§ 17-106. Affordable Housing Advisory Board powers and duties.

(a)

Creation and Designation. The Miami-Dade County Affordable Housing Advisory Board is hereby created and established. It shall be Miami-Dade County's Affordable Housing Advisory Committee as required in Section 420.9072 and Section 420.9076 of the Florida Statutes.

(b)

Membership; compensation. The Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall consist of fifteen (15) members. Members shall serve without compensation but shall be entitled to reimbursement for necessary expenses incurred in the discharge of their duties.

(c)

Composition. The voting membership shall be ethnically, racially, geographically and gender balanced and shall be composed of the following members:

(1)

The Board of County Commissioners shall appoint thirteen (13) members:

i.

One (1) citizen actively engaged in the residential home building industry as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

ii.

One (1) citizen actively engaged in the banking or mortgage banking industry as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

iii.

One (1) citizen representative of the areas of labor actively engaged in home building as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

iv.

One (1) citizen who is actively engaged as an advocate for low-income persons in connection with affordable housing as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

v.

One (1) citizen who is actively engaged as a for-profit provider of housing as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

vi.

One (1) citizen who is actively engaged as a not-for profit provider of affordable housing as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

vii.

One (1) citizen who is actively engaged as a real estate professional as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

viii.

One (1) citizen who actively serves on the local planning agency pursuant to Section 163.3174, Florida Statutes as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

ix.

One (1) citizen who resides within the jurisdiction of the local governing body making the appointments as required by Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes.

x.

One (1) citizen who represents employers within the jurisdiction.

xi.

One (1) citizen who represents essential services personnel, as defined in the local housing assistance plan.

xii.

For the remaining two (2) member positions, the Board of County Commissioners may consider the appointment of a member of the construction industry, a local community development corporation, attorney, architect, engineer, or planning professionals.

(2)

The Mayor shall appoint one (1) member who is a member of the construction industry, local community development corporation, attorney, architect, engineer, planning professional.

(3)

The Overall Tenant Advisory Council ("OTAC") shall appoint one (1) of its members.

(d)

Terms of office, tenure and removal of members. All members shall serve staggered terms of four (4) years. Provided, however, that the original board members shall serve staggered terms in the following manner: three (3) members shall serve an initial term of one (1) year; four (4) members shall serve an initial term of two (2) years; four (4) members shall serve a term of four (4) years. No member shall serve more than two (2) terms of four (4) years each. Members may be removed in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 2-11.38 of the Code of Miami-Dade County. Vacancies of the Board shall be filled in the same manner by which the Board members were appointed.

(e)

Qualification. Each member of the Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall comply with the requirements of Section 2-11.38 of the Code of Miami-Dade County. Furthermore, a citizen shall not be eligible to serve on the Affordable Housing Advisory Board if that citizen owns a financial interest in, is employed by, or is an officer of any entity that receives or applies for funding from Miami-Dade County through the Affordable Housing Advisory Board. If, at any time, a member is found to violate this qualification, the member shall automatically forfeit his or her position on the Affordable Housing Advisory Board without action of any body or person. Additionally, pursuant to Section 420.9076(2), Florida Statutes, if, due to a presence of a conflict of interest by prospective appointees, or other reasonable factor, the Board is unable to appoint a citizen actively engaged in or in connection with affordable housing, a citizen engaged in the activity without regard to affordable housing may be appointed. All efforts shall be made to appoint persons who are engaged in or connected with affordable housing and only when such an appointment cannot be made will the Board appoint a citizen without regard to experience in affordable housing.

(f)

Organization and procedure.

(1)

Officers: Members of the Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall organize after the members have been qualified to serve and shall elect one (1) of its members as chairperson, one (1) of its members as vice-chair person and any such other officers the advisory board may determine to be necessary. Officers shall be elected annually.

(2)

By-laws, rules and regulations. The Board shall make, adopt and amend by-laws, rules and regulations for its own governance.

(3)

Meetings. Meetings shall be conducted upon the call of the chairperson; however, the Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall meet at least six (6) times during the County's fiscal year. A majority of the members of the Board shall constitute a quorum. Minutes shall be kept of all meetings of the Board and all meetings shall be public.

(4)

Committees. The Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall appoint any committees it deems necessary.

(5)

Applicability of County rules and procedures. The Board shall operate at all times under the Florida Open Government Laws, including the "Sunshine Law," public meeting laws and public records laws and shall be governed by all state and County conflict of interest laws, as applicable, including the Metropolitan Miami-Dade County conflict of Interest and Code of Ethics Ordinance, as amended. Methods of organization and the conduct of business shall be governed by the Mason's manual of Legislative Procedure (1953 Edition).

