February 7, 2008

SPECIAL LEGISLATIVE ALERT UPDATE
“Proffer” Bill Passes State Senate Finance Committee
Senate Bill 768 Would Eliminate Voluntary Contributions for Affordable/Workforce Housing through Rezoning Process.  Parks, Road Improvements, Schools Also Impacted.

2/7/2008 UPDATE:  Senate Bill 768, which proposes drastic changes to the land use “proffer” system and could have a significant negative impact on affordable/workforce housing in Fairfax County, passed the Virginia Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday, Feb. 6 and could be considered by the full Senate on Monday, February 11.  In addition to negatively impacting affordable/workforce housing, the bill could also prevent Fairfax County from receiving contributions for schools, parks, road improvements and a variety of other vital public facilities and improvements currently produced via the proffer system. On Friday, Jan. 18, the Board of Supervisors Legislative Committee (with seven Board members present) voted to oppose Senate Bill 768.

Fairfax County’s State Senate Delegation:  Senators Barker, Cuccinelli, Herring, Howell, Peterson, Puller, Saslaw, Ticer and Whipple. 

Senate Bill 768 and Fairfax County’s Workforce Housing Program:   The provision of the bill which restricts non-cash, on-site proffers in residential rezonings or mixed-use rezonings with a residential component to “… conditions necessitated by and attributable to the new development resulting from the rezoning” would likely doom Fairfax County’s new Workforce Housing Program.  This program depends on units being proffered by developers, and has already had significant success: from June 2006 through October 2007, 731 new Workforce units had been committed through the rezoning process. 

The full text of Senate Bill 768, as approved by the Senate Finance Committee, can be found at: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?081+ful+SB768S1+hil.  Further updates will be provided as new developments warrant.