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Committee votes to ITL HB 465, citing measurement and implementation problems
Summary
The committee voted 16-0 to recommend ITL (Inexpedient To Legislate) on HB 465, a housing opportunity zone proposal. Representative Howland argued the bill’s definitions and rent-calculation method are confusing and would be difficult for municipalities to apply.
The House Housing Committee voted 16-0 to recommend ITL for HB 465, a bill concerning a housing opportunity zone program, after lawmakers said the bill’s wording would be difficult to implement.
Representative Howland moved to ITL and explained technical problems with the bill’s approach to defining affordable rent. Howland described the common HUD-based method for workforce housing: calculate 80% of area median income for a household, then cap rent at no more than 30% of that 80 percent. She told the committee that converting HUD income tables into unit rents is cumbersome and that the bill “doesn’t actually fix that.” Howland said she has filed an alternative, broader measure (referred to in the hearing as a 79e filing) that she believes would address the problem.
A second motion to ITL was recorded and the roll-call vote resulted in a 16-0 tally in favor of ITL; the committee placed the recommendation on the consent calendar. No amendments were adopted. Howland characterized ITL as the preferable path so the committee can “start over” with a clearer statutory approach.
The committee did not adopt a new definition of eligible units or a funding mechanism during the work session; attendees noted the need for clearer drafting and for stakeholder input before reintroducing statutory language.
