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Committee reviews S.328 draft: Secretary of State resource, supportive-housing uses and universal design
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Summary
The committee considered Draft 2.1 of S.328, which would ask the Secretary of State to publish guidance on common-interest communities, expand one-time HCB appropriation uses to include housing for people eligible for Medicaid-funded developmental disability services, and add universal-design requirements to an off-site construction pilot and the 802 Homes catalog; members requested more precise definitions, cost analysis and stakeholder input before action.
Cameron, legislative counsel, walked the House Committee on General and Housing through Draft 2.1 of S.328 on April 14 and described several substantive additions being proposed for the bill.
One section would direct the Secretary of State to provide publicly available information about common-interest communities (for example, condominium and homeowner association governance) "on their website or otherwise disseminate" to the public. Counsel and members discussed whether that high-level statutory language is necessary or whether a recorded, nonstatutory commitment from the Secretary’s office would suffice; several members favored keeping the language to memorialize the commitment.
The draft also creates a service-supported housing advisory council and asks the initial report to propose populations to serve, specifically including individuals eligible for Medicaid-funded developmental disability services. Separately, the committee reviewed language asking the council to study a per-acre surcharge on lands enrolled in the use‑value appraisal program that include a secondary dwelling as a potential revenue source for targeted housing programs.
Committee counsel outlined an amendment to a prior fiscal-year appropriation that would permit previously appropriated HCB funds (a $10 million one-time allocation discussed in the bill) to be used for creating housing for people eligible for Medicaid-funded developmental disability services. Members discussed the mechanics — that appropriations language would need amendment and the appropriations committee typically consolidates such changes — and asked staff to coordinate with Appropriations and HCB officials.
Another substantial section would require universal-design elements in housing units funded through an off-site construction accelerator pilot and ask the Department of Housing and Community Development to incorporate universal-design elements into the "802 Homes" catalog. Members raised technical and cost questions: which universal-design elements are required, whether the requirement duplicates Department of Fire Safety work, whether universal-design standards should be listed in statute or developed by rule, and the potential price effects of specified elements (for example, wider doors or lower counters). Several members recommended tabling detailed enactment until Rep. Burrows could participate and asked counsel to return with a clearer definition and cost estimates.
The committee also scheduled field trips to Huntington Homes and other manufacturers to observe factory-built housing production, and it closed the day by confirming follow-up briefings and witnesses. No final votes were taken on S.328 language during the session.
