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<br /> <br />ECC <br />UGENE ITY OUNCIL <br /> <br />AIS <br />GENDA TEM UMMARY <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Work Session: An Ordinance Concerning Multiple-Unit Housing Property Tax <br />Exemption and Amending Sections 2.945 and 2.947 of the Eugene Code, 1971 <br /> <br />Meeting Date: August 13, 2008 Agenda Item Number: C <br />Department: Planning and Development Staff Contact: Richie Weinman <