Legislative Policies for the 2005 Legislative Session

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i j The Consolidated Plan lists hr t ee top pr~or~ty acttvrties: a) mcreasmg the rental supply of 3. HOUSING IMPACT STATEMENT permanent affordable housing; b) enhancing shelter support services for homeless households; and c) increasing the supply of transitional and permanent housing for specialized populations. I The City of Eugene will oppose legislation to impose a requirement that local I governments prepare a housing impact statement for municipal land use ordinances. The The cities of Eugene and Springfield and Lane County address ]ow-income housing needs ~ land use laws require that all statewide goals be addressed when developing rules and through an intergovernmental Housing Policy Board whose primary focus is to develop additional ordinances. Requiring impact statements creates unnecessary bureaucratic delay and housing for very-low-income families. The City also supports broadening the eligibility gives priority to housing over other land use goals. requirements for housing assistance so that families between 40 and 80 percent of the area's median income will be able to qualify for some assistance. In Lane County, the median income ~ Eugene is committed to investigating barriers to affordable housing and to recommending for a family of three is $48,900; 80 percent of the median income is $39,100 (low-income); and ' ways to mitigate or remove City ordinances or policies that add to the cost of housing. 50 percent of median is $24,450 (very-low-income). More than 25 percent of Eugene's 58,000 ~ The City has taken steps to remove many of these barriers, including expanding the ~ households are very low-income. When combined with Springfield, over 20,000 households ~ supply of vacant land zoned for medium-density housing, expanding the use of have incomes at or below 50 percent of the area median. manufactured homes and reducing parking requirements for low-income and senior housing. 1. HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AND SUPORT PROGRAMS 4. EXTEND MUPTE AND TRANSIT SUPPORTED TAX EXEMPTIONS The Housing Trust Fund, created by statute in 1991, was one of Oregon's more successful Extend legislative authorization for the New Multiple Unit Property Tax programs to increase the supply of affordable housing. The trust fund supported Exemption program and the Transit Supportive Residential and Mixed Use tax exemption programs ranging from the development of affordable housing to home ownership program. assistance and an Emergency Housing Account. Oregon Housing & Community Services (OHCS), along with affordable housing advocates, needs additional funding for affordable housing development through the trust fund, and for emergency housing and rental assistance. This would allow the Department to both increase the level of its C. LAND USE PLANNING AND GROWTH MANAGEMENT current services, as well as make additional investments in social service programs to support those who cannot afford .unsubsidized housing. The City supports the continued 1. BALLOT MEASURE 37 l NST COMPENSATION funding of the Housing Trust Fund (HTF). Particular sub-goals include: a) Support a funding goal of $50 million per biennium On November 2, 2004, Measure 37 was passed by the Oregon voters, requiring b) Expansion of the Elderly Rental Assistance (ERA) program to include more governments to "pay owners, or forego enforcement when certain land restrictions reduce low-income households property value." c) Renew the Oregon Affordable Housing Tax Credit for lenders The City of Eugene has had a legislative policy on just compensation for over a decade. 2. REMOVAL OF REGULATORY BARRIERS TO LOW-INCOME HOUSING The City has always supported -and continues to support -the constitutional requirement that property owners who have been deprived of all reasonable economic use The City of Eugene supports local efforts to make the siting, financing or development of of their property by government action should be compensated. The City has opposed low-income and affordable housing easier by streamlining systems, rules, codes and laws legislation and ballot measures that would require compensation if a land use decision that present regulatory barriers to that housing. The City will support State legislation ' deprives a property owner of only some, but not all or nearly all, reasonable economic that. encourages the development of low-income and affordable housing while use of the property. The City's opposition has been based on the importance of considering the interests of cities and their citizens. The City will support repeal of ORS regulations in implementing comprehensive planning and other policy decisions of the 197.309 which prohibits local jurisdictions from requiring affordable housing as a council and on the innumerable benefits of these regulations in providing certainty and condition of development approval ("inclusionary zoning"). The city also supports protection for property owners, developers and neighbors. While some argue that the efforts to prohibit insurance companies from either denying insurance coverage to most basic land use regulations are "takings," others argue that they are "givings" and housing because it has public financing or increasing its premiums for such coverage. that the emphasis on reduction in value is both one-sided and short-sighted, City of Eugene Legislative Policies, 2005 Session 27 City of Eugene Legislative Policies, 2005 Session 28