Bill Text: IL SB1790 | 2013-2014 | 98th General Assembly | Chaptered

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Bill Title: Amends the Affordable Housing Planning and Appeal Act. Makes a technical change in a Section concerning the short title.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)

Status: (Passed) 2013-08-09 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 98-0287 [SB1790 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2013-SB1790-Chaptered.html

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Public Act 098-0287
SB1790 Enrolled LRB098 09695 KTG 39843 b
AN ACT concerning housing.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Affordable Housing Planning and Appeal Act
is amended by changing Sections 15, 20, 25, 30, and 50 as
follows:
(310 ILCS 67/15)
Sec. 15. Definitions. As used in this Act:
"Affordable housing" means housing that has a value or cost
sales price or rental amount that is within the means of a
household that may occupy moderate-income or low-income
housing. In the case of owner-occupied dwelling units for sale,
housing that is affordable means housing in which mortgage,
amortization, taxes, insurance, and condominium or association
fees, if any, constitute no more than 30% of the gross annual
household income for a household of the size that may occupy
the unit. In the case of dwelling units for rent, housing that
is affordable means housing for which the rent and utilities
constitute no more than 30% of the gross annual household
income for a household of the size that may occupy the unit.
"Affordable housing developer" means a nonprofit entity,
limited equity cooperative or public agency, or private
individual, firm, corporation, or other entity seeking to build

an affordable housing development.
"Affordable housing development" means (i) any housing
that is subsidized by the federal or State government or (ii)
any housing in which at least 20% of the dwelling units are
subject to covenants or restrictions that require that the
dwelling units be sold or rented at prices that preserve them
as affordable housing for a period of at least 15 years, in the
case of owner-occupied for-sale housing, and at least 30 years,
in the case of rental housing.
"Approving authority" means the governing body of the
county or municipality.
"Area median household income" means the median household
income adjusted for family size for applicable income limit
areas as determined annually by the federal Department of
Housing and Urban Development under Section 8 of the United
States Housing Act of 1937.
"Community land trust" means a private, not-for-profit
corporation organized exclusively for charitable, cultural,
and other purposes and created to acquire and own land for the
benefit of the local government, including the creation and
preservation of affordable housing.
"Development" means any building, construction,
renovation, or excavation or any material change in any
structure or land, or change in the use of such structure or
land, that results in a net increase in the number of dwelling
units in a structure or on a parcel of land by more than one

dwelling unit.
"Exempt local government" means any local government in
which at least 10% of its total year-round housing units are
affordable, as determined by the Illinois Housing Development
Authority pursuant to Section 20 of this Act; or any
municipality under 1,000 population.
"Household" means the person or persons occupying a
dwelling unit.
"Housing trust fund" means a separate fund, either within a
local government or between local governments pursuant to
intergovernmental agreement, established solely for the
purposes authorized in subsection (d) of Section 25, including,
without limitation, the holding and disbursing of financial
resources to address the affordable housing needs of
individuals or households that may occupy low-income or
moderate-income housing.
"Local government" means a county or municipality.
"Low-income housing" means housing that is affordable,
according to the federal Department of Housing and Urban
Development, for either home ownership or rental, and that is
occupied, reserved, or marketed for occupancy by households
with a gross household income that does not exceed 50% of the
area median household income.
"Moderate-income housing" means housing that is
affordable, according to the federal Department of Housing and
Urban Development, for either home ownership or rental, and

that is occupied, reserved, or marketed for occupancy by
households with a gross household income that is greater than
50% but does not exceed 80% of the area median household
income.
"Non-appealable local government requirements" means all
essential requirements that protect the public health and
safety, including any local building, electrical, fire, or
plumbing code requirements or those requirements that are
critical to the protection or preservation of the environment.
(Source: P.A. 93-595, eff. 1-1-04; 93-678, eff. 6-28-04;
94-303, eff. 7-21-05.)
(310 ILCS 67/20)
Sec. 20. Determination of exempt local governments.
(a) Beginning October 1, 2004, the Illinois Housing
Development Authority shall determine which local governments
are exempt and not exempt from the operation of this Act based
on an identification of the total number of year-round housing
units in the most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau
decennial census for each local government within the State and
by an inventory of owner-occupied for-sale and rental
affordable housing units, as defined in this Act, for each
local government from the U.S. Census Bureau decennial census
and other relevant sources.
(b) The Illinois Housing Development Authority shall make
this determination by:

(i) totaling the number of owner-occupied for-sale
housing units in each local government that are affordable
to households with a gross household income that is less
than 80% of the median household income within the county
or primary metropolitan statistical area;
(ii) totaling the number of rental units in each local
government that are affordable to households with a gross
household income that is less than 60% of the median
household income within the county or primary metropolitan
statistical area;
(iii) adding the number of owner-occupied for-sale and
rental units for each local government from items (i) and
(ii); and
(iv) dividing the sum of (iii) above by the total
number of year-round housing units in the local government
as contained in the latest U.S. Census Bureau decennial
census and multiplying the result by 100 to determine the
percentage of affordable housing units within the
jurisdiction of the local government.
(c) Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act
of the 98th General Assembly October 1, 2004, the Illinois
Housing Development Authority shall publish on an annual basis
a list of exempt and non-exempt local governments and the data
that it used to calculate its determination at least once every
5 years. The data shall be shown for each local government in
the State and for the State as a whole. Upon publishing a list

of exempt and non-exempt local governments, the Illinois
Housing Development Authority shall notify a local government
that it is not exempt from the operation of this Act and
provide to it the data used to calculate its determination.
(d) A local government or developer of affordable housing
may appeal the determination of the Illinois Housing
Development Authority as to whether the local government is
exempt or non-exempt under this Act in connection with an
appeal under Section 30 of this Act.
(Source: P.A. 93-595, eff. 1-1-04; 93-678, eff. 6-28-04.)
(310 ILCS 67/25)
Sec. 25. Affordable housing plan.
(a) Prior to April 1, 2005, all non-exempt local
governments must approve an affordable housing plan. Any local
government that is determined by the Illinois Housing
Development Authority under Section 20 to be non-exempt for the
first time based on the recalculation of U.S. Census Bureau
decennial census data after 2010 shall have 18 months from the
date of notification of its non-exempt status to approve an
affordable housing plan under this Act.
(b) For the purposes of this Act, the affordable housing
plan shall consist of at least the following:
(i) a statement of the total number of affordable
housing units that are necessary to exempt the local
government from the operation of this Act as defined in

Section 15 and Section 20;
(ii) an identification of lands within the
jurisdiction that are most appropriate for the
construction of affordable housing and of existing
structures most appropriate for conversion to, or
rehabilitation for, affordable housing, including a
consideration of lands and structures of developers who
have expressed a commitment to provide affordable housing
and lands and structures that are publicly or semi-publicly
owned;
(iii) incentives that local governments may provide
for the purpose of attracting affordable housing to their
jurisdiction; and
(iv) a goal of a minimum of 15% of all new development
or redevelopment within the local government that would be
defined as affordable housing in this Act; or a minimum of
a 3 percentage point increase in the overall percentage of
affordable housing within its jurisdiction, as described
in subsection (b) of Section 20 of this Act; or a minimum
of a total of 10% affordable housing within its
jurisdiction as described in subsection (b) of Section 20
of this Act. These goals may be met, in whole or in part,
through the creation of affordable housing units under
intergovernmental agreements as described in subsection
(e) of this Section.
(c) Within 60 days after the adoption of an affordable

housing plan or revisions to its affordable housing plan, the
local government must submit a copy of that plan to the
Illinois Housing Development Authority.
(d) In order to promote the goals of this Act and to
maximize the creation, establishment, or preservation of
affordable housing throughout the State of Illinois, a local
government, whether exempt or non-exempt under this Act, may
adopt the following measures to address the need for affordable
housing:
(1) Local governments may individually or jointly
create or participate in a housing trust fund or otherwise
provide funding or support for the purpose of supporting
affordable housing, including, without limitation, to
support the following affordable housing activities:
(A) Housing production, including, without
limitation, new construction, rehabilitation, and
adaptive re-use.
(B) Acquisition, including, without limitation,
land, single-family homes, multi-unit buildings, and
other existing structures that may be used in whole or
in part for residential use.
(C) Rental payment assistance.
(D) Home-ownership purchase assistance.
(E) Preservation of existing affordable housing.
(F) Weatherization.
(G) Emergency repairs.

(H) Housing related support services, including
homeownership education and financial counseling.
(I) Grants or loans to not-for-profit
organizations engaged in addressing the affordable
housing needs of low-income and moderate-income
households.
Local governments may authorize housing trust funds to
accept and utilize funds, property, and other resources
from all proper and lawful public and private sources so
long as those funds are used solely for addressing the
affordable housing needs of individuals or households that
may occupy low-income or moderate-income housing.
(2) A local government may create a community land
trust, which may: acquire developed or undeveloped
interests in real property and hold them for affordable
housing purposes; convey such interests under long-term
leases, including ground leases; convey such interests for
affordable housing purposes; and retain an option to
reacquire any such real property interests at a price
determined by a formula ensuring that such interests may be
utilized for affordable housing purposes.
(3) A local government may use its zoning powers to
require the creation and preservation of affordable
housing as authorized under Section 5-12001 of the Counties
Code and Section 11-13-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code.
(4) A local government may accept donations of money or

land for the purpose of addressing the affordable housing
needs of individuals or households that may occupy
low-income or moderate-income housing. These donations may
include, without limitation, donations of money or land
from persons in lieu of building affordable housing.
(e) In order to encourage regional cooperation and the
maximum creation of affordable housing in areas lacking such
housing in the State of Illinois, any non-exempt local
government may enter into intergovernmental agreements under
subsection (e) of Section 25 with local governments within 10
miles of its corporate boundaries in order to create affordable
housing units to meet the goals of this Act. A non-exempt local
government may not enter into an intergovernmental agreement,
however, with any local government that contains more than 25%
affordable housing as determined under Section 20 of this Act.
All intergovernmental agreements entered into to create
affordable housing units to meet the goals of this Act must
also specify the basis for determining how many of the
affordable housing units created will be credited to each local
government participating in the agreement for purposes of
complying with this Act. All intergovernmental agreements
entered into to create affordable housing units to meet the
goals of this Act must also specify the anticipated number of
newly created affordable housing units that are to be credited
to each local government participating in the agreement for
purposes of complying with this Act. In specifying how many

