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Council reviews preservation program changes tied to Senate Bill 51 and new program manual
Summary
Staff outlined a statutory preservation program following Senate Bill 51, proposed changes to preservation categories, new leverage expectations (with rural exceptions), cohort decision windows, and a timeline for draft manual and rules in May and finalization in July 2026.
Heather Gramp, the agency’s preservation strategy lead, briefed the council on updates to the preservation program in response to Senate Bill 51. Gramp said the agency is developing its first statutory preservation program manual and temporary rules and emphasized the need to stretch limited gap resources by tightening leverage expectations while maintaining exceptions for projects unlikely to attract private investors.
"We will be releasing a draft preservation program manual and temporary rules this month," Gramp said, and described three top‑line categories for prioritizing preservation: expiring affordability, federal project‑based rental assistance (PBRA), and physical condition issues (now clarified via capital needs assessments). She also described a plan to move ORCA to decision windows—evaluating cohorts of projects together rather than one‑by‑one—to give partners predictability and to better steward scarce funds.
Council members raised questions about rural exceptions, risk monitoring and an at‑risk inventory. Gramp explained staff will proactively include exceptions in technical advisories and will build in guidance about which categories and decision windows apply. Director Bell and other speakers emphasized portfolio oversight and the need to address chronic operational problems and property health beyond one‑off capital fixes.
Staff committed to recruiting a rules advisory committee, to publish a draft program manual with a first rack on May 12, and to bring final program rules and the manual forward in July 2026 for adoption.
