wa-law.org > bill > 2025-26 > HB 2236 > Original Bill
It is declared to be the public policy of the state and a recognized governmental function to assist in making affordable and decent housing available throughout the state and by so doing to contribute to the general welfare. Decent housing for the people of our state is a most important public concern. Interest rates and construction costs have made it impossible for many Washington citizens to purchase their own homes. Older people, individuals with disabilities, and low and moderate-income families often cannot afford to rent decent housing. There exists throughout the state a serious shortage of safe, sanitary and energy efficient housing available at prices within the financial means of our citizens. General economic development within the state is also impeded by a lack of affordable housing. The state's economy, which is dependent on the timber, wood products, and construction industries, has been damaged by inadequate investment in housing construction and rehabilitation. The result has been high unemployment and economic hardship affecting the prosperity of all the people of the state, particularly those in the wood products industry.
It is the purpose of this chapter to establish a state housing finance commission to act as a constituted authority and financial conduit which, without lending the credit of the state or local government, can issue nonrecourse revenue bonds and participate in federal, state, and local housing programs and thereby make additional funds available at affordable rates to help provide housing throughout the state. It is also a primary purpose of this chapter to encourage the use of Washington state forest products in residential construction. This chapter is enacted to accomplish these and related purposes and shall be liberally construed to carry out its purposes and objectives.
In addition to other powers and duties prescribed in this chapter, and in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter to provide decent, safe, sanitary, and affordable housing for eligible persons, the commission is empowered to:
Issue bonds in accordance with this chapter;
Invest in, purchase, or make commitments to purchase or take assignments from mortgage lenders of mortgages or mortgage loans;
Make mortgage loans to borrowers and make loans to or deposits with mortgage lenders for the purpose of making mortgage loans;
Make loans for down payment assistance to homebuyers in conjunction with other commission programs; and
Participate fully in federal and other governmental programs and to take such actions as are necessary and consistent with this chapter to secure to itself and the people of the state the benefits of those programs and to meet their requirements, including such actions as the commission considers appropriate in order to have the interest payments on its bonds and other obligations treated as tax exempt under the code.
The commission shall establish eligibility standards for eligible persons, considering at least the following factors:
Income;
Family size;
Cost, condition, and energy efficiency of available residential housing;
Availability of decent, safe, and sanitary housing;
Age or infirmity; and
Applicable federal, state, and local requirements.
The state auditor shall audit the books, records, and affairs of the commission annually to determine, among other things, if the use of bond proceeds complies with the general plan of housing finance objectives including compliance with the objective for the use of financing assistance for implementation of cost-effective energy efficiency measures in dwellings.
In addition to other powers and duties specified in this chapter, the commission may:
Establish in resolutions relating to any issuance of bonds, or in any financing documents relating to such issuance, such standards and requirements applicable to the purchase of mortgages and mortgage loans or the making of loans to mortgage lenders and mortgage loans to borrowers as the commission deems necessary or desirable, including but not limited to: (a) The time within which mortgage lenders must make commitments and disbursements for mortgages or mortgage loans; (b) the location and other characteristics of single-family housing or multifamily housing to be financed by mortgages and mortgage loans; (c) the terms and conditions of mortgages and mortgage loans to be acquired or made; (d) the amounts and types of insurance coverage required on mortgages, mortgage loans, and bonds; (e) the representations and warranties of mortgage lenders and borrowers confirming compliance with such standards and requirements; (f) restrictions as to interest rate and other terms of mortgages or mortgage loans or the return realized therefrom by mortgage lenders; (g) the type and amount of collateral security to be provided to assure repayment of any loans from the commission and to assure repayment of bonds; and (h) any other matters related to the purchase of mortgages or mortgage loans or the making of loans to borrowers and lending institutions as shall be deemed relevant by the commission;
Sue and be sued in its own name;
Make and execute contracts and all other instruments necessary or convenient for the exercise of its purposes or powers, including but not limited to contracts or agreements for the origination, servicing, and administration of mortgages or mortgage loans, and the borrowing of money;
Procure such insurance, including but not limited to insurance: (a) Against any loss in connection with its property and other assets, including but not limited to mortgages or mortgage loans, in such amounts and from such insurers as the commission deems desirable, and (b) to indemnify members of the commission for acts done in the course of their duties;
Provide for the investment of any funds, including funds held in reserve, not required for immediate disbursement, and provide for the selection of investments;
Fix, revise, and collect fees and charges in connection with the investigation and financing of housing or in connection with assignments, contracts, purchases of mortgages or mortgage loans, or any other actions permitted under this chapter or by the commission; and receive grants and contributions;
Make such expenditures as are appropriate for paying the administrative costs of the commission and for carrying out the provisions of this chapter. These expenditures may be made only from funds consisting of the commission's receipts from fees and charges, grants and contributions, the proceeds of bonds issued by the commission, and other revenues; these expenditures shall not be made from funds of the state of Washington;
Establish such special funds, and controls on deposits to and disbursements from them, as it finds convenient for the implementation of this chapter;
Conduct such investigations and feasibility studies as it deems appropriate;
Proceed with foreclosure actions or accept deeds in lieu of foreclosure together with the assignments of leases and rentals incidental thereto. Any properties acquired by the commission through such actions shall be sold as soon as practicable through persons licensed under chapter 18.85 RCW or at public auction, or by transfer to a public agency. In preparation for the disposition of the properties, the commission may own, lease, clear, construct, reconstruct, rehabilitate, repair, maintain, manage, operate, assign, or encumber the properties;
Take assignments of leases and rentals;
