californians. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) reports that 12 million renter and homeowner
households pay more than 50% of their annual income for housing.
More than 1.2 million families of all income levels live in
homes owned and operated through cooperative associations.
Cooperative members own a share in a corporation that owns or
controls the buildings and or property in which they live. Each
shareholder is entitled to occupy a specific unit and has a vote
in the corporation. Every month, shareholders pay an amount
that covers their proportionate share of the expenses of
operating the entire cooperative, which typically includes
underlying mortgage payments, property taxes, management,
maintenance, insurance, utilities, and contributions to reserve
funds.
Housing cooperatives can be townhouses, apartments,
single-family homes, student housing, senior housing, or
mobilehome parks. Limited-equity cooperatives limit the resale
value of shares and are generally targeted at low- and
moderate-income people whose income is 80% to 120% of the area's
median income. The purposes of the limited-equity cooperative
structure are: to prevent speculation, encourage long-term
residency, and preserve the affordable character of the
cooperative for future residents.
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By providing clarity to sponsors who help to fund workforce
housing cooperatives, this bill will encourage investment in
affordable housing that is lacking and in great demand in
California.
Workforce housing cooperative . AB 1246 would authorize a new
type of cooperative housing, the "workforce housing trust." A
sponsor group, most likely an employer or employee group, would
be authorized to bring equity, fund or lease land, and
permanently protect the assets of the affordable housing units
that will meet workers' needs. According to the sponsor, under
one possible scenario, "A company, city or school district has
or obtains land and leases it to the cooperative for 99 years.
The cooperative builds a multifamily community on site. The
leasing entity then reserves the right for its employees to have
a priority on the waiting list for all or at least some of the
units. Initially, the leasing entity could have first
preference given its own employees and make any remaining units
available to the public." Under another potential scenario,
"Either a single entity or a group, employers, unions or public
agencies could jointly sponsor a workforce housing cooperative.
Each single entity could agree to sponsor a set number of units
in a cooperative. For example, each entity could pledge $20,000
to sponsor a unit for which it retains reservation rights for
its own employees or union members. If the sponsor lacks
employees or union members to fill, the unit, the cooperative
could fill it from a waiting list. When a unit turns over, the
sponsor who had not taken their share of sponsor units could be
given first priority on the waiting list. Sponsors also could
provide their employees or union members with the $5,000 down
payment."
This bill proposes to distinguish a workforce housing trust from
a limited-equity housing cooperative by the membership of the
corporation. As proposed, the governing board of the workforce
housing cooperative would be made up of two classes of sponsors.
One class would be elected by the residents. The other class
would be made up of the sponsor organization, which could be an
employer, union, religious organization, government entity, or
nonprofit organization. The board members elected by the
sponsor organization would only be appointed for three years,
after which the residents would elect a majority of the members.
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In order to amend the bylaws, both a majority vote of the
resident-members of the cooperative and a majority of the
sponsor organization would be needed.
According to the sponsor, Associated Cooperatives, Inc.,
workforce housing cooperatives offer the following advantages,
including the following:
1)They are easier to move into and out of;
2)A waitlist of buyers alleviates the expense of marketing empty
units;
3)Employees can transfer from one unit to another easily as
family size changes;
4)Workforce employees get to enter for the first time into a
form of home ownership;
5)Down payments are low, and there are no closing costs and
minimal paperwork;
6)Residents need not qualify for a mortgage, only for paying
monthly charges;
7)The units are maintained by the cooperative;
8)Cooperative homes becomes less expensive over time relative to
the home sale market;
9)Cooperative homes provide the same tax benefits as
conventional home ownership;
10) Cooperatives need only one subsidy for the life of the
unit-once subsidized, the cooperative is affordable forever
without further subsidy; and
11) The savings in a cooperative unit always stay in town;
"Limited-equity housing cooperative" vs. "housing cooperative
trust" . The sponsor states that the addition of the term
"housing cooperative trust" to the existing law will allow
members of limited-equity housing cooperatives some flexibility
in the terms that they use to describe their entities. This is
to be distinguished from the "workforce housing cooperative
trust" described above, which is in fact a different type of
housing cooperative trust (and must meet both the definition of
a limited-equity housing cooperative as well as additional
criteria, as specified above). All three types of
entities-limited-equity housing cooperatives, housing
cooperative trusts, and workforce housing cooperative
trusts-would be subject to the same exemptions from the
Subdivided Lands law, and to the same dissolution requirements,
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if they received public subsidies. A workforce housing
cooperative trust is different, however, because it would be
defined using additional criteria, including: allows its
governing board to be composed of two classes of board members
(one class elected by the residents, one class appointed by
sponsor organizations), requires resident members to elect a
majority of the board members, protecting the rights of sponsor
board members, and so forth. (See point (11) under discussion
of the provisions of this bill, at page 3 above.)
