Sadowski State and Local Housing Trust Funds in the 2016 Legislative Session

SAME-- Sadowski Affiliates Messaging and Education

Florida Housing Coalition –

Sadowski Affiliates Webinar

December 3, 2015

Sadowski Affiliates

Are you a member of the Sadowski Affiliates?

It’s Free.

To join, email your contact information to

Johnitta Wells at: Wells@flhousing.org

Membership in the Sadowski Affiliates is free

thanks to support from JPMorgan Chase & Co.

POLL

What Best Describes Your Organization?

• Non-Profit Housing Developer or Service Provider

• SHIP Administrator/Local Government

• For-Profit Developer

• Private Sector Financial Institution

• Other

Jaimie Ross, president Florida Housing Coalition; facilitator of Sadowski Housing Coalition

Mark Hendrickson, executive committee Florida Housing Coalition; executive director Florida ALHFA

Presenters

Today’s Topic

• Legislative Session Begins January 12, 2016

• What Housing Trust Fund Advocates need

to know about Florida’s Appropriations

Process

• What Housing Advocates have been doing

well- and next steps on the road to success

Legislative Process

• The Legislative Session begins January 12, 2016 and ends 60

days later

• The appropriation of the state and local housing trust fund

programs will happen during that time

• But in reality, the legislative process began months ago…

Appropriations Process:

Executive Branch (Governor)

• September 2015: State Agencies submit funding requests to

Governor’s Office of Policy and Budget

• FHFC requested full funding of $323.96 million ($226.555

million for SHIP and $97.405 million for FHFC Programs

including SAIL)

• November 2015: Governor’s Budget Recommendations to

Legislature

• Governor Recommended $131.405 million for housing ($34

million for SHIP & $97.405 million for SAIL)

What is the Importance of the

Governor’s Budget?

• It is a starting point for the appropriations process.

• The Governor makes a recommendation; the Legislature makes the appropriation.

• Once the recommendations are released, it is time to move on to the Legislature.

• The Legislature makes the decision as to what amount of housing trust fund monies are appropriated to housing programs.

How do we know how much

money to ask for?

• We ask for the appropriation of all the state and local housing trust fund money; the money collected from the portion of the doc stamp that is dedicated for affordable housing

• The trust fund money is automatically deposited into the state and local housing trust funds by operation of law (that’s what the Sadowski Act- which passed in 1992 accomplished- we have a dedicated revenue source for housing)

• Again, in FY 2016-17 that is approximately $324 million

Where does the $324 million

number come from? • It is a combination of projected revenues coming into the housing trust funds

during FY 16-17 (from the August 2015 Revenue Estimating Conference) and

FHFC’s projections of housing trust fund balances as of June 30, 2016. The

REC numbers will be updated during the legislative session.

Funds Available for Appropriation from

Housing Trust Funds FY 16-17 $ million

Estimated Doc Stamp Distributions to

Housing Trust Funds During FY 16-17

Estimated Balance in Housing Trust Funds as of

6-30-16 Total

State Housing Trust Fund (SAIL & FHFC Programs)

88.80 8.61 97.41

Local Government Housing Trust Fund (SHIP)

207.95 18.61 226.56

TOTAL 296.75 27.21 323.96

How does the Legislature

make appropriations?

• By passing a Budget Bill also known as the Appropriations Act

• There is no “housing bill” for appropriations

• There is an Appropriations Committee in the House and an Appropriations Committee in the Senate

• When the Senate and House Appropriations Committees agree on the amounts of money to allocate for the state and local housing programs (SAIL and SHIP, primarily), it becomes law (after signed by the Governor)

Process for Appropriations continued

• The Revenue Estimating Conference (the official estimate of tax revenues made by a combination of legislative, executive, and Department of Revenue staff projects what revenue will be in those trust funds.

• Based on the August 2014 Revenue Estimating Conference, fiscal year 2015-16, that amount is $296.75 million. Additionally, FHFC estimates that the housing trust funds will have a balance of $27.21 million by next year.