Subject to any provisions of the commission's contracts with the holders of obligations of the commission, consent to any modification with respect to rate of interest, time, and payment of any installment of principal or interest or any other term of any contract, mortgage, mortgage loan, mortgage loan commitment, contract, or agreement of any kind;
Subject to provisions of the commission's contracts with the holders of bonds, permit the reduction of rental or carrying charges to persons unable to pay the regular rent or schedule of charges if, by reason of other income of the commission or by reason of payment by any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States or of this state, the reduction can be made without jeopardizing the economic stability of the housing being financed;
Sell, at public or private sale, with or without public bidding, any mortgage, mortgage loan, or other instrument or asset held by the commission;
Employ, contract with, or engage engineers, architects, attorneys, financial advisors, bond underwriters, mortgage lenders, mortgage administrators, housing construction or financing experts, other technical or professional assistants, and such other personnel as are necessary. The commission may delegate to the appropriate persons the power to execute legal instruments on its behalf;
Receive contributions or grants from any source unless otherwise prohibited;
Impose covenants running with the land in order to satisfy and enforce the requirements of applicable state and federal law and commission policy with respect to housing or other facilities financed by the commission or assisted by federal, state, or local programs administered by the commission, by executing and recording regulatory agreements or other covenants between the commission and the person or entity to be bound. These regulatory agreements and covenants shall run with the land and be enforceable by the commission or its successors or assigns against the person or entity making the regulatory agreement or covenants or its successors or assigns, even though there may be no privity of estate or privity of contract between the commission or its successors or assigns and the person or entity against whom enforcement is sought. The term of any such covenant shall be set forth in the recorded agreement containing the covenant. This subsection shall apply to regulatory agreements and covenants previously entered into by the commission as well as regulatory agreements and covenants entered into by the commission on or after July 27, 1997;
Delegate any of its powers and duties if consistent with the purposes of this chapter;
Exercise any other power reasonably required to implement the purposes of this chapter.
From February 15, 2010, through June 30, 2011, neither the commission nor its designees may grant any monetary performance-based awards or incentives to any employee. This subsection does not prohibit the payment of awards provided for in chapter 41.60 RCW.
The commission shall adopt written policies to provide for the selection of bond counsel. The policies shall provide for the creation and maintenance of a roster of attorneys whom the commission believes possess the requisite special expertise and professional standing to provide bond counsel opinions which would be accepted by the underwriters, bondholders, and other members of the financial community, and which would be in furtherance of the public interest in obtaining the lowest possible interest rates on the bonds issued by the commission. Any attorney may apply to have his or her name placed on the roster, but may not be placed on the roster unless the attorney demonstrates to the commission's satisfaction that the attorney would issue the kind of opinions required by this section.
Prior to selecting an attorney or attorneys to provide bond counsel services, the commission shall provide all attorneys on the roster with a notice of its intentions to select bond counsel and shall invite each of them to submit to the commission his or her fee schedule for providing bond counsel services. The commission shall have wide discretion in selecting the attorney or attorneys it considers to be most appropriate to provide the services, but in the exercise of this discretion the commission shall consider all submitted fee schedules and the public interest in achieving both savings in bond counsel fees and issuance of bonds on terms most favorable to the commission. At least once every four calendar years, the commission shall select anew an attorney or attorneys to serve as bond counsel. However, the commission may retain an attorney for longer than four years when necessary to complete work on a particular bond issue. An attorney previously retained may be selected again but only after the commission has provided other attorneys on the roster with an opportunity to be selected and has made the fee schedule review required under this subsection. In addition to or as an alternative to retaining counsel for a period of time, the commission may appoint an attorney to serve as counsel in respect to only a particular bond issue.
The commission's bonds shall bear such date or dates, mature at such time or times, be in such denominations, be in such form, be registered or registrable in such manner, be made transferable, exchangeable, and interchangeable, be payable in such medium of payment, at such place or places, be subject to such terms of redemption, bear such fixed or variable rate or rates of interest, be payable at such time or times, and be sold in such manner and at such price or prices, as the commission determines. The bonds shall be executed by the chair, by either its duly elected secretary or its treasurer, and by the trustee or paying agent if the commission determines to use a trustee or paying agent for the bonds. Execution of the bonds may be by manual or facsimile signature.
The bonds of the commission shall be subject to such terms, conditions, covenants, and protective provisions as are found necessary or desirable by the commission, including, but not limited to, pledges of the commission's assets, setting aside of reserves, limitations on additional forms of indebtedness, and the mortgaging of all or any part of the commission's real or personal property, then owned or thereafter acquired, and other provisions the commission finds are necessary or desirable for the security of bondholders.
Any security interest created in the unexpended bond proceeds and in the special funds created by the commission shall be immediately valid and binding against such moneys and any securities in which such moneys may be invested without commission or trustee possession thereof, and the security interest shall be prior to any party having any competing claim in such moneys or securities, without filing or recording pursuant to chapter 62A.9 RCW and regardless of whether the party has notice of the security interest.
When issuing bonds, the commission may provide for the future issuance of additional bonds or parity debt on a parity with outstanding bonds, and the terms and conditions of their issuance. The commission may refund or advance refund any bond of the commission in accordance with chapter 39.53 RCW or issue bonds with a subordinate lien against the fund or funds securing outstanding bonds.
5.
The members of the commission and any person executing the bonds are not liable personally on the indebtedness or subject to any personal liability or accountability by reason of the issuance thereof.