THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	82
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

requesting the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation and the Hawaii Public Housing Authority to Determine current information on affordable housing, review past data, and update projections for future needs.

     WHEREAS, in January 2006, the Joint Legislative Housing and Homeless Task Force, established pursuant to Act 196, Session Laws of Hawaii 2005, submitted its report on Hawaii's Housing and Homelessness Crisis; and

     WHEREAS, at that time, the Task Force noted that approximately thirty-two per cent of the State's more than 400,000 households pay in excess of thirty per cent of their income for shelter, with higher ratios for renters and for households that have resided in their units for less than six years; and

     WHEREAS, the Task Force Report further noted that low‑income households are particularly burdened by inadequate housing inventory and escalating rental costs, and the "affordability gap" is increasing over time; and

     WHEREAS, the Task Force projected that an estimated 44,190 new housing units (32,580 on Oahu alone) would be needed during the 2005-2009 period statewide to satisfy pent-up demand and anticipated new household formation, of which 21,890 units (15,590 on Oahu alone) are projected to be needed for households with less than eighty per cent of median income; and

     WHEREAS, in 2009, affordable housing remains in short supply, with Hawaii residents facing dual additional burdens of a declining economy and rising unemployment rates; and

     WHEREAS, affordable housing encompasses a range of prices, and the definition of "affordable housing" is to some extent dependent on the income of the buyer or renter; and

     WHEREAS, while information on income is available, an accurate affordable housing inventory is a rough estimate; and

     WHEREAS, Hawaii's affordable housing inventory includes federal and state housing, as well as rental, transitional, and for-sale units; and

     WHEREAS, meeting the demand of those who qualify for affordable housing depends on an accurate inventory of present needs, past trends, and short- and long-term future projections; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fifth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2009, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation and the Hawaii Public Housing Authority are requested to:

     (1)  Compile current information on federal, state, rental, transitional, and for-sale affordable housing on a county-by-county basis;

     (2)  Review affordable housing data for the past three years on a county-by-county basis;

     (3)  Review the results of the Joint Legislative Housing and Homeless Task Force Proposed Five-Year Plan to provide a substantial number of additional affordable housing units for working families and moderate-income families and the recommendations of the Task Force to accomplish this goal; and

     (4)  Review and update any projections for affordable housing needs, on a county-by-county basis through 2013; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation and the Hawaii Public Housing Authority are requested to report their findings and recommendations to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2010; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Executive Director of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation and the Executive Director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

HHFDC; HPHA; Affordable Housing Inventory; Report