Committee hears bill to authorize land banks to advance affordable housing

The House Housing Committee held a public hearing on House Bill 19-74 on Jan. 19, considering a proposed substitute that would authorize land banks to assemble, hold and transfer property for affordable-housing development.

Jim Morishima, staff to the committee, described the proposed substitute as enabling multiple entity types (public corporations created by local governments, public housing authorities and tax-exempt nonprofit corporations) to act as land banks. He said the substitute requires housing developed via a land bank to maintain affordability for 30 years and authorizes land banks to acquire, hold, improve, lease or transfer property, while exempting land-banked property from certain real-estate excise and property-tax treatments in statute.

"Land acquisitions must be consistent with existing local, regional, or state housing plans and demonstrate alignment with housing targets," Morishima summarized during the staff briefing.

Witnesses from Spokane's regional land bank and housing authorities told the committee that the legislation fills a gap in the state's toolbox by providing a coordinated mechanism to assemble difficult parcels, clear title issues, and lower acquisition costs for affordable developers. Amy Manning of the Spokane Regional Land Bank said coordinated land banking creates a pipeline of development-ready parcels that can reduce land costs and accelerate affordable housing production. Chris Collier of the Association of Washington Housing Authorities said the bill aligns with existing housing-authority affordability requirements and will allow housing authorities to scale coordinated land-banking work.

Developer representatives, equity advocates and homelessness-service providers also testified in support. Reggie Brown, representing an underrepresented-developers collective, said HB 19-74 would increase fairness and open development opportunities for smaller and emerging developers. Housing advocates highlighted the bill’s equity and anti-displacement planning requirements and encouraged passage to help jurisdictions meet state-mandated housing targets.

Committee members queried staff about a provision prioritizing county tax-foreclosed properties for transfer to land banks. Rep. Rob Jacobson asked whether that provision applies only to properties that have completed the county auction process; staff said the provision is placed in the chapter on tax-foreclosed properties and appears to target properties that have gone through auction but that staff would follow up with a more detailed analysis.

Supporters asked for a restored grant program removed from the substitute and urged technical fixes to clarify which entities receive tax-exemption benefits and how the new authority interacts with local planning.

The hearing closed with sponsor and staff acknowledgement that technical amendments will likely follow.