Dissolving a limited-equity housing cooperative . Existing law
specifies that the corporate equity of a limited-equity housing
cooperative may not be distributed to the members, except to
make improvements to the property, to acquire more property, or
for public benefit or charitable purposes. Any distribution
must be approved by the board of directors and is subject to any
limitations included in the bylaws. Existing law specifies that
if the property is sold or the corporation is dissolved, the
corporate equity minus the transfer value of the membership
interest or shares must be used for public or charitable
purposes.
Under existing law, in order to dissolve a nonprofit
corporation, a majority of the directors in office must sign a
certificate of dissolution and file it with the Attorney
General's (AG) Office. The statement must verify that the
corporation has been completely wound up, all known debts and
liabilities have actually been paid or adequately provided for,
all known assets have been distributed to the persons entitled
to them, and the corporation is dissolved. Prior to filing a
certificate of dissolution with the AG's Office a non-profit
corporation must also file a certificate of satisfaction with
the Franchise Tax Board verifying that all taxes have been paid
or secured.
AB 1246 would establish a new procedure for dissolving a
limited-equity housing cooperative, workforce housing
cooperative, or housing cooperative. The procedure would
require a public hearing conducted by the county in which the
cooperative is located, and paid for by the dissolving
cooperative. The county would be required to notify all
interested parties, including all other limited-equity housing
cooperatives and limited-equity cooperative organizations in the
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state who might be interested in merging with the dissolving
cooperative. If the dissolving cooperative does not merge with
an existing cooperative, any dissolving units held by the
cooperative must be made available to the public by a lottery
supervised by the county.
The rationale behind a public dissolution process is that
cooperatives are created for public benefit and are usually
financed using public funds, therefore there should be a public
process and more oversight for their dissolution. Additionally,
this process would eliminate the potential for the equity in the
cooperative to be disproportionately transferred to particular
members of the cooperative as a result of dissolution.
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : Supporter California Center for
Cooperative Development (CCCD) states, "This initiative will
expand home ownership opportunities for workgroups like
teachers, firefighters, and others whose incomes significantly
limit their ability to purchase a home. Communities and the
environment will benefit because it will encourage retention of
valuable employees and allow the employees to reside in their
community of employment." CCCD further states, "The cooperative
housing in this bill has important provisions that retain the
affordability for subsequent buyers and assure that the
development created is owner occupied. These aspects assure
[that] the development will remain true to its intended
purpose."
Supporter National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA)
represents 29,000 U.S. cooperatives and their 120 million
members, from all sectors of the economy, including agriculture,
housing, bioenergy, credit, electric, and purchasing. NCBA
states, "There is a great need in California for affordable
housing and AB 1246 will give people more tools to find
community solutions to the housing challenge. This legislation
is a model for other States that are concerned about providing
housing for their citizens. Housing cooperatives are a great
model for people helping themselves and building communities
that can provide a wide variety of services."
Supporter Nehemiah Community Reinvestment Fund (NCRF) states,
"The more ownership tools Californian's [sic] have in this
economic climate, the more opportunities we have to help people
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with their housing needs?. California limited equity housing
cooperatives have an excellent record of offering low-wealth
families, indeed all families, with an alternative form of
homeownership for many types of dwellings including single
family homes, multi-family housing and mobile home parks."
