RIBLE BILL WOULD LET TOWNS REDUCE AFFORDABLE HOUSING REQUIREMENTS BY CONTRIBUTING TO LEAD FUND

MONIES WOULD BE USED TO REHAB PROPERTIES, INFRASTRUCTURE WITHOUT RAISING TAXES

WASHINGTON, D.C. – (RealEstateRama) — Assemblyman Dave Rible will introduce legislation that would let towns reduce their affordable housing obligations by contributing to a fund used to remediate lead contaminated properties.

Rible said the measure would eliminate the need to raise taxes to fund lead abatement efforts. He noted that legislative leaders recently announced that they were considering imposing a tax on water to finance lead remediation projects.

“While we need to address the serious issue of lead contamination in our communities, raising taxes is not the answer,” said Rible. “This bill would provide vital funding for rehabilitating lead-contaminated properties without forcing taxpayers to dig deeper to pay for these projects.”

Under the measure, towns would see their affordable housing obligations reduced by paying into a fund that would be dedicated to remediating lead contamination, including water systems, in properties deemed affordable under the state’s affordable housing requirements. The bill would require the Department of Community Affairs to develop a formula to reduce a town’s affordable housing requirement based on their financial contribution to the lead abatement fund.

“Instead of requiring towns to construct costly affordable housing developments, we can dedicate this money to combatting the serious lead contamination problems plaguing many communities in our state,” said Rible. “This would be a tremendous benefit both for the health of New Jersey citizens and for the taxpayers who won’t have to pay more to fund these expensive lead abatement projects.”