Report Title:

County Infrastructure Development Revolving Loan Fund

 

Description:

Establishes the county infrastructure development revolving loan fund within department of budget and finance to provide no-interest loans to the counties for the development, pre-development, or construction of infrastructure projects to expedite the building of transit-oriented development, particularly those involving affordable housing.

 


HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

H.B. NO.

836

TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009

 

STATE OF HAWAII

 

 

 

 

 

 

A BILL FOR AN ACT


 

 

RELATING TO ESTABLISHING A COUNTY TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT INFRASTRUCTURE REVOLVING FUND.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 


     SECTION 1.  The State and the counties recognize the importance of encouraging compact development and discouraging urban sprawl, not only to preserve open space and protect watershed areas and agricultural lands, but also to reduce the cost of constructing and maintaining infrastructure systems.  Rapid transit supports compact development and, at the same time, becomes an incentive to compact development near transit stations.  Yet transit-oriented development often requires upgrades to capacities of existing infrastructure, and the counties are challenged to maintain the infrastructure systems they already have, let alone upgrading these systems.  The State recognizes that it has a role in supporting transit-oriented development, and recognizes the need to support the counties by providing another financing resource without unduly draining the state budget.  Therefore, the purpose of this Act is to create a no-interest loan revolving fund to provide loans to the counties for infrastructure improvements that support transit-oriented development.

     SECTION 2.  Chapter 36, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

     "§36‑     County infrastructure development revolving loan fund.  (a)  There is established the county infrastructure development revolving loan fund to be administered by the director of budget and finance.  For purposes of this section, "infrastructure" means any utility such as sewer, roads, drainage, bridges, and water, including conduits, pumps, and treatment plants generally considered as county responsibilities and under county ownership.

     (b)  An amount from the fund, to be set by the director may be used for administrative expenses incurred by the department in administering the fund; provided that moneys in the fund may not be used to finance day-to-day administrative expenses of projects allotted fund moneys.

     (c)  The following may be deposited into the fund:

     (1)  Appropriations made by the legislature;

     (2)  Private contributions;

     (3)  Loan payments;

     (4)  Other returns; and

     (5)  Moneys from federal government and other sources.

     (d)  The fund shall be used to provide no-interest loans to the counties for the development, pre-development, or construction of infrastructure projects to expedite the building of transit-oriented development, particularly those involving affordable housing.  Permitted uses of the funds may include planning, design, land acquisition, costs of options, agreements of sale, or other infrastructure-related services or activities that may be provided in rules adopted by the department pursuant to chapter 91.  In determining which projects to fund, the director shall give first priority to projects that increase infrastructure capacity on a regional or collector system level, as opposed to those that only support capacities for specific, limited number of properties.

     (e)  The department shall submit annual reports to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of each regular session describing the projects funded and its efforts to develop infrastructure development projects."

     SECTION 3.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2009.

 

INTRODUCED BY:

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By Request