Four pieces of housing-related legislation could provide the foundation for a meaningful state housing policy for Illinois.
Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s appointment of
a Transition
Team
Housing Committee, chaired by
U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) and staffed by the Metropolitan Planning
Council, demonstrated his interest and leadership in improving housing choices in Illinois
communities. Now the governor has the opportunity to adopt the committee's key recommendations, which have
widespread consensus in the housing community:
- articulate a
state housing policy which identifies housing priorities and addresses the needs of
historically underserved populations,
- use the Local Planning Technical Assistance Act
to support and encourage municipal leaders to address those priorities and
- deploy a more efficient housing finance delivery system to make
these objectives possible.
These recommendations further support the Housing Endorsement Criteria and Housing Action Agenda
adopted
by the Metropolitan
Mayors Caucus, a group whose members are critical to the implementation of
meaningful housing policy.
The Local Planning Technical Assistance Act of 2002
provided the foundation on which to build a
state
housing policy, but
it has yet to be funded or
implemented. This sensible growth legislation does three
things. First, it defines what constitutes a comprehensive plan,
and specifically includes affordable housing. Second, it recommends
the State provide technical assistance — both in terms of dollars and in terms of advice —
to municipalities needing help preparing such
plans. And finally, it gives the
governor prerogative to make municipalities more competitive for State
funds (transportation, open space, etc) if they indeed are moving forward a housing
plan that addresses the needs of people who live and work in their
jurisdiction.
The recent passage of the
Illinois Housing Initiative (HB 2345) through the House and the Senate builds on the
framework laid by the Local Planning Technical Assistance Act. This bill
incorporates key outcomes of both the affordable housing hearings organized by Ill. Rep. Julie Hamos
(D-Evanston) and her
peers last year and the key recommendations
of the governor's Transition Team
Housing Committee. Specifically, it creates
a housing task force to formalize a policy that prioritizes the housing
needs of underserved constituencies (seniors, low income workers who can not afford
to live near their jobs, homeless people and those at risk of becoming homeless, among
others).
The Initiative further requires all the State agencies currently investing
in housing (there are about 20, including the Illinois Housing
Development Authority, Department of Human Services and Department of Aging) to pool
resources for joint outreach. This proactive approach enables the State to more efficiently seek and
fund proposals consistent with this housing policy.
Effective planning is at the core of efficient
government. And quality, affordable
housing is fundamental to a household’s ability to achieve economic
self-sufficiency while contributing to the local community and economy. The Local
Planning Technical
Assistance Act
and
the Illinois Housing Initiative promote sound public policy in a manner that
is responsive to Illinois'
fiscal quandary. Together, these
two pieces of legislation, the first of which simply needs implementation while
the other still needs to be signed by the governor, give municipal
leaders the support they need to address the housing needs of people who live and work in their
communities. And, importantly, they do so in a manner that promotes sensible growth.
Supporting these two pieces of legislation are two other
bills that passed out of the House and the Senate this spring:
-
The
Housing Opportunity Tax Incentive (HB 2246)
offers a tax incentive to property owners who rent to families using Housing
Choice Vouchers in opportunity areas — places with low poverty and a high tax
base. Given the shortage of affordable housing near jobs, this is meaningful
legislation to help voucher holders live closer to jobs in neighborhoods
that have long proven unavailable.
- The Affordable Housing Planning and Appeal Act (HB 625)
offers the proverbial “stick” to balance the above
“carrots.” This bill requires municipalities
with more than 5,000 people that do not have affordable housing
for at least 10 percent of their residents to create
a plan to ensure that they
do. The
bill further creates a State Appeal Board so that, down the road, if
developers feel the city is unfairly denying affordable housing proposals, the
State has the
power to review and change the municipality’s ruling.
If you agree with the above pieces of legislation,
please contact the
governor's office
to encourage him to proceed with
implementation.