(a) A pilot rental housing program shall be developed, implemented, and administered by the Board of Trustees of the Arkansas Teacher Housing Development Foundation in four (4) high-priority school districts in the state, one (1) in each congressional district of the state.
(b) (1) The rental housing units shall be provided to high-performing teachers who choose to teach in high-priority school districts.
(2) Only upon the approval of the board and only if the housing is not able to be used by high-performing teachers in a high-priority school district, the developer may lease to the following persons in order of preference:
(A) Other licensed employees of the high-priority school district;
(B) Other nonlicensed employees of the high-priority school district; or
(C) Any other person with a gross income of thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000) or less.
(3) (A) The Director of the Arkansas Teacher Housing Development Foundation shall provide a report to the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education as to whether the pilot rental housing program as provided in this section has been and is being provided to high-performing teachers or whether the pilot rental housing program has been modified due to the available loan programs or funding during any calendar year.
(B) (i) The report shall include the following:
(a) Data on the terms of each pilot rental housing program developed under this subchapter; and
(b) Any other data that is necessary for the House Committee on Education and the Senate Committee on Education to assess the effectiveness of the pilot rental housing program.
(ii) The report shall clearly indicate whether the pilot rental housing that has been developed meets the requirements of this subchapter and shall provide details on any modification of the pilot rental housing due to the available loan programs or funding.
(c) The reduced rate shall be at least fifty percent (50%) less than the fair rental value of the rental housing unit.
(d) To the extent allowed by the available loan programs or funding, the rental housing units offered shall include two (2) of the following sizes, to be determined based on the expected demand by high-performing teachers who will likely be attracted to the high-priority school district:
(1) A two-bedroom unit with one (1) bathroom and a minimum of eight hundred square feet (800 sq. ft.);
(2) A three-bedroom unit with two (2) bathrooms and a minimum of one thousand two hundred square feet (1200 sq. ft.); or
(3) A four-bedroom unit with two and one-half (21/2) bathrooms and a minimum of one thousand five hundred square feet (1500 sq. ft.).
(e) To the extent allowed by the available loan programs or funding, the rental housing offered shall:
(1) Include all of the following new or late model, fully-functioning appliances:
(A) Refrigerator with ice maker;
(B) Stove and oven;
(C) Microwave oven;
(D) Dishwasher;
(E) Full-sized washer and dryer; and
(F) Central heat and air conditioning;
(2) Be constructed to meet or exceed the local building and fire codes;
(3) Be constructed to be energy efficient; and
(4) (A) If the pilot rental housing program is only serving one (1) school district, then be located no farther than three (3) miles beyond the high-priority school district boundaries at which the high-performing teachers are being hired.
(B) If the pilot rental housing program is serving two (2) or more school districts, then be located no farther than twenty (20) miles from any of the school districts using the housing.
(f) (1) Temporary rental housing may be provided to high-performing teachers during the time that new rental housing units are being constructed or existing rental housing units are being remodeled.
(2) Temporary rental housing does not have to meet the requirements of this section.
(3) If the high-performing teacher is required to remain in temporary rental housing for more than one (1) year, the high-performing teacher can choose any of the following to compensate him or her for the lesser rental housing units provided:
(A) A cash supplement of not less than twelve hundred dollars ($1,200) per year that the teacher is required to live in the temporary rental housing and not more than the difference between the fair rental value of the rental housing unit that is required under this section and the temporary rental housing unit that is provided; or
(B) An additional interest-free, forgivable loan for the purchase of a home under ยง 6-26-302 for not more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) to be forgiven after the fulfillment of one (1) year of service from the date that the loan is disbursed.
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