State Going Forward With PACE Financing Bill in 2013
by October 15, 2012 1:00 am 86 views
Supporters of a program that helps homeowners finance energy-efficiency upgrades are awaiting a final ruling by the Federal Housing Finance Authority that will largely influence how quickly the program expands.
Legislation enabling residential PACE, or Property Assessed Clean Energy, programs has already been adopted by 27 states. Its local supporters hope Arkansas will join that list in 2013.
But in July 2010, the FHFA, which oversees Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, told the mortgage underwriters to avoid buying mortgages with PACE assessments. That essentially stalled adoption of residential PACE programs.
In August 2011, a federal court said the agency must undertake a four-step rulemaking process that entails advanced notice of proposed rulemaking, the proposed rule, a public comment period and the final rule.
The FHFA’s proposed rule reaffirms its stance that PACE special assessments are loans, and forbids the purchase of mortgages that have PACE assessments. The comment period on the proposal closed Sept. 13.
According to the website pacenow.org, PACE operates at the local government level, allowing property owners to finance energy efficiency and related improvements with funds from the sale of low-interest bonds. Homeowners repay the financing through their property taxes, which stay with the property if it’s sold.
PACE supporters say the program would create jobs and free up money that could be injected back into the local economy.
A PACE bill narrowly missed passage by the Arkansas Legislature in 2011. But state Rep. Uvalde Lindsey, D-Fayetteville, has said a similar bill has a better chance of getting passed in 2013, especially since Gov. Mark Beebe included PACE in his energy plan.
On the national level, a bill has been introduced in Congress that would allow Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to buy mortgages with PACE assessments.