§ 2-134. Definition of terms.

For purposes of their use in this division, specific terms shall be defined as follows:

Adjusted for family size means adjusted in a manner which results in an income eligibility level that is lower for households having fewer than four people, or higher for households having more than four people, than the base income eligibility determined as provided in Florida Statutes, based upon a formula established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Adjusted gross income means wages, income from assets, regular cash or noncash contributions, and any other resources and benefits determined to be income by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development adjusted for family size, minus the deductions under Section 61 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

Affordable means that monthly rents or monthly mortgage payments, including taxes and insurance, do not exceed 30 percent of that amount which represents the percentage of the median adjusted gross annual income for the households qualifying under the definitions of very low-income, low-income, or moderate-income persons.

Award means a loan, grant, or subsidy funded wholly or partially by the local housing distribution.

Community-based organization means a nonprofit organization that has among its purposes the provisions of affordable housing to persons who have special housing needs or have very low-income, low-income, or moderate-income within a designated area, which may include a municipality, a county, or more than one municipality or county, and maintains, through at least one-third of the organization's governing board, accountability to housing program beneficiaries and residents of the designated area.

Eligible housing means any real and personal property which is designed and intended for the primary purpose of providing decent, safe and sanitary residential units that are designed to meet the standards of F.S. ch. 553, for homeownership or rental for eligible persons as designated by the county or eligible municipality participating in the local housing assistance program.

Eligible person means one or more persons or a family determined by the county to be of very low-income, low-income or moderate-income according to the adjusted gross income of the resident with adjustment made for family size.

Eligible sponsor means a community-based organization, a person, or a private or public for-profit or not-for-profit entity that applies for assistance under the local housing assistance program for the purpose of providing eligible housing for eligible persons.

Grant means a distribution of a portion of a local housing distribution to an eligible sponsor or eligible person to provide assistance under the local housing assistance program.

Homeownership means a distribution of a portion of a local housing distribution to an eligible person or eligible sponsor for construction, rehabilitation, purchase, or lease-purchase financing of owner-occupied eligible housing.

Interlocal entity means any entity created pursuant to the provisions of F.S. ch. 163, part I, for the purpose of a joint local housing assistance program pursuant to the provisions of F.S. § 420.9075(5), or for the purpose of a joint affordable housing incentive plan pursuant to the provisions of F.S. § 420.9076(2).

Loan means a pledge, of the local housing distribution monies to an eligible sponsor or eligible person to finance the acquisition, construction or rehabilitation of eligible housing.

Local housing assistance plan means a concise description of the local housing assistance program adopted by ordinance with an explanation of the way in which the program meets the requirements of this division and F.S. §§ 420.907 through 420.9079, and Rule 9I-37, Florida Administrative Code.

Local housing partnership means the implementation of the local housing assistance program in a manner that involves, but is not limited to: Santa Rosa County, community-based organizations, for-profit housing developers, lending institutions, providers of professional services relating to affordable housing, and service organizations working on behalf of persons with special housing needs. The term includes initiatives to provide support services for housing program beneficiaries such as training to prepare persons for the responsibility of homeownership, counseling of tenants, and the establishment of support services such as day care, health care, and transportation.

Low-income person means one or more persons or a family, not including students, that has a total annual adjusted gross household income that does not exceed 80 percent of the median annual adjusted gross income for households within the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). With respect to rental units, the low-income household's annual adjusted gross income at the time of initial occupancy may not exceed 80 percent of area median income adjusted for family size. While occupying the rental unit, the low-income household's annual gross income may increase to an amount not to exceed 140 percent of 80 percent of the state's median income adjusted for family size.

Moderate-income person means one or more persons or a family, not including students, that has a total annual adjusted gross income for the household that does not exceed 120 percent of the median annual adjusted gross income for households within the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). With respect to rental units, the moderate income household's annual adjusted gross income at the time of initial occupancy may not exceed of the area median income adjusted for family size. While occupying the rental unit, a moderate income household's annual adjusted gross income may increase to an amount not to exceed 140 percent of 120 percent of the state's median income adjusted for family size.

Personal property means major appliances, including a freestanding refrigerator or stove, to be identified on the encumbering documents.

Persons who have special housing needs means persons who have incomes not exceeding moderate-income and who because of particular social, economic, or health related circumstances have greater difficulty acquiring or maintaining affordable housing. Such persons may, for example, encounter resistance to their residing in particular communities, increased housing costs resulting from unique needs, and high risk of institutionalization. Such persons may, but are not limited to, persons with developmental disabilities; persons with mental illness/chemical dependency; persons with AIDS and HIV disease; public assistance recipients; migrant and seasonal farmworkers; refugees and entrants; and the elderly and disabled adults.

Student means a person not living with his or her parent or guardian who is eligible to be claimed by the person's parent or guardian under the Federal Income Tax Code and who is enrolled at least half time in a secondary school, vocational school, community college, or university. The term does not include a person participating in a job training program approved by the county.

Very low-income person means one or more persons or a family, not including students, that has a total annual adjusted gross household income that does not exceed 50 percent of the median annual adjusted gross income for households within the Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). With respect to rental units, the very low income person's annual income at the time of initial occupancy may not exceed 50 percent adjusted for family size. While occupying the rental unit, a very low income person's annual income may increase to an amount not to exceed 140 percent of 50 percent of the state's median income adjusted for family size.

(Ord. No. 93-09, § IV, 4-22-93)