Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-First State Legislature

Regular Session of 2001

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing, to which was referred H.B. No. 545 entitled:

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to authorize the issuance of $30,000,000 in revenue bonds to be deposited into the rental housing trust fund (fund).

Testimony in support of the measure was received from the Housing and Community Development Corporation of Hawaii, Rental Housing Trust Fund Advisory Commission, Special Assistant to the Governor for Housing, Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women, City and County of Honolulu, Catholic Charities, Hawaii Catholic Conference, Affordable Housing and Homeless Alliance, The Institute for Human Services, Kalihi-Palama Health Center, Building Industry Association – Hawaii, American Friends Service Committee, The Salvation Army Family Services Office, and Women's Legislative Caucus.

The Rental Housing Trust Fund (Fund) provides loans or grants for the pre-development, development, construction, acquisition, preservation, and substantial rehabilitation of rental housing units that provide housing for individuals and families with incomes at or below sixty per cent of the median income. Since its establishment, the Fund has helped to develop over seventeen hundred affordable rental units.

Your Committee finds that eleven thousand affordable rental units will be needed over the next five years. In order to address this need, this measure authorizes the HCDCH to issue up to thirty million dollars in revenue bonds to fund the Fund.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 545 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.