Bill > HB0794

This bill allows a municipality that has operated a sewer system outside its city limits and has had a five-year or longer moratorium on new sewer connections in those areas to extend sewer service or allow connections only within a designated "adjacency area" (an area outside the city but next to it that the municipality could reasonably serve). This extension is contingent on the property owner or developer paying a "housing surcharge," which is a fee or assessment collected to fund affordable housing within the municipality's city limits. The bill outlines how this surcharge can be collected, including payment over time, and specifies that it can be up to 3% of the appraised value for residential lots and up to 5% for commercial developments, with different rates for undeveloped land and construction. The collected surcharge money must go into a dedicated "affordable housing trust fund" to support affordable housing projects within the city, and the municipality can even issue bonds backed by these funds. The bill also clarifies that this surcharge is in addition to any other standard fees and that it does not expand the city's corporate boundaries.