Call to Action Name: Omnibus agriculture and housing bill.

Action Status: Active

Date Created: 05/12/2022

Author/Org: Sandra Larson/St. Croix Valley Indivisible/MN Legislative Action

Bill Number: HF4366, as amended

Companion Bill Number: SF4019

Quick Summary:

Ask Conference Committee Members to retain the housing provisions from the House version (from HF4366) in the Omnibus Agriculture, Housing and Broadband bill. The Senate version is not adequate to address the need. It also limits the governor’s ability to address evictions and penalizes cities that have attempted to address housing affordability with rent stabilization measures.

Long Description of the Issue:

Whether you live in Belle Plaine, Brooklyn Park, Burnsville or Blue Earth, a safe and affordable place to call home is essential to your ability to thrive.

But “home” shouldn’t include your car, a camping tent, or your friend’s couch!

Affordable housing is in short supply everywhere in Minnesota. More than 500,000 Minnesotans pay more than 30% of their income for housing — often considerably more. Greater Minnesota officials cite problems with finding affordable housing for workers and explain that it is a barrier to the growth of local industries.

Shamefully, Minnesota has great racial disparities in housing throughout the housing continuum, from overrepresentation of people of color in the homeless population to one of the worst-in-the-nation racial disparities in home ownership. Recently we have learned that eviction filings in Minnesota not only have resumed after a moratorium lifted in October, but the pace of filings is soaring.

This is clearly a situation where markets aren’t providing enough affordable housing to meet the need.

The House provisions (from HF4366) of the Omnibus Agriculture and Housing Bill will enable more families to build wealth, provide funds for workforce housing, homelessness prevention and affordable homeownership development. It appropriates nearly $230 million to fund or increase funding for various affordable housing projects through both existing programs and new initiatives, such as:

• Workforce housing development
• Rental assistance
• Homework starts with home: expands eligibility for assistance for housing insecure families
• Family Homeless Prevention: Assistance for families who are homeless or are at imminent risk of homelessness
• Community Stabilization: to finance​ improvements for naturally occurring​ affordable housing
• Strengthen the Supportive Housing​ Model: Supportive housing for individuals at risk of or have experienced homelessness
• Lead safe homes grant program for low income rental units
• Homeownership Education,​ Counseling, and Training Program​
• First-Generation Homebuyers Down​ Payment Assistance Fund​
• Local housing trust fund grants​
• Manufactured Home Park Cooperative​ Purchase Program​
• Funds to Department of Human Rights human rights to investigate​ sources of income discrimination cases in​ housing.​

The Senate Housing bill, SF4019, does not even begin to address the need for more affordable housing, only providing some funds to help address workforce housing needs through a homeownership grant program. It limits the governor’s ability to prevent evictions, and fails to adequately address racial disparities in housing. In addition, the bill prohibits the use of housing funds for those cities that have sought to improve the affordability of the rental housing pool through rent stabilization measures.

Resources:

Side by side comparison of the House and Senate versions

Star Tribune, Minnesota Eviction filings soard in April

Naturally Occuring Homes Fact Sheet 

Challenge program Fact Sheet

Homelessness Statistics

Call to Action:

Ask that key legislators in the Conference Committee ensure that the provisions from the House version (HF4366) of the Omnibus Agriculture and Housing Bill are included in the final bill. Further, ask that conferees reject the provisions of the Senate version that limit the governor from preventing evictions and which create barriers for cities to solve housing problems locally city ordinances. Be sure to contact the 2 chairs of the Conference Committee. If other members of the committee represent you, please contact them as well.

Find my rep:  https://www.gis.lcc.mn.gov/iMaps/districts/

Sample Script:

[Representative/Senator] X,

Whether you live in Belle Plaine, Brooklyn Park, Burnsville or Blue Earth, a safe and affordable place to call home is essential to your ability to thrive.

But “home” shouldn’t include your car, a camping tent, or your friend’s couch! Markets are not providing enough affordable housing to meet the need throughout the state. The House provisions (from HF4366) of the Omnibus Agriculture and Housing Bill will enable more families to build wealth, provide funds for workforce housing, homelessness prevention and affordable homeownership development, providing funds for both existing programs and new initiatives.

For the good of all Minnesotans, support legislation that robustly funds affordable housing. Vote to ensure that the House provisions are retained in the final Omnibus Agriculture, Housing and Broadband bill. Additionally, please reject the provisions encompassed in the Senate version that limit the power of the governor to address evictions and that penalize cities that have attempted to address affordable rental housing with rent stabilization ordinances.

Respectfully, [Your Name, City]

Bill status, HF4376/SF4019 Omnibus Agriculture and Housing Bill:

Being negotiated in the Conference Committee. Hearings were held on 5/11/2022 and 5/12/2022.

Type: State

Category: Housing