Bill Text: NH SB638 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishing the New Hampshire housing and conservation planning program.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-02-13 - Refer to Interim Study, Motion Adopted, Voice Vote; 02/13/2020; Senate Journal 4 [SB638 Detail]
Download: New_Hampshire-2020-SB638-Introduced.html
SB 638-FN - AS INTRODUCED
2020 SESSION
20-3032
11/10
SENATE BILL 638-FN
AN ACT establishing the New Hampshire housing and conservation planning program.
SPONSORS: Sen. Fuller Clark, Dist 21; Rep. Spang, Straf. 6; Rep. Maggiore, Rock. 22; Rep. Grote, Rock. 24; Rep. Dolan, Rock. 5
COMMITTEE: Executive Departments and Administration
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ANALYSIS
This bill establishes a housing and conservation planning program in the office of strategic initiatives.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
20-3032
11/10
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty
AN ACT establishing the New Hampshire housing and conservation planning program.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Subdivision; Housing and Conservation Planning Program. Amend RSA 4-C by inserting after section 37 the following new subdivision:
Housing and Conservation Planning Program
4-C:38 Definitions. In this subdivision:
I. “Eligible applicant” means a single municipality or 2 or more municipalities applying together.
II. “Growth and development strategy” means a plan by a single municipality or 2 or more municipalities to guide community growth in a way that creates a balanced housing supply, including higher density and workforce housing opportunities, while preserving valuable natural resources and the community’s quality of life through efficient and compact development.
III. “Program” means the housing and conservation planning program.
IV. “Stage” means one of the 4 specific stages of developing and implementing a growth and development strategy to be funded through the housing and conservation planning program.
4-C:39 Housing and Conservation Planning Program Established. There is hereby established the housing and conservation planning program, which shall be administered by the office of strategic initiatives. The program shall provide technical assistance matching grants to municipalities to plan for growth and development in a manner that permits a balanced housing stock, including higher density and workforce housing opportunities, and promotes, whenever possible the reuse of existing buildings, including historic properties, while protecting communities’ natural resources through more efficient and compact development. Participation in the program is voluntary.
4-C:40 Program Administration; Eligible Applicants; Use of Program Funds.
I. Eligible applicants shall include:
(a) Municipalities; or
(b) A group of municipalities applying together to plan on a regional basis.
II. Awards of program funds may be used to purchase technical assistance from third-party technical assistance providers, including but not limited to regional planning commissions, to achieve the purposes of the program.
4-C:41 Program Administration; Eligible Technical Assistance.
I. The program shall award matching grants to fund technical assistance activities in the development and implementation of a growth and development strategy. The 4 specific stages of activities are as follows:
(a) Stage 1: Natural and Historic Resource and Housing Data Gathering and Analysis. This stage includes:
(1) Understanding and mapping housing, income, and demographic data, including housing market costs, housing units needed to meet future expected growth in a municipality and the region, and the affordability of a municipality’s housing for all income ranges.
(2) Mapping land use values, including conservation, soils, wetlands, working forests, farmlands, and other natural resources.
(3) Developing a build-out analysis of growth and development impacts on housing availability and natural resources.
(4) Mapping historic structures and buildings within communities.
(b) Stage 2: Development of the Growth and Development Strategy. This stage includes:
(1) Drafting and endorsing a growth and development strategy to guide future growth, including using land more efficiently and encouraging compact development and reuse of suitable historic and existing structures. The growth and development strategy would also identify specific areas to be conserved and to be developed.
(2) Engaging in a public process to develop the growth and development strategy.
(c) Stage 3: Integration of Growth and Development Strategy into the Master Plan. This stage includes:
(1) Auditing the existing master plan to identify portions that conflict with or pose a barrier to achieving the growth and development strategy.
(2) Rewriting or amending the master plan so that it can realistically implement the growth and development strategy.
(3) Adopting the revised master plan.
(d) Stage 4: Implementation into Regulatory Framework. This stage includes:
(1) Auditing existing municipal ordinances, including zoning, site-plan, and subdivision regulations, to identify conflicts with the growth and development strategy and the revised master plan.
(2) Rewriting and amending municipal ordinances, including zoning, site-plan, and subdivision regulations, to allow for the realistic implementation of growth and development strategy and the new master plan.
(3) Drafting and adopting new articles that incorporate new tools to accomplish the growth and development strategy, including transfer of development rights, density bonuses, cluster development, and inclusionary zoning.
(4) Adopting the needed amendments to municipal ordinances.
II. Each stage shall require that:
(a) Municipalities address housing and conservation together in an integrated manner.
