Bill Text: HI HB2260 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating To Affordable Housing.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-27 - Referred to HSG/WLH, FIN, referral sheet 5 [HB2260 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2020-HB2260-Introduced.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
2260 |
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THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2020 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
relating to affordable housing.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature recognizes that Hawaii is experiencing a severe affordable housing crisis, with a lack of affordable rental and affordable for-sale units. According to the report "Measuring Housing Demand in Hawai'i, 2015-2025", published by the department of business, economic development, and tourism, the State is projected to require 64,693 additional housing units to meet housing demand by 2025. Nearly seventy per cent, or 43,828, of those units will be needed for low-income households earning eighty per cent or less of the area median income.
In response to this critical problem, the legislature enacted Act 127, Session Laws of Hawaii 2016, which established a goal of creating 22,500 new affordable rental units by 2026.
The legislature finds that removing certain regulatory requirements from the development of affordable housing will allow future affordable housing projects to be built more quickly and at a lower cost.
Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to exempt certain lower-density and lower-rise affordable housing projects from the State's land use district boundary amendment requirements.
SECTION 2. Section 205-3.1, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:
"§205-3.1 Amendments to district boundaries. (a) District boundary amendments involving lands in the conservation district, land areas greater than fifteen acres, or lands delineated as important agricultural lands shall be processed by the land use commission pursuant to section 205-4.
(b) Any department or agency of the State, and department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified may petition the appropriate county land use decision-making authority of the county in which the land is situated for a change in the boundary of a district involving lands less than fifteen acres presently in the rural and urban districts and lands less than fifteen acres in the agricultural district that are not designated as important agricultural lands.
(c) District boundary amendments involving land areas of fifteen acres or less, except as provided in subsection (b), shall be determined by the appropriate county land use decision-making authority for the district and shall not require consideration by the land use commission pursuant to section 205-4; provided that such boundary amendments and approved uses are consistent with this chapter. The appropriate county land use decision-making authority may consolidate proceedings to amend state land use district boundaries pursuant to this subsection, with county proceedings to amend the general plan, development plan, zoning of the affected land, or such other proceedings. Appropriate ordinances and rules to allow consolidation of such proceedings may be developed by the county land use decision-making authority.
(d) The county land use decision-making authority shall serve a copy of the application for a district boundary amendment to the land use commission and the department of business, economic development, and tourism and shall notify the commission and the department of the time and place of the hearing and the proposed amendments scheduled to be heard at the hearing. A change in the state land use district boundaries pursuant to this subsection shall become effective on the day designated by the county land use decision-making authority in its decision. Within sixty days of the effective date of any decision to amend state land use district boundaries by the county land use decision-making authority, the decision and the description and map of the affected property shall be transmitted to the land use commission and the department of business, economic development, and tourism by the county planning director.
(e) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary,
the development of a qualifying affordable housing project shall be exempt from
the boundary amendment requirements of this chapter; provided that an appropriate
agency of the county in which the project is proposed to be built certifies that
the project meets the requirements of this section.
(f) As used in this section, "qualifying affordable
housing project" means a project to construct new affordable housing that meets
all of the following requirements:
(1) At least:
(A)
per cent
of the units proposed to be built; or
(B)
of the total
units proposed to be built,
are affordable to households
having incomes at or below one hundred forty per cent of the area median income
as determined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development;
(2) No portion of any
structure proposed to be built as part of the project will exceed feet in
height;
(3) The floor area ratio
of the proposed development does not exceed ; and
(4) The county in which the project is proposed to be built certifies that the county's existing infrastructure can support the proposed development and no additional infrastructure needs to be constructed."
SECTION 3. Section 205-4, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
"(a) Any department or agency of the State, any
department or agency of the county in which the land is situated, or any person
with a property interest in the land sought to be reclassified, may petition
the land use commission for a change in the boundary of a district. This section applies to all petitions for
changes in district boundaries of lands within conservation districts, lands
designated or sought to be designated as important agricultural lands, and
lands greater than fifteen acres in the agricultural, rural, and urban districts,
except as provided in [section] sections 201H-38[.] and
205-3.1(e). The land use commission
shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 to implement section 201H-38."
SECTION 4. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.
SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
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INTRODUCED BY: |
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Report Title:
Affordable Housing; Land Use; Boundary Amendments; Exemption
Description:
Exempts certain
low-density affordable housing projects from the State's land use district
boundary amendment requirements.
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
