Affordable Housing Targeted Tax Incentives Supported by MACo

This week, MACo Legislative Director Kevin Kinnally testified before the House Ways and Means Committee in support of HB 1104 – Affordable Housing Land Trusts – Funding and Property Tax Exemption with amendments. This bill would require the Department of Housing and Community Development, to the extent practicable, to reserve 2.5% of certain community development block grant funds for affordable housing land trusts in non-entitlement areas. In addition, the bill would exempt from taxation property owned by an affordable housing land trust and not subject to an affordable housing land trust agreement.

From the MACo testimony:

While counties support efforts to incentivize affordable housing, MACo is concerned that this bill could have a significant fiscal impact on county revenues sorely needed to fund education, public health, public safety, infrastructure, and other essential services.

While the overall impact of the bill is unclear, counties request flexibility in enacting and administering the proposed property tax exemption. As such, MACo urges the Committee to authorize rather than mandate the property tax exemption, or to follow the more common path and authorize tax credits to effect the desired reduction in tax burden without distortion of the underlying tax base.