House Bill No. 581

Introduced By _______________________________________________________________________________

A Bill for an Act entitled: "An Act establishing a housing trust fund; creating a housing trust fund advisory council; raising the fees collected by a county clerk; depositing $1 of each fee collected by a county clerk into the housing trust fund; amending sections 7-4-2511 and 7-4-2631, MCA; and providing an effective date."

STATEMENT OF INTENT

A statement of intent is required for this bill because [section 7] grants rulemaking authority to the board of housing for the implementation of the housing program provided for in [section 4].

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Montana:

NEW SECTION. Section 1. Legislative declaration. (1) The legislature finds that current economic conditions, federal housing policies, and declining resources at the federal, state, and local levels adversely affect the ability of low-income and moderate-income persons to obtain safe, decent, and affordable housing.

(2) The legislature further finds that the state will lose substantial sums allocated to it by the federal government for affordable housing for low-income and moderate-income households unless matching funds are provided.

(3) The legislature declares that it is in the public interest to establish a continuously renewable resource known as a housing trust fund to assist low- and moderate-income citizens in meeting their basic housing needs.

NEW SECTION. Section 2. Definitions. As used in [sections 1 through 6], the following definitions apply:

(1) "Advisory council" means the housing trust fund advisory council created in [section 5].

(2) "Low income" means households whose incomes do not exceed 80% of the median income for the area, as determined by the department of housing and urban development, with adjustments for smaller or larger families.

(3) "Moderate income" means households whose incomes are between 81 and 95% of the median income for the area, as determined by the department of housing and urban development, with adjustments for smaller and larger families.

(4) "Trust fund account" means the housing trust fund account created in [section 3].

NEW SECTION. Section 3. Housing trust fund -- administration. (1) There is a housing trust fund account in the state special revenue fund in the state treasury. The money in the trust fund account is allocated to the board for the purpose of increasing the supply of decent affordable housing for low-income and moderate-income residents of the state.

(2) Funds deposited in the trust fund account must be used for the program authorized in [section 4] and may not be used to pay the expenses of any other program or service administered by the board.

(3) The board may accept contributions, gifts, and grants for deposit into the trust fund account. The money must be used in accordance with the provisions of [section 4].

(4) The costs incurred by the board in administering the trust fund housing program must be paid from the trust fund account. The board shall keep costs to a minimum.

NEW SECTION. Section 4. Housing program -- eligible applicants. (1) The board shall, in consultation with the advisory council, use money from the trust fund account to provide loans or grants to eligible applicants for:

(a) matching funds for public or private money available from other sources for the development of low-income and moderate-income housing;

(b) financing necessary to make a low-income or moderate-income housing project financially feasible;

(c) acquisition of existing housing for the purpose of preservation of or conversion to low-income or moderate-income housing; or

(d) preconstruction technical assistance to eligible recipients in rural areas and small cities and towns.

(i) Technical assistance under this subsection (1)(d) may include but is not limited to:

(A) financial planning and packaging for housing projects;

(B) project design, architectural planning, and siting;

(D) maximizing local government contributions to project development in the form of land donations, infrastructure improvements, zoning variances, or creative local planning.

(ii) The board may contract with a nonprofit organization to provide this technical assistance.

(2) Money from the trust fund account may not be used to replace existing or available sources of funding for eligible activities.

(3) Organizations eligible for loans or grants from the trust fund account are local governments, tribal governments, local housing authorities, nonprofit community- or neighborhood-based organizations, regional or statewide nonprofit housing assistance organizations, or for-profit housing developers.

NEW SECTION. Section 5. Housing trust fund advisory council. (1) There is a housing trust fund advisory council composed of seven members appointed by the governor. Four members must be experienced in housing or finance. Three members must represent low-income advocacy groups and nonprofit housing developers.

(2) The council must be gender-balanced and proportionally representative of minorities in Montana.

(3) The advisory council shall advise the board on policies relating to the administration of the trust fund housing program. The advisory council shall:

(a) establish priorities for the uses of the trust fund account;

(b) review applications for loans and grants and make recommendations to the board; and

(4) The advisory council is allocated to the department of commerce for administrative purposes only, as provided in 2-15-121.

(5) The provisions of 2-15-122(5) through (8) apply to the advisory council and its members.

NEW SECTION. Section 6. Coordination with other programs. The board shall ensure that all housing assistance programs supported through the trust fund account are coordinated with other housing assistance programs administered by the board, the federal government, state agencies, tribal governments, local public housing authorities, and local governments.

