Rep. Andrew Gray pitches five optional municipal tax exemptions to spur affordable housing

Representative Andrew Gray told the Senate Community and Regional Affairs Committee that House Bill 13 offers municipalities a menu of five optional property‑tax exemptions intended to increase long‑term housing supply and ease housing costs.

"House Bill 13 offers 5 different optional property tax exemptions," Gray said, describing options that would incentivize converting short‑term rentals to long‑term units, reward mobile‑home‑park owners who invest in infrastructure, provide exemptions for landlords who rent to lower‑income families, give relief to first‑time homebuyers and confine exemptions to owner‑occupied residential properties.

Gray said the measures are optional and designed to let local governments tailor relief to local conditions. He cited Anchorage figures, saying the average single‑family home price in Anchorage is over $524,000 (2024 data) and that many Alaskans are cost‑burdened. During committee questioning, members sought clarity on how "low income" and the bill’s 30% cost‑burden threshold would be defined and calculated.

Kyle Johansen, staff to the sponsor, told the committee the bill relies on a federal statutory definition of low income — families with incomes not exceeding 80% of area median income — and that staff would provide the precise citation to members.

Invited testimony supported the bill. James Devons of Valdez, a founding member of his city’s housing committee and a longtime Valdez council member, said HB 13 would help prevent costly homelessness and stabilize workforce housing: "Every short term rental that's converted to long term use ... represents 1 less household that's at risk of becoming homeless," he told the panel.

Erin Baldwin Day of the Anchorage Assembly said HB 13 would be timely for Anchorage neighborhoods: she flagged a mobile‑home park in her Midtown district slated to close within two years and said the bill's incentive for mobile‑home‑park investment would help preserve housing for roughly 35 families likely to be displaced.

Committee members did not take a vote on HB 13 during this hearing; sponsors and witnesses said they will return with staff‑sourced clarifications (including the precise federal citation for the low‑income definition) and data requested by members.

Note on testimony inconsistency: during testimony, James Devons referenced a figure he said Representative Gray had mentioned ("about $124,000"); Representative Gray's earlier remark in the same hearing cited an Anchorage average single‑family price of over $524,000 (2024). The transcript contains both figures; the committee requested staff follow‑up on data and citations.