Senate Committee on Housing passes SB 2069 with amendments to make DERF changes permanent

The Senate Committee on Housing voted Jan. 27 to pass Senate Bill 2069 with amendments that insert substantive changes from SB 2062, effectively making certain Dwelling Unit Revolving Fund (DERF) equity‑program provisions permanent and clarifying HHFDC authority on buyer repayment of purchased equity.

The chair recommended inserting SB 2062’s contents into SB 2069 and adding an HHFDC amendment to require a buyer to repay the corporation’s purchased equity plus an equity percentage of any net appreciation upon certain occurrences. The chair also told the committee HHFDC will not request additional funding for these amendments. After discussion, the chair called the question; the chair, the vice chair, Senators Elefante, Rhodes and Fevella recorded “aye,” and the chair’s recommendation was adopted.

Committee members discussed technical edits and the policy tradeoffs behind replacing a 10‑year buyback restriction with an indexed‑appreciation approach in for‑sale affordability programs (a separate but related topic during the hearing). The passage with amendments moves DERF permanence and repayment rules forward to the next steps in the legislative process.