Workforce housing tax credits

This bill creates a workforce housing tax credit program administered by the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority.

Under the bill, WHEDA may certify a person to claim a nonrefundable credit to offset income and franchise taxes if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

1. The project for which the credit is issued is an eligible workforce housing project. Under the bill, a project is an eligible workforce housing project only if the project is for the construction or renovation of residential real property located in a county with a population density of less than 155 persons per square mile, there is a need for additional manufacturing workers in the area in which the project is located, and a lack of adequate housing in the area is a barrier to filling that need.

2. The person is a lender financing an eligible workforce housing project, the developer of the project, or the business for whose benefit the project is being carried out.

3. The person has exhausted all funding available for the project from community development block grants, local assistance, including tax incremental financing, and assistance otherwise available from WHEDA.

4. The occupants of the housing being constructed or renovated will have a household income that satisfies the income limitations applicable for the homeownership mortgage loan program administered by WHEDA under current law.

The bill requires WHEDA to establish a competitive process for the award of tax credits that gives priority to all of the following:

1. The number of jobs that will be created in connection with the eligible workforce housing project.

2. The amount of matching funds secured by the applicant.

3. The applicant's readiness to proceed with the project.

Under the bill, WHEDA may not certify a person to claim a workforce housing tax credit in an amount that exceeds 50 percent of the total cost of the eligible workforce housing project. Additionally, WHEDA may not award more than $10,000,000 in workforce housing tax credits and no credit may be awarded after December 31, 2021. The bill requires WHEDA to transfer $10,000,000 from its surplus fund to the state's general fund as an offset against the tax credits WHEDA awards under the program.

Additionally, the bill includes certain contracting and tax credit revocation requirements and requires WHEDA to coordinate with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation to administer the tax credit program. WHEDA must submit a report on the program to the Joint Committee on Finance no later than September 31, 2022.

Reports on economic development revolving loan funds

This bill also requires the Department of Administration to submit an annual report to the Joint Committee on Finance concerning moneys held by DOA in connection with economic development revolving loan funds funded by federal community development block grants administered by DOA, including all moneys derived from the liquidation and close-out of such a revolving loan fund. The report must include all of the following:

1. The balance of the account associated with each revolving loan fund.

2. The accounts receivable for each such account.

3. A detailed description of all expenditures from the account, including a description of each project funded by a grant awarded from the account.

4. A detailed description of all expenditures from the account DOA intends to make before March 15 of the year following the report. Under the bill, if JCF objects to any such intended expenditure, JCF may reallocate the moneys consistent with federal requirements for expenditure of the moneys.

For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

SB484,1 Section 1. 16.309 (4) of the statutes is created to read:

SB484,3,6 16.309 (4) (a) In this subsection, “revolving loan fund account” means all moneys held by the department in connection with each economic development revolving loan fund that is funded by a community development block grant under this section, including all moneys derived from the liquidation and close-out of the revolving loan fund.

SB484,3,9 (b) Annually, no later than March 15, the department shall submit a report to the joint committee on finance that includes all of the following information for each revolving loan fund account:

SB484,3,10 1. The account balance.

SB484,3,11 2. All accounts receivable, if any.

SB484,3,13 3. A detailed description of all account expenditures, including a description of each project funded by a grant awarded from the account.