STAND. COM. REP. NO. 654

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2023

RE: H.B. No. 1054

H.D. 2

Honorable Scott K. Saiki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Water & Land, to which was referred H.B. No. 1054, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOUSING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to support affordable housing by establishing the Rental Deposit Loan Program and Rental Deposit Loan Program Revolving Fund.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from one member of the Maui County Council, Hawai‘i Association of REALTORS, NAIOP Hawaii, Maui Chamber of Commerce, and one individual. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation, EAH Housing, and Stanford Carr Development.

Your Committee finds that residents are in need of financial support to secure affordable rental units. Your Committee notes that the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation has indicated in testimony that it can enter into a memorandum of agreement with the counties or qualified nonprofit organizations to implement the Rental Deposit Loan Program but lacks the staffing capacity to establish and manage the program.

Your Committee has therefore amended this measure by:

(1) Inserting an appropriation for two full-time equivalent (2.0 FTE) positions at the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation to implement the Rental Deposit Loan Program; and

(2) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity, consistency, and style.

Your Committee respectfully requests your Committee on Finance, should it deliberate on this measure, to consider an appropriation amount of $275,000 for two full-time equivalent (2.0 FTE) positions, specifically a single-family housing finance program specialist and an accountant, to implement the Rental Deposit Loan Program.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Water & Land that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 1054, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 1054, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Water & Land,

____________________________

LINDA ICHIYAMA, Chair