(b) Municipalities engage in a communication and education process that will promote informed decision-making and communicate with and educate citizens regarding the work being undertaken in each stage of the process.
III. Municipalities may be awarded technical assistance for only one stage at a time but may apply and obtain funding for each successive stage. Funding for future stages shall require a demonstration that the previous stage was accomplished in a manner consistent with the principles of the program. Such a showing shall also result in a priority for additional funding.
IV. Municipalities’ initial applications for funding need not start with the first stage in the process. However, to begin with a later stage, an initial application shall demonstrate prior completion of the previous stage’s work in a manner consistent with the program principles.
4-C:42 Rulemaking Authority. Upon the effective date of this subdivision, the office of strategic initiatives shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, relative to operation of the housing and conservation planning program, including:
I. The application process.
II. The amount of matching funds required and permissible sources for matching funds.
III. Reporting requirements by municipalities.
IV. Scoring criteria for awarding grants that provide a priority for applications that address growth and development on a regional basis and provide opportunities for municipalities without professional planning staff to access the program.
4-C:43 Housing and Conservation Planning Program Advisory Board Established.
I. There is hereby established the housing and conservation planning program advisory board.
II. The advisory board shall review and comment on proposed rules and scoring criteria used by the office of strategic initiatives to evaluate applications for matching grants.
III. The advisory board shall consist of:
(a) One member of the senate, appointed by the senate president.
(b) Two members of the house of representatives, appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives.
(c) The commissioner of the department of natural and cultural resources, or designee.
(d) The commissioner of the department of business and economic affairs, or designee.
(e) The commissioner of the department of transportation, or designee.
(f) One member appointed by each of the following entities:
(1) The New Hampshire housing finance authority.
(2) The office of strategic initiatives.
(3) The current use board.
(4) The land and community heritage authority.
(5) The New Hampshire Municipal Association.
(6) The New Hampshire Association of Regional Planning Commission Executives.
(7) The Business and Industry Association of New Hampshire.
(8) The New Hampshire Community Loan Fund.
(9) The Home Builders and Remodelers Association of New Hampshire.
(10) The New Hampshire Preservation Alliance.
(11) The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.
IV. Members of the advisory board shall serve without compensation, except that legislative members of the board shall receive mileage at the legislative rate when attending to the duties of the board.
4-C:44 Program Principles. The program shall be guided by the following principles. Awards of technical assistance funding shall be based on consistency with these principles:
I. Consistency with smart growth principles in RSA 9-B:3.
II. Development of a comprehensive growth and development strategy through which a municipality integrates housing and conservation planning.
III. Identification of and planning for the full range of current and future housing needs for families of all income levels, as encouraged in RSA 672:1, III-e.
IV. Identification of natural and historic resource values and planning for their protection, as encouraged in RSA 36-A:2, including the preservation of working forests and farmlands as provided in RSA 672:1, III-b and III-c, and critical or sensitive natural areas and resources, including water resources as provided for in RSA 674:2, III(d).
V. Evaluating these conservation and housing issues on a community-wide, site-by-site, and regional basis.
VI. Understanding the interrelationship between natural resources and housing development in a municipality and the impact each has on the other.
VII. Encouragement of higher density, compact development and allowing for the infrastructure needed to support such development.
VIII. Encouragement of reuse of existing properties, especially historic structures.
IX. Integration of the growth and development strategy into the municipality’s master plan and implementation into regulatory structure.
X. Encouragement of community input and education of citizens about the growth and development strategy and the need to plan for future conservation and housing growth.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.
20-3032
12/24/19
SB 638-FN- FISCAL NOTE
AS INTRODUCED
AN ACT establishing the New Hampshire housing and conservation planning program.
FISCAL IMPACT: [ X ] State [ ] County [ ] Local [ ] None
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| Estimated Increase / (Decrease) | |||
STATE: | FY 2020 | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 |
Appropriation | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Revenue | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Expenditures | $0 | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase | Indeterminable Increase |
Funding Source: | [ X ] General [ ] Education [ ] Highway [ ] Other | |||
METHODOLOGY:
This bill establishes a housing and conservation planning program within the Office of Strategic Initiatives to provide technical assistance matching grants to municipalities to plan for growth and development in accordance with stated goals. Municipal participation in the program is voluntary. Municipalities may apply individually or collectively for awards of program funds to purchase technical assistance from third-party assistance providers, including regional planning programs. The Office of Strategic Initiatives indicates the administrative costs to operate the program, including the number of applicants, size and number of contracts that may need to be administered and available grant funding are unknown, therefore the fiscal impact is indeterminable.
AGENCIES CONTACTED:
Office of Strategic Initiatives