NEW SECTION. Section 7. Rulemaking. The board shall adopt rules to implement [sections 1 through 6]. The rules must include:

(1) the development of eligibility criteria for applicants;

(2) the development of an application process for requesting financial assistance;

(3) the establishment of a procedure for disbursing financial assistance;

(4) the establishment of the terms and conditions of a loan;

(5) the establishment of the terms and conditions of a grant;

(6) the development of a process for awarding technical assistance contracts; and

(7) other matters necessary for the administration of [sections 1 through 6].

Section 8. Section 7-4-2511, MCA, is amended to read:

"7-4-2511. Collection and disposal of fees. (1) Each salaried county officer ~~must~~ shall charge and collect for the use of ~~his~~ the county and pay into the county treasury by the 10th day in each month all fees ~~now or hereafter~~ allowed by law, paid or chargeable in all cases, except as provided in 25-10-403. ~~Nothing in this~~ This subsection ~~applies~~ does not apply to the compensation received by the sheriff as mileage while in the performance of official duties or for the board of prisoners or other persons while in ~~his~~ the sheriff's custody.

(2) No A salaried county officer may not receive for ~~his~~ the officer's own use any fees, penalties, or emoluments of any kind, except the salary as provided by law, for any official service rendered by ~~him~~ the officer. Unless otherwise provided, all fees, penalties, and emoluments of every kind collected by a salaried county officer are for the sole use of the county and must be accounted for and paid to the county treasurer as provided by subsection (1) and credited to the general fund of the county.

(3) The county treasurer shall remit $1 of each fee received under 7-4-2631 to the state treasurer for deposit in the housing trust fund account in the state special revenue fund provided for in [section 3]."

Section 9. Section 7-4-2631, MCA, is amended to read:

"7-4-2631. Fees of county clerk. (1) Except as provided in 7-4-2632, the county clerks must charge, for the use of their respective counties:

(a) for recording and indexing each certificate of location of a quartz or placer mining claim or millsite claim, including a certificate that the instrument has been recorded with seal affixed, $6 $7;

(b) for recording and indexing each affidavit of annual labor on a mining claim, including certificate that the instrument has been recorded with seal affixed:

(i) for the first mining claim in the affidavit, $3 $4; and

(ii) for each additional mining claim included in it, 50 cents;

(c) for filing and indexing each writ of attachment, execution, certificate of sale, lien, or other instrument required by law to be filed and indexed, $5 $6;

(d) for filing of subdivision and townsite plats, $5 $6 plus:

(i) for each lot up to and including 100, 50 cents;

(ii) for each additional lot in excess of 100, 25 cents;

(e) for filing certificates of surveys and amendments ~~thereto~~, $5 $6 plus 50 cents per tract or lot;

(f) for a copy of a record or paper:

(i) for the first page of any document, 50 cents, and 25 cents for each subsequent page; and

(ii) for each certification with seal affixed, $2 $3;

(g) for searching an index record of files of the office for each year when required in abstracting or otherwise, 50 cents;

(h) for administering an oath with certificate and seal, no charge;

(i) for taking and certifying an acknowledgment, with seal affixed, for signature to it, no charge;

(j) for filing, indexing, or other services provided for by 30-9-401 through 30-9-407, the fees prescribed under those sections;

(k) for recording each stock subscription and contract, stock certificate, and articles of incorporation for water users' associations, $3 $4;

(l) for filing a copy of notarial commission and issuing a certificate of official character of such notary public, $2 $3;

(m) for each certified copy of a birth certificate, $5 $6, and for each certified copy of a death certificate, $3 $4;

(n) for filing, recording, or indexing any other instrument not expressly provided for in this section or 7-4-2632, the same fee provided in this section or 7-4-2632 for a similar service.

(2) State agencies submitting documents to be put of record shall pay the fees provided for in this section. If a state agency or political subdivision has requested an account with the county clerk, any applicable fees must be paid on a periodic basis."

NEW SECTION. Section 10. Notification of tribal governments. The secretary of state shall send a copy of [this act] to each tribal government located on the seven Montana reservations and to the Little Shell band of Chippewa.

NEW SECTION. Section 11. Codification instruction. (1) [Sections 1 through 4, 6, and 7] are intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 90, chapter 6, part 1, and the provisions of Title 90, chapter 6, part 1, apply to [sections 1 through 4, 6, and 7].

(2) [Section 5] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 2, chapter 15, part 18, and the provisions of Title 2, chapter 15, part 18, apply to [section 5].

NEW SECTION. Section 12. Effective date. [This act] is effective July 1, 1997.

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