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Friday, January 24, 2014

CM McDuffie's affordable housing legislation and McMillan

Ward 5 Councilmember McDuffie has introduced some affordable housing legislation.  I asked Stephanie Liotta-Atkinson of the councilmember's office how this legislation might impact the housing component of the McMillan Sand Filtration site development project.  



Hi Scott,
                        
The Housing Production Trust Fund Supplemental Funding Act of 2014 is not designed to target any single project. The legislation is broadly designed to supplement the funding of the Housing Production Trust Fund, which can be used by developers (non-profit and for-profit) to supplement the development costs of building affordable housing, which may impact any project where the developer decides to apply for HPTF funds.
                                                           
The District is becoming increasingly unaffordable, with housing costs rising faster than wages over the past decade. As a member of the Council, Kenyan has used his legislative portfolio to aggressively pursue an affordable housing agenda. This is his third bill on affordable housing – all of which are designed to improve the affordability of the District as a whole. Summaries of the Truth in Affordability Reporting Act of 2013 and the Disposition of District Land Amendment Act of 2013 are available on the office website, as well as summaries of most legislation and community updates.
      
Best,
           
Stephanie
                         
Stephanie Liotta-Atkinson, Esq.
Legislative and Communications Director
Office of Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie, Ward 5
Chairman Pro Tempore
Chair, Committee on Government Operations
Council of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Ste. 506
Washington, DC 20004
202.724.8918 (direct)
202.297.0152 (mobile)
Please visit www.kenyanmcduffie.com for the latest updates from Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie.

Here is the original message:

From: sla_dccouncil@yahoo.com
Date: Thu, 23 Jan 2014 15:18:58 -0800
Subject: [WARD5] Reposting: McDuffie Introduces Bill to Boost Funding for Affordable Housing

Apologies for any inconvenience. Reposting this message.
For Immediate Release: Thursday, January 23, 2014
Contact: Stephanie Liotta-Atkinson, 202-297-0152, satkinson@dccouncil.us
                          

McDuffie Introduces Bill to Boost Funding for Affordable Housing


Washington, DC – Today, DC Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie (D-Ward 5) introduced legislation requiring one-quarter of the District’s unreserved surplus funds to be dedicated to the Housing Production Trust Fund. The Trust Fund provides financial assistance to non-profit and for-profit housing developers for the production of housing units for low-income residents. 
                  
“The Housing Production Trust Fund is a critical tool at the District government’s disposal to address rising housing costs,” stated McDuffie. “For over a decade, the city has been losing affordable units to the market, which is leading to the displacement of low and moderate income residents. We can reverse this trend by funding the production of additional affordable units which will help preserve economic diversity in the city.”
Members of the city’s Comprehensive Housing Strategy Task Force recommend building 1,000 new units of affordable housing annually to meet the demand for affordable housing in the city. With a public subsidy of approximately $100,000 per unit, it is estimated that the city needs to dedicate approximately $100 million per year to the Trust Fund to meet the goal of producing 10,000 units of affordable housing over the next decade.
               
A portion of the District’s deed recordation and transfer taxes are dedicated to the Trust Fund and typically yield about $50 million annually. However, the Washington Business Journal last week reported that revenue from the sale and transfer of real property is expected to fall 10.8 percent from last year, or nearly $40 million in fiscal year 2014.
         
“We have an opportunity to make a significant investment in the production and preservation of affordable housing,” stated McDuffie. “Dedicating 25 percent of the District’s unreserved surplus funds on top of deed recordation and transfer taxes is timely, given the declining revenue estimates for deed and transfer tax revenue and the likelihood that the city will see rising surpluses in the coming years.”
                  
The bill was co-introduced by Councilmembers Jack Evans and Muriel Bowser and referred to the Council’s Committee of the Whole.
                                     
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Stay in touch with Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie. Here's how: http://www.kenyanmcduffie.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Stay-in-Touch-with-Kenyan-McDuffie.pdf


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