Legislative Tracker

Land bank authorities will provide the comprehensive support necessary to turn vacant, abandoned, underutilized, and deteriorated land into future sites for affordable rental and for-sale homes. Coordinated land banking is a practical, flexible, equity-centered framework that connects housing and community benefit goals to land actions. HB 1974:

• Allows a city or county to authorize a public corporation, housing authority, or nonprofit organization to operate as a land banking authority and establish a land bank.
• Requires at least 50 percent of the land or property leased or sold by a land bank authority must maintain affordability requirements for at least 30 years. Rental housing units must be affordable to households with an income at or below 80% of the area median income; and owner-occupied housing units must be affordable to households with an income at or below 120% of the area median income.
• Requires each land bank authority to prepare an annual report, which must be publicly available and submitted to any city or county in which it has acquired or transferred land or
  property in the last 12 months.
• Exempts all real property owned by a land bank authority from property and leasehold excise taxes, and exempts all real property sold or transferred by or to a land bank authority from real estate excise tax (REET).

Allows mixed-income developments on property owned by a religious organization to qualify for a bonus, provided that at least 50% of the homes are affordable at 80% of Area Median Income or 20% of the homes are affordable at 50% of Area Median Income, for at least 50 years.

Requires cities and counties to implement a density bonus if it receives a request from a religious organization.

A mobile dwelling is a tiny house on wheels or a type of vehicle primarily designed for recreational camping or travel use that either has its own motor or is mounted on or towed by another vehicle. A fully planning city or county must allow at least one mobile dwelling on each lot zoned for residential use if the following conditions are met:

• the lot has at least one existing housing unit;
• the lot is located within an urban growth area; and
• the mobile dwelling is not located in a designated critical area, natural resource land,
  or shoreline of the state.

The mobile dwelling must be connected to electrical service through a dedicated outlet. If a mobile dwelling has internal plumbing, it must be connected to potable water and sanitary sewer services. If a mobile dwelling does not have internal plumbing, the occupants must have access to potable water, toilets, and showers in an existing housing unit on the lot.