House Bill 111 Summary

• Establishes the Mississippi Affordable Housing Opportunity Fund to assist extremely low-income to moderate-income persons in accessing affordable rental and home ownership housing throughout the state.

• Dedicates 2.5% of sales taxes collected on lumber and building materials to the fund, beginning August 15, 2018, with additional funding from loan repayments, grants, and investment income.

• Authorizes Mississippi Home Corporation to administer the fund and create rules for competitive applications, with distributions directed toward rental assistance, down payment assistance, housing construction/rehabilitation, and housing-related support services.

• Requires at least 60% of annual fund distributions benefit low-income individuals, at least 15% benefit extremely low-income individuals, at least 55% benefit rural areas, and limits administrative costs to $400,000 annually or 8% of the fund.

• Creates an 11-member Advisory Council to provide recommendations on fund operations and establishes a minimum 15-year affordability period for all housing projects financed by the fund.