Pennsylvania Act 1990-102 — NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING SERVICES ACT

Act text

NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSING SERVICES ACT
                 Act of Jul. 11, 1990, P.L. 421, No. 102              Cl. 14
                                  AN ACT

     To promote the health, safety and welfare of the people of this
        Commonwealth by supporting and expanding the network of
        Neighborhood Housing Services Programs which work to halt the
        deterioration of homes and the decline of neighborhoods, and
        to broaden the availability of the programs and services
        offered by Neighborhood Housing Services Programs, especially
        to persons of low and moderate income, by establishing within
        the Department of Community Affairs a State Neighborhood
        Housing Services Program.

        Compiler's Note:  Section 301(a)(9) of Act 58 of 1996, which
            created the Department of Community and Economic
            Development and abolished the Department of Community
            Affairs, provided that housing, community assistance and
            other functions under Act 102 are transferred from the
            Department of Community Affairs to the Department of
            Community and Economic Development.

        The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
     hereby enacts as follows:

     Section 1.  Short title.
        This act shall be known and may be cited as the Neighborhood
     Housing Services Act.
     Section 2.  Legislative findings and purpose.
        It is hereby determined and declared as a matter of
     legislative finding that:
            (1)  A substantial number of living units in this
        Commonwealth are in deteriorating condition, with many
        residents of this Commonwealth residing in homes which do not
        conform to applicable health and safety ordinances. This
        situation impedes the development of healthy, safe and viable
        communities in this Commonwealth.
            (2)  The problems of declining neighborhoods, including
        deteriorating housing with a concomitant loss of property
        values and erosion of the tax bases of the affected
        communities, negatively impact on the health, safety and
        welfare of residents of this Commonwealth.
            (3)  The encouragement of public-private partnerships
        between State and municipal governmental entities and private
        financial and corporate institutions to coordinate and
        optimize their respective resources is critical to any
        serious effort to halt deterioration and revitalize declining
        neighborhoods.
            (4)  The Commonwealth can maximize the number of low-
        income and moderate-income housing units by encouraging the
        rehabilitation of existing structures.
            (5)  The Neighborhood Housing Services Programs, as
        organized and supported by the Federal Neighborhood
        Reinvestment Corporation, have proven themselves as highly
        effective and innovative mechanisms for halting the decline
        of neighborhoods and stemming the deterioration of housing
        units by bringing together the public and private sectors in
        a partnership dedicated to the rehabilitation of existing
        housing and the restoration of self-worth and self-reliance
        to neighborhoods.
            (6)  State support for the Neighborhood Housing Services
        Programs holds promise for the improvement of the quality of
        life in those neighborhoods beset with the problems
        associated with deteriorating and substandard housing, and
        these programs can serve as a model of an effective and
        innovative strategy to remedy these problems.
     Therefore, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the
     Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to promote the health, safety and
     welfare of its inhabitants by the creation of the Pennsylvania
     Neighborhood Housing Services Program. This program will provide
     funds to assist in the creation, expansion and support of
     Neighborhood Housing Services Programs to stem deterioration and
     decline in identified neighborhoods, which impair economic
     value, and public revenues, discourage private investment and
     detract from the overall quality of life in this Commonwealth.
     Section 3.  Definitions.
        The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
     have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
     context clearly indicates otherwise:
        "Department."  The Department of Community Affairs of the
     Commonwealth.
        "Neighborhood Housing Services Programs."  Private,
     nonprofit, community-based corporation, established pursuant to
     the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation Act (Public Law 95-
     557, 42 U.S.C. § 8101 et seq.) and working to stem neighborhood
     decline.
        "Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation."  The Neighborhood
     Reinvestment Corporation as established by the Neighborhood
     Reinvestment Corporation Act (Public Law 95-557, 42 U.S.C. §
     8101 et seq.).
        "Secretary."  The Secretary of Community Affairs of the
     Commonwealth.
     Section 4.  Neighborhood Housing Services Program.
        There is hereby established a Neighborhood Housing Services
     Program to be administered by the department. Its purpose shall
     be to create a partnership among private financial and business
     institutions, governments and residents in a given community to
     undertake the rehabilitation and revitalization of specific
     neighborhoods or geographical areas.
     Section 5.  Powers and duties of department.
        (a)  Grants.--The department shall provide annual grants to
     Neighborhood Housing Services Programs which meet the
     qualifications set forth in this act. These annual grants shall
     not total more than 150% of the contributions raised from
     private sources.
        (b)  Inspections and audits.--The department may inspect any
     Neighborhood Housing Services Program receiving a grant under
     this act. The department may audit and examine all books or
     records of the corporation, require periodic reports and request
     information necessary to ensure proper use of State funds.
        (c)  Application procedures.--The department shall publish
     procedures regarding applications for grants under this act
     within 60 days of the effective date of this act.
     Section 6.  Eligibility requirements.
        To receive funding under this act, an applicant must:
            (1)  Be a Neighborhood Housing Services Program operating
        within this State and be certified by the Neighborhood
        Reinvestment Corporation that the applicant is registered and
        in good standing with it.
            (2)  Be governed by a board of directors or trustees
        which is composed of neighborhood residents, representatives
        of financial institutions and businesses and representatives
        of local political subdivisions.
            (3)  Be certified by the Internal Revenue Service of the
        United States Department of the Treasury as a charitable
        organization exempt from Federal income tax.
            (4)  Submit to the department a description of the
        geographic boundaries served by the applicant and a plan
        which outlines the strategy that the applicant will employ or
        is employing to utilize both private and public resources to
        bring neighborhood dwellings to acceptable levels of health
        and safety, stem further deterioration of housing units, halt
        the overall decline of the neighborhood and stimulate
        reinvestment.
            (5)  Certify the amount of contributions from private
        sources raised during the preceding fiscal year. Where the
        applicant is in its first year of existence, the applicant
        must certify the amount of contribution pledges from private
        sources for that year.
            (6)  Maintain or plan to maintain and administer a high
        risk revolving loan fund which makes loans at flexible
        interest rates and repayment terms to neighborhood residents
        who are unable to obtain financing through normal lending
        channels for home repairs which are required to maintain
        their homes at acceptable levels of health and safety.
     Section 7.  Effective date.
        This act shall take effect immediately.