Creates the Long Island workforce housing incentive program

6 Co-sponsors

• Eric Adams
• Ruben Diaz
• Liz Krueger
• George Onorato
• Kevin S. Parker
• Antoine M. Thompson

Title of bill

An act to amend the general municipal law, in relation to creating the Long Island workforce housing incentive program

Purpose

Amends the General Municipal Law by adding a new Article 16-B establishing the Long Island Workforce Housing Incentive Program.

Summary of provisions

This legislation amends the General Municipal Law by adding a new Article 16-B establishing the Long Island Workforce Housing Incentive Program. The bill provides that when a local government approves the construction of five or more residential units through site plan, subdivision or mixed use development, that the developer provides 10% of the total units be affordable housing units (rounding up--thus five units would result in one unit of affordable housing). The bill also provides for density bonuses for builders and developers subject to this legislation.

Justification

More than one out of four households in the country, almost 24 million, confront housing cost burdens. According to the united States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), shelter costs should consume no more than approximately one-third -- in high costs areas such as Long Island, 35% is sometimes used as the standard -- of total income. It is estimated that more than one out of ten .house holds spend more than one-half of their incomes on housing with renters even more likely to have affordability difficulties. This problem is particularly acute in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.

The Nassau-Suffolk Primary Metropolitan Statistical Area as defined by HUD has been ranked the seventh least-affordable area in the nation for middle-income housing, according to a Washington, D.C.- based affordable housing organization. In the last four years, housing prices have risen 81% while household incomes have only increased 14%. This has put affordable homes and rental units out of reach for more and more individuals and families. Approximately 80% of Nassau and Suffolk's housing stock is owner occupied single-family homes, leaving an estimated 20% as rental units.

On Long Island, more than 25% of households -- and one-third of renters--pay more than 35% of their gross monthly income on their rent or mortgage. In fact, according to a study, Lack of Affordable Housing: Prescription for Disaster, which was recently conducted for the Long Island Housing Partnership, ratios of gross rent-to-income that exceed 50% are commonplace. Unless Long Island can expand its stock of affordable workforce housing, employers will face perpetual labor shortages and the region could face constricted economic growth.

Legislative history

2007-2008: S.3428, Referred to Local Government 2004: Senate -- S.4899 Referred to Local Government Assembly -- A.8060 Passed Assembly Senate - S.3966 Referred to Local Government

Fiscal implications

None to the state.

Effective date

This act shall take effect on the first of November.