STAND. COM. REP. NO. 191

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 903

Honorable Shan S. Tsutsui

President of the Senate

Twenty-Sixth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2011

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Water, Land, and Housing, to which was referred S.B. No. 903 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOUSING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to establish the Affordable Rental Housing Development Program to encourage and allow nonprofit organizations to acquire expiring United States Department of Housing and Urban Development or United States Department of Agriculture housing contracts in order to ensure that affordable rental housing projects remain affordable rental housing in perpetuity.

     Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from Catholic Charities Hawai‘i.  Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation.

     Your Committee finds that although the federal government helps support the production of affordable rental housing by providing subsidies to private owners of multifamily housing, the contracts to provide these subsidies expire over time and affordable housing is not permanently assured.  Your Committee finds that this measure helps ensure the affordability of housing for qualified Hawaii residents.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water, Land, and Housing that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 903 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water, Land, and Housing,

____________________________

DONOVAN M. DELA CRUZ, Chair