• Therefore, the total available for appropriation is $323.96 million. This number will change when the REC does a new estimate during the legislative session

• 70% goes to the Local Government Housing Trust Fund for the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Program

– $226.555 million for SHIP (includes $4 million for Homeless Programs at DCF and DEO)

• 30% goes to the State Housing Trust Fund for the Florida Housing Finance Corporation programs such as the State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL) Program

– $97.405 million for SAIL and other FHFC Programs

Process for Appropriations continued

First Stop:

Appropriation Subcommittee

Transportation and Economic Development Appropriations (TED) Subcommittees in House and Senate

• House TED Subcommittee Chair

Representative Ingram (R, District 1-part of Escambia)

• Senate TED Subcommittee Chair

Senator Latvala (R, District 20-part of Pinellas)

Rep. Clay Ingram (R- District 1, part of Escambia), Chair

Rep. George Moraitis , Jr. (R- District 93, part of Broward), Vice Chair

Rep. Frank Artiles (R- District 118, part of Miami Dade)

Rep. Bryan Avila (R- District 111, part of Miami Dade)

Rep. Colleen Burton (R- District 40, part of Polk)

Rep. Brad Drake (R- District 5, Holmes, Jackson, Walton, Washington, part of Bay)

Rep. W. Keith Perry (R- District 21, Dixie, Gilchrist, part of Alachua)

Rep. Kathleen Peters (R- District 69, part of Pinellas)

Rep. Lake Ray (R-District 12, part of Duval)

Rep. Bruce Antone (D- District 46, part of Orange)

Rep. Hazelle Rogers (D- District 95, part of Broward)

Rep. Richard Stark (D- District 104, part of Broward)

Rep. Victor Torres, Jr. (D- District 48, part of Orange )

First Stop:

Appropriation Subcommittee continued

(Full House TED Committee)

Rep. Sen. Jack Latvala (R- District 20, part of Pinellas), Chair

Sen. Jeff Clemens (D- District 27, part of Palm Beach), Vice Chair

Sen. Jeff Brandes (R- District 22, part of Hillsborough, Pinellas)

Sen. Nancy C. Detert (R- District 28, Sarasota and part of Charlotte )

Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla (R- District 40, part of Miami Dade)

Sen. Audrey Gibson (D- District 9, part of Duval)

Sen. Dorothy L. Hukill (R- District 8, part of Lake, Marion, Volusia)

Sen. Maria Lorts Sachs (D- District 34, part of Broward, Palm Beach)

Sen. Geraldine F. “Geri” Thompson (D- District 12, part of Orange)

First Stop:

Appropriation Subcommittee continued

(Full House TED Committee)

The TED Subcommittees are given an “allocation”

of funds to appropriate The allocation comes from the Chairs of the

Appropriations Committees in House and Senate

• House Appropriations Chair

Representative Corcoran (R, District 37- part of Pasco)

• Senate Appropriations Chair

Senator Lee (R, District 24- part of Hillsborough)

Organizational Chart

Senate

President Gardiner (R, District 13-

part of Brevard, Orange)

Appropriations Chair Lee

TED Subcommittee Chair Latvala

House

House Speaker Crisafulli (R, District 51- part of Brevard)

Appropriations Chair Corcoran

TED Subcommittee Chair Ingram

What if you don’t live in one of those

6 Key Legislator’s Districts?

• You should still meet with your senators and representatives and ask that legislator to contact the TED Appropriations Chair and Leadership and ask that the housing trust funds be appropriated for housing.

• The Committee Chairs need to hear from other legislators that using the housing trust funds for housing is important to their constituents.

What Should Housing Trust

Fund Advocates Do Now?

• The most critical legislators are the six listed in the last slide.

• Many thanks to all who have already met with legislators in their home offices

• Any member of a TED subcommittee is also important.

• Do you live in one of their districts?

Yes or no, you have some important work to do:

1. If you are in the private sector, set an appointment to meet with your legislator or legislative aide in the district anytime prior to January 12th

Set up Meeting in District Office

• Your legislators will have office hours the

following weeks between now and January 12

Dec. 7-11

Dec. 14-18

Dec. 21-25 (Christmas Week)

Dec. 28- Jan. 1

Jan. 4-8

What if you are in the public

sector and not permitted to reach

out to legislators?

• Use your partnerships! Realtors, the Business Community, faith based groups and nonprofits are great partners for advocacy.

• Send the FHC your success stories or info about your waiting lists

• Require partners to use SHIP logo when SHIP funds are used.