EARLIER CONCERNS BY OPPOSITION APPEAR TO BE ADDRESSED IN RECENT
HOUSING COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS: Walnut House Cooperative (WHC), a
limited-equity housing cooperative, had earlier opposed a prior
version of the bill because it specified that the interest
computation on the transfer value of a share must be based on a
simple interest computation. WHC's bylaws apparently require
WHC to do their computation based on compound interest, and WHC
did not want to be forced to amend their bylaws. The author
addressed this concern by amending the bill to allow
cooperatives to use compound interest if specified in their
bylaws.
WHC also had expressed concern about the prior dissolution
procedure in the bill because WHC worried that members have
certain rights if a limited-equity housing cooperatives
dissolves and the bill might have inadvertently taken away those
rights and imposed some new duties. WHC recommended that the
dissolution procedure only apply to newly formed cooperatives.
The author also addressed this concern by WHC by deleting the
retroactivity provision from the bill, so the requirements only
apply to newly formed cooperatives.
Author's Amendment : To address a final concern raised
previously by WHC, the author is proposing that the bill be
amended in Committee to apply the public hearing requirements
only to cooperatives that have received public subsidies.
Related Legislation : AB 33 (Nava) 2009: Abolishes the position
of Real Estate Commissioner and replaces it with the Financial
Services Commissioner. This Commissioner would be responsibly
for enforcement of the statutes relating to limited-equity
housing cooperatives. Currently in the Assembly Appropriations
Committee.
AB 2052 (Haynes) 2006: California New Market Venture Capital
Program Act. Declared the intent of the Legislature to
facilitate free market growth in low-income neighborhoods and
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close inter-generational wealth gaps among economically
disadvantaged groups, by creating jobs, growing small
businesses, building affordable housing, and revitalizing
low-income neighborhoods. Died in Assembly Comm. on Jobs,
Economic Development, & Economy.
AB 2511 (Jones), Chapter 888 of 2006: Land use: Housing. Made a
number of changes to state law to promote the development of
affordable housing and prevent delays in processing applications
for development projects that include a housing element.
SB 619 (Ducheny), Chapter 793 of 2003: Housing. Made several
changes to laws related to the development of affordable housing
by seeking to streamline the housing approval process and to
authorize awards of attorney's fees and costs to prevailing
parties in actions against local governments for alleged failure
to comply with affordable housing requirements. Prohibited
discrimination against multifamily housing in zones designated
for multifamily housing. Specified required procedures by the
Department of Housing and Community Development; required
multifamily residential housing to be permitted on any parcel
zoned for multifamily housing if specifications are met;
clarified the term and requirements of "mixed use" land; and
clarified the criteria for awarding and administering CalHome
funds.
AB 369 (Dutra), Chapter 237 of 2001: Affordable housing
development projects: Attorney's fees. Authorized a court,
when it finds that a local agency disapproved or conditioned a
project rendering it infeasible for the development of housing
for very low-, low-, or moderate-income households without
making findings supporting its decision as required, to award
attorney's fees and costs of suit, except under extraordinary
circumstances where the court finds that awarding fees would not
further the purposes of the statute.
AB 2786 (Bates): Escheated funds: Affordable housing for
elderly persons. Would have required that all unclaimed money,
including unclaimed money from a deceased person's estate that
is currently escheated to the state, be instead deposited in the
Housing Rehabilitation Loan Fund. The fund would have been used
for the construction, rehabilitation, or acquisition and
rehabilitation of multifamily rental housing developments for
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elderly persons or households. Status: Vetoed.
REGISTERED SUPPORT/OPPOSITION :
Support
Associated Cooperatives, Inc. (sponsor)
Burbank Housing Development Corporation, Santa Rosa
California Center for Cooperative Development, Davis
City of Sacramento
Mogavero Notestine Associates, Architects and Planners,
Sacramento
National Cooperative Business Association
Nehemiah Community Reinvestment Fund, Inc.
One individual, Pasadena
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Drew Liebert and Rachel Anderson / JUD. /
(916) 319-2334