As Introduced

136th General Assembly

Regular Session H. B. No. 313

2025-2026

Representatives Mathews, A., Isaacsohn

To enact section 122.635 of the Revised Code to create a grant program for townships and municipalities that adopt pro-housing policies and to make an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Section 1. That section 122.635 of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:

Sec. 122.635. (A) As used in this section, "major workforce housing project" means a project that reserves at least twenty units, designed for residential occupancy by at least twenty individuals or families living independently from each other, for households earning between sixty and one hundred per cent of the median income for the county where the project is located, as determined by the director of development pursuant to section 174.04 of the Revised Code.

(B) The department of development shall provide grants to townships and municipal corporations that adopt and implement at least three pro-housing policies in accordance with this section. A township or municipal corporation may apply for such a grant in the form and manner prescribed by the department. The application shall, at minimum, include both of the following:

(1) Documentation or other evidence that shows the township or municipal corporation has adopted and implemented at least three of the pro-housing policies described in division (D) of this section;

(2) A description of how the township or municipal corporation intends to utilize the grant funds received.

(C) The department shall review applications and award grants under this section annually, to the extent that funds are available, provided that no township or municipal corporation may receive more than fifteen per cent of the total funds available, regardless of the number of applicants.

(D) The department shall apportion all of the available funds among the first fifty townships and municipal corporations that submit an application each fiscal year and that demonstrate, to the satisfaction of the department, that the township or municipal corporation has adopted and implemented at least three pro-housing policies, including at least one pro-housing policy from each of divisions (F)(1), (2), and (3) of this section.

(E)(1) Each of the townships and municipal corporations described in division (D) of this section shall receive a portion of the available funds.

(2) Subject to division (C) of this section, the department shall reserve at least twenty-five per cent of the available funds for townships and municipal corporations that have adopted and implemented six or more of the pro-housing policies described in division (F) of this section.

(3) The department shall determine the allocation of funds other than those reserved under division (E)(2) of this section based on population.

(F) All of the following are pro-housing policies for purposes of this section:

(1)(a) Having no or minimal parking requirements for developments that include residential units;

(b) Allowing parcels to include four or more dwelling units that are designed for residential occupancy by four or more individuals or families living independently from each other in at least seventy-five per cent of the territory of the township or municipal corporation;

(c) Repealing minimum lot size requirements for developers;

(d) Having reduced, by at least fifty per cent, the portion of territory within the township or municipal corporation that is zoned for single-family use only, as compared to the portion of territory zoned for that purpose ten years before the application date.

(2)(a) Subsidizing or decreasing costs related to water or sewer connections for major workforce housing projects;

(b) Acquiring and readying sites that are ready to be financed and built upon by housing developers;

(c) Providing incentives related to increased density to developers that provide low-income housing and workforce housing in census tracts that are at or above the area median income;

(d) Providing incentives for modular housing or manufactured homes;

(e) Adopting road regulations and specifications for county roads recommended by the department of transportation for all roads constructed for the purpose of housing projects;

(f) Adopting a building code that does not mandate a specific style of exterior cladding or finish materials for residential buildings.

(3)(a) Having a process in place to reduce the time it takes to review and complete all regulatory approvals for housing developments by at least thirty per cent or that reduces the time it takes to review and grant permits to four months or less;

(b) Having a pre-approval process in place to create an expedited review and granting of permits for a diverse range of developers;

(c) Having an expedited approval process for development plans sharing ninety per cent of the elements of a development plan that was previously approved;

(d) Having a housing plan, adopted within the five years preceding that application date, that tracks the needs, gaps, and potential strategies for increasing housing across all income levels within the township or municipal corporation for at least the next ten years and identifies opportunities to reduce the regulatory burden on housing development;

(e) Having policies that preserve existing moderate and low-income housing;

(f) Allowing accessory dwelling units.

(G) A township or municipal corporation that receives a grant under this section shall use at least half of the funds for the following purposes:

(1) Providing capital for housing development through grants or loans;

(2) Supporting first-time home buyers;

(3) Providing funds for home repairs for low-income homeowners;

(4) Providing funds for multi-family building improvements for low- and middle-income landlords;

(5) Enforcing zoning and residential building regulations;

(6) Enforcing anti-discrimination housing regulations;

(7) Providing funds for tenant protection and empowerment;

(8) Acquiring and readying sites for housing development;

(9) Funding a conversion under the rental assistance demonstration program;

(10) Providing long-term housing for difficult to house populations.

(H) Townships and municipal corporations that receive a grant under this section shall provide documentation sufficient to prove, to the satisfaction of the department, that at least half of the funds are used for the purposes specified in division (G) of this section. A township or municipal corporation that does not expend at least half of the funds for the purposes specified in division (G) of this section shall not receive funds under this section for five years following the date those funds were expended improperly.

(I) The housing accelerator fund is created in the state treasury. Money in the fund shall be used by the department to provide grants under this section and section 175.42 of the Revised Code. All investment earnings of the fund shall be credited to the fund.

Section 2. All items in this act are hereby appropriated as designated out of any moneys in the state treasury to the credit of the designated fund. For all operating appropriations made in this act, those in the first column are for fiscal year 2026 and those in the second column are for fiscal year 2027. The operating appropriations made in this act are in addition to any other operating appropriations made for these fiscal years.

Section 3.

HOUSING ACCELERATOR

The foregoing appropriation item 1954A6, Housing Accelerator, shall be used to support housing development incentive programs under section 122.635 of the Revised Code.

An amount equal to the unexpended, unencumbered balance of appropriation item 1954A6, Housing Accelerator, at the end of fiscal year 2026 is hereby reappropriated to the same appropriation item for the same purpose in fiscal year 2027.

Section 4. Within the limits set forth in this act, the Director of Budget and Management shall establish accounts indicating the source and amount of funds for each appropriation made in this act, and shall determine the manner in which appropriation accounts shall be maintained. Expenditures from operating appropriations contained in this act shall be accounted for as though made in, and are subject to all applicable provisions of, the main operating appropriations act of the 136th General Assembly.