Provide Feedback to FHC

• We need to know about your meetings with legislators or their

aides– we can follow up in Tallahassee.

• You do not have to be an expert in housing or the trust fund

numbers to meet with your legislator/aide

• If you are asked a question you don’t feel comfortable answering

(unlikely to happen) just say “I’ll be happy to get back to you

with that info” And give us a call! 850/878/4219

What Should Housing Trust

Fund Advocates Do Now? continued

2. Write an Op Ed or Letter to the Editor of your local paper- and if you can put in some personal stories (examples of how SHIP has helped families, the elderly, people with special needs etc. that helps)

The Florida Housing Coalition is happy to help you and the Sadowski Coalition Communications Team can help you to get your piece published in the news outlet if you would like assistance. No charge!

Media Coverage – Op-Ed

Florida has means to provide homes to those in need By Jaimie Ross, Facilitator, Sadowski Coalition; President/CEO, Florida Housing Coalition

November 25, 2015

HIGHLIGHTS • State leads nation lack of affordable rentals

• Sadowski trust funds available for housing

• Legislatures should approve $324 million appropriation

According to the 2015 Florida Home Matters Report, more than 920,000 very low-

income households, including hardworking families, the elderly, veterans and

disabled Floridians on fixed incomes, have to spend more than 50 percent of their

income on housing. They are one missed paycheck or one unexpected crisis away

from homelessness. Florida also has the nation’s third-largest homeless population.

What if you want to send a letter

to your legislator?

• Keep it short. Mark it private/personal if you want it to go directly to the legislator.

• Put in the SHIP info relevant to your area. We can’t know for sure about state funding in your area because it is accessed through a competitive process, but we do know the numbers for SHIP because it is population based.

• See www.sadowskicoalition.com for the SHIP funds by legislator.

Sadowski Website

www.SadowskiCoalition.com

Toolkit button (each page)

– Sadowski One Pager

– Talking points for meeting with legislators

What else can you find on the

Sadowski Website?

• Affordable Housing Toolkit – Step-by-Step Guide to Talking with Your Legislator

• RESOURCES –

– Estimated SHIP Distributions for FY 2016-2017;

– SHIP Distribution Local Economic Impact –

• Florida Senate

• Florida House

• FAQs about the Florida’s Housing Trust Funds and Housing Programs (SHIP & SAIL)

• And much more…. Including this PowerPoint presentation and webinar

Media Coverage – Editorial

Scott budget skews state priorities: Where We Stand Editorial

November 25, 2015

“Under Florida's system of government, the governor's annual budget proposal is only

a statement of priorities. It's up to legislators to put together and pass the actual

spending plan. That'll be among the things we say thanks for this week. And when

legislators convene for their annual 60-day session in January, we hope they'll come

up with a better-balanced budget than Gov. Rick Scott unveiled this week”

Media Coverage – Article

Housing groups help through hard times By Carlos Gieseken

December 1, 2015

"In the great recession, when the budget was in the tank, we understood

that all trust funds were going to have to kick in money," said Mark

Hendrickson, a member of the executive committee of the Florida

Housing Coalition. "We think full funding should be utilized for

affordable housing in years like this year and last year."

Lavoie, 61, and her husband, Robert, 65, then gutted the two-bedroom,

one-bath house down to the brick walls. The two-by-fours, Sheetrock

and floors all had to be ripped out and the plumbing had to be repaired.

United Way referred the couple to the State Housing Initiatives

Partnership, or SHIP, which is administered through the county. It

approved a $15,000 emergency repairs grant for building materials.

Do you feel ready

to contact your local legislators?

Yes

No

Questions & Answers

• Time to Ask Questions

• For Assistance, contact:

– Jaimie Ross

• (850) 212-0587

• Ross@flhousing.org

Final Thoughts

• We had an important victory in 2015. Sadowski Trust Funds were again appropriated– SHIP offices received continued funding. We must keep this momentum going!

• The Legislature has a great opportunity to improve Florida. Substantial surplus of revenue; critical housing need.

• The legislature can create 32,600 jobs in one year and over $4.6

billion in positive economic benefit if it appropriates all the money $323.96 million) in the housing trust funds for housing.

THANK YOU