STAND. COM. REP. NO. 330

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 290
                                        S.D. 2




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Government Operations and Housing, to
which was referred S.B. No. 290, S.D. 1, entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO HOUSING,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require fifty percent of
expenditures from the Homes Revolving Fund (HRF) and the Dwelling
Unit Revolving Fund (DURF), to be used for units which are
affordable to persons and families with incomes at or below
thirty percent of the median income level.

     Testimony in support of this measure was received from the
Legal Aid Society of Hawaii.  Testimony opposed to this measure
was received from the Housing and Community Development
Corporation of Hawaii.

     Your Committee finds that there are more than 100,000 people
who are homeless on our streets or part of the hidden homeless
who rely on relatives or friends for housing.  Statistics from
the Hawaii Housing Authority show that more than 12,000 homeless
people are served by state programs every year, and the number
continues to increase.

     Your Committee finds that the crisis in affordable housing
is greatest among extremely low income households, with incomes
less than thirty percent of the median income level.  Nearly two-
thirds of these households cannot afford their housing payments.  


 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 330
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     Currently, the State's reserve housing funds are not
targeted for the use by any particular income bracket.  Your
Committee finds that in order to make affordable housing more
readily available to the extremely low income residents in this
state, a certain percentage of the HRF and the DURF should be
expended for units that are affordable to persons with incomes at
or below thirty percent of the median income level.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by deleting the
fifty percent allocation of the funds and leaving this percentage
blank for determination in future decisionmaking.  Additionally,
your Committee made technical, nonsubstantive changes to this
measure.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Government Operations and Housing that is attached
to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and
purpose of S.B. No. 290, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and
recommends that it be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 290, S.D. 2.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Government
                                   Operations and Housing,



                                   ______________________________
                                   ROD TAM, Chair

 
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