affordable housing units will be credited to each local
government, the same affordable housing unit may not be counted
by more than one local government.
(Source: P.A. 93-595, eff. 1-1-04; 93-678, eff. 6-28-04;
94-303, eff. 7-21-05.)
(310 ILCS 67/30)
Sec. 30. Appeal to State Housing Appeals Board.
(a) (Blank).
(b) Beginning January 1, 2009, an affordable housing
developer whose application is either denied or approved with
conditions that in his or her judgment render the provision of
affordable housing infeasible may, within 45 days after the
decision, appeal to the State Housing Appeals Board challenging
that decision unless the municipality or county that rendered
the decision is exempt under Section 15 of this Act. The
developer must submit information regarding why the developer
believes he or she was unfairly denied or unreasonable
conditions were placed upon the tentative approval of the
development. In the case of local governments that are
determined by the Illinois Housing Development Authority under
Section 20 to be non-exempt for the first time based on the
recalculation of U.S. Census Bureau decennial census data after
the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 98th General
Assembly 2010, no developer may appeal to the State Housing
Appeals Board until 60 months after a local government has been

notified of its non-exempt status.
(c) Beginning on the effective date of this amendatory Act
of the 98th General Assembly January 1, 2009, the Board shall,
whenever possible, render a decision on the appeal within 120
days after the appeal is filed. The Board may extend the time
by which it will render a decision where circumstances outside
the Board's control make it infeasible for the Board to render
a decision within 120 days. In any proceeding before the Board,
the affordable housing developer bears the burden of
demonstrating that the proposed affordable housing development
(i) has been unfairly denied or (ii) has had unreasonable
conditions placed upon it by the decision of the local
government.
(d) The Board shall dismiss any appeal if:
(i) the local government has adopted an affordable
housing plan as defined in Section 25 of this Act and
submitted that plan to the Illinois Housing Development
Authority within the time frame required by this Act; and
(ii) the local government has implemented its
affordable housing plan and has met its goal as established
in its affordable housing plan as defined in Section 25 of
this Act.
(e) The Board shall dismiss any appeal if the reason for
denying the application or placing conditions upon the approval
is a non-appealable local government requirement under Section
15 of this Act.

(f) The Board may affirm, reverse, or modify the conditions
of, or add conditions to, a decision made by the approving
authority. The decision of the Board constitutes an order
directed to the approving authority and is binding on the local
government.
(g) The appellate court has the exclusive jurisdiction to
review decisions of the Board. Any appeal to the Appellate
Court of a final ruling by the State Housing Appeals Board may
be heard only in the Appellate Court for the District in which
the local government involved in the appeal is located. The
appellate court shall apply the "clearly erroneous" standard
when reviewing such appeals. An appeal of a final ruling of the
Board shall be filed within 35 days after the Board's decision
and in all respects shall be in accordance with Section 3-113
of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(Source: P.A. 93-595, eff. 1-1-04; 94-303, eff. 7-21-05.)
(310 ILCS 67/50)
Sec. 50. Housing Appeals Board.
(a) Prior to January 1, 2008, a Housing Appeals Board shall
be created consisting of 7 members appointed by the Governor as
follows:
(1) a retired circuit judge or retired appellate judge,
who shall act as chairperson;
(2) a zoning board of appeals member;
(3) a planning board member;

(4) a mayor or municipal council or board member;
(5) a county board member;
(6) an affordable housing developer; and
(7) an affordable housing advocate.
In addition, the Chairman of the Illinois Housing
Development Authority, ex officio, shall serve as a non-voting
member. No more than 4 of the appointed members may be from the
same political party. Appointments under items (2), (3), and
(4) shall be from local governments that are not exempt under
this Act.
(b) Initial terms of 4 members designated by the Governor
shall be for 2 years. Initial terms of 3 members designated by
the Governor shall be for one year. Thereafter, members shall
be appointed for terms of 2 years. After a member's term
expires, the member shall continue to serve until a successor
is appointed. There shall be no limit to the number of terms an
appointee may serve. A member shall receive no compensation for
his or her services, but shall be reimbursed by the State for
all reasonable expenses actually and necessarily incurred in
the performance of his or her official duties. The board shall
hear all petitions for review filed under this Act and shall
conduct all hearings in accordance with the rules and
regulations established by the chairperson. The Illinois
Housing Development Authority shall provide space and clerical
and other assistance that the Board may require.
(c) (Blank).

(Source: P.A. 93-595, eff. 1-1-04; 94-303, eff. 7-21-05.)
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.