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A BILL to amend the Code of Virginia by adding
in Chapter 49 of Title 59.1
a section numbered
59.1-549.1
, relating to Enterprise Zone Housing Availability Grant Program.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding
in Chapter 49 of Title 59.1
a section numbered
59.1-549.1
as follows:
§
59.1-549.1
.
Enterprise Zone Housing Availability Grant Program
.
A. For the purposes of this section:
"
Major qualified zone
developer
" means a qualified zone
developer
incurring eligible costs
in excess of $20 million.
"
Eligible costs
" means
costs incurred
to construct, expand, or rehabilitate
residential
property
that is
leased or sold
within an enterprise zone
during the
same
calendar year.
"
Eligible
occupant" means a household that earns 80 percent or more of the area median income (AMI) of the locality in which the property is located, but less than 120 percent of such AMI.
"Qualified
zone developer
" means an owner of real property located within an enterprise zone who expands, rehabilitates, or constructs such real property for
residential
use.
B.
The Board shall establish the Enterprise Zone Housing Availability Grant Program (the Program) to
incentivize
development of affordable housing
.
C.
1.
To be eligible to receive a grant pursuant to this section, a qualified zone
developer
must rent or sell
any
residentia
l property
for which eligible costs were incurred
to
a
n
eligible
occupant.
2.
A qualified zone developer
leasing
a
residential
property for which he incurred eligible
costs
shall charge a monthly rent
equal to or less than
24
percent of the
monthly
AMI
of the locality in which the property
for which eligible costs were incurred
is located.
Upon renewal of such lease
, rent shall not increase to
greater
than
24
percent of the monthly AMI of the locality for 10 years following the execution of the initial lease fo
llowing the construction, expansion, or rehabilitation of such property for which eligible costs were incurred.
A qualified zone developer that sells a property
for which he incurred eligible costs shall include resale restriction
s
o
n the deed of sale
,
including (i)
li
miting the future resale price of such property to the original purchase price
adjusted for the change in AMI since the date of purchase
, and (ii)
requiring future purchasers to qualify as eligible occupants.
Such resale restrictions shall remain in force for 10 years following the original date of purchase.
C.
Grants shall be calculated at a rate of 20 percent of
eligible costs
incurred
in excess of $500,000 in the case of the construction of a new
residential property
.
Grants shall be calculated at a rate of 20 percent of
eligible costs incurred
in excess of $100,000 in the case of the rehabilitation or expansion of an existing building or facility.
For any qualified zone
developer
incurring
$5 million or less
of eligible costs
, a grant shall not exceed $100,000 within any five-year period for any individual building or facility. For any qualified zone
developer
incurring
more than $5 million, but not more than $20 million in
eligible costs
, a grant shall not exceed $200,000 within any five-year period for any individual building or facility.
D.
G
rants to major qualified zone
developers
shall be calculated at a rate of 25 percent of the amount of
eligible costs incurred
in excess of $500,000 in the case of the construction of a new building or facility.
G
rants to major qualified zone
developers
shall be calculated at a rate of 25 percent of the amount of
eligible costs incurred
in excess of $100,000 in the case of the rehabilitation or expansion of an existing building or facility.
E
. The
Board
shall determine guidelines for the
allocation
of
grants awarded pursuant to this section. Such guidelines shall include a process for
(i)
certifying
the income of
the
households rentin
g
or
purchasing
the
residential
property
for which eligible costs were incurred
and (ii)
monitoring com
pliance with
the
ongoing
affordability
restrictions
of
the
residential property for which eligible costs were incurred, pursuant to subsection B 2
.
F
.
A qualified zone
developer
shall apply for a
housing
availability
grant in the calendar year following the year in which the property
for which eligible costs were i
ncurred
was
sold or leased
.
A
housing availability
grant to a major qualified zone
developer
shall not exceed $300,000 within any five-year period for any individual building or facility.