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Committee advances bill allowing churches to develop affordable housing on existing property amid tax and discrimination concerns
Summary
Senate Bill 59, with a committee substitute limiting eligibility to existing church property, cleared the committee after debate over tax exemption, local control and whether religious organizations could lawfully discriminate in housing.
Senator Jimmy Higdon introduced Senate Bill 59 and a committee substitute that narrows the proposal to development on "existing property," saying the change was intended to match the bill’s intent and avoid unintended expansion. "The committee sub adds is this it says on existing property," Higdon said.
Higdon described the bill as modeled on measures in other states that allow churches to build affordable housing on land they already own while still requiring local governing-body approval and compliance with building codes. He said "this is a part of a small piece of the solution" to a statewide housing shortage that the housing task force estimated at about 238,000 units.
Public comment at the committee included an objection from Destiny Kelly of Henry County. "When you couple this bill with HB 18, it, will essentially violate private property owners' rights as well as put discriminatory housing as our only housing option," Kelly said. She added that religious organizations can legally exclude tenants based on religious criteria and warned that multifamily units built by religious organizations would be tax-exempt, raising questions about who would pay for roads, bridges and emergency services.
Committee members debated taxes, local control and whether the measure would permit sale or rental housing; Higdon said the bill did not explicitly limit units to rentals. Several senators said local approval and planning processes would remain in place; Senator Funke Froehmeyer emphasized that local governing bodies would still review proposals and that the committee substitute narrows the bill’s scope.
The committee adopted the substitute and then voted to report SB 59 favorably. The clerk called the roll and the chair announced the bill "passes with favorable expression" by a vote recorded as 9–0. Senators who spoke during debate said the committee stage does not end the process and invited stakeholders to propose amendments as the bill moves forward.
The transcript shows no committee amendments beyond the substitute to restrict the authorization to "existing property." The bill will proceed to the Senate floor where further revisions are possible.