(6)

Statutory requirements. Pursuant to Section 420.9076(5), Florida Statutes, the approval by the Affordable Housing Advisory Board of its local housing incentive strategies recommendations and its review of the local government implementation of previously recommended strategies must be made by affirmative vote of a majority of the membership of the Affordable Housing Advisory Board taken at a public hearing. Notice of the time, date, and place of the public hearing of the Affordable Housing Advisory Board to adopt its final local housing incentive strategies recommendations must be published in a newspaper of general paid circulation in Miami-Dade County. The notice must contain a short and concise summary of the local housing incentives strategies recommendations to be considered by the advisory committee. The notice must state the public place where a copy of the tentative advisory committee recommendations can be obtained by interested persons.

(g)

Powers and duties. The Affordable Housing Advisory Board as the affordable housing advisory committee shall review Miami-Dade County's established policies and procedures, ordinances, land development regulations and adopted comprehensive plan and shall make recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners regarding specific actions or initiatives to encourage or facilitate affordable housing while protecting the ability of property to appreciate in value. The recommendations may include the modification or repeal of existing policies, procedures, ordinances, regulations, or plan provisions, the creation of exceptions applicable to affordable housing, or the adoption of new policies, procedures, regulations, ordinances, or plan provisions, including recommendations to amend the adopted comprehensive plan and corresponding regulations, ordinances, and other policies.

At a minimum, the Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall submit to the Board of County Commissioners a report that includes recommendations on, and triennially thereafter evaluates the implementation of, affordable housing incentives in the following areas:

(1)

The definition of affordable housing.

(2)

The expedited processing of permits for affordable housing projects.

(3)

The modification of impact fee requirements, including reduction or waiver of fees and alternative methods of fee payment.

(4)

The allowance of flexibility in densities.

(5)

The reservation of infrastructure capacity for housing of very-low-income, low-income, and moderate-income persons.

(6)

The transfer of development rights as a financing mechanism for housing of very-low-income, low-income, and moderate-income persons.

(7)

The reduction of parking and setback requirements.

(8)

The allowance of flexible lot configurations, including zero-lot-line configurations.

(9)

The modification of sidewalk and street requirements.

(10)

The establishment of a process by which the local government considers, before adoption, policies, procedures, ordinances, regulations or plan provisions that have a significant impact on the cost of housing.

(11)

The preparation of a printed inventory of locally owned public lands suitable for affordable housing.

(12)

The identification of other affordable housing incentives.

(13)

To the maximum extent feasible, the quantification of the affordable housing costs reduction anticipated from implementing the specific recommendation.

(14)

The allowance of affordable accessory residential units in residential zoning districts.

(15)

The support of development near transportation hubs and major employment centers and mixed-use developments.

(h)

Additional SHIP duties. In addition to the responsibilities prescribed in subsection (c), the Affordable Housing Advisory Board its capacity as affordable housing advisory committee shall:

(1)

Advise the Board of County Commissioners of how its policies impact affordable housing programs.

(2)

Assist in the development of a local housing assistance program pursuant to Section 420.9075 of the Florida Statutes and an affordable housing incentive plan pursuant to Section 420.9076 of the Florida Statutes.

(3)

Make recommendations concerning the County's affordable housing waivers and deferrals of impact fees.

(4)

Conduct studies and identify methods to reduce development costs and shorten governmental review periods for affordable housing developments.

(5)

Identify additional resources for affordable housing programs.

(6)

Make recommendations based on the results of any economic impact study required by ordinance or resolution.

(7)

Make funding recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners on the expenditure and allocation of funds relating to housing development where such recommendations are not made by another Board of County Commissioners approved advisory entity.

(8)

Any other duties related to affordable housing which may be assigned by the Board of County Commissioners from time to time.

(i)

Reporting requirements.

(1)

The Affordable Housing Advisory Board in its capacity as affordable housing advisory committee shall submit an annual report of its SHIP activities to the Board of County Commissioners prior to June 30 of each year.

(2)

In order to assist the County in preparing the annual affordable housing report required by Section 420.9075(8), Florida Statutes, the Affordable Housing Advisory Board shall submit a report to the Board of County Commissioners by October 31 of each year. At a minimum, the report shall include:

a.

The number of people served by the Affordable Housing Programs according to income, age, family size, race and special needs such as farmworkers, rural residents, and the elderly.

b.

The number of units and the average costs of producing units under each of the Affordable Housing Programs.

c.

The average sales price of a single-family unit and the average amount of rent charged for a rental unit based on unit size.

d.

The number of mortgages made and the rate of default.

e.

A description of the implementation of the affordable housing incentive plan and the resulting reduction in housing costs.

f.

Such other relevant data or affordable housing accomplishments.

(Ord. No. 95-70, § 6, 4-18-95; Ord. No. 97-65, § 3, 5-20-97; Ord. No. 01-46, § 1, 3-20-01; Ord. No. 03-39, § 1, 3-11-03; Ord. No. 07-18, § 5, 2-6-07; Ord. No. 07-122, § 2, 9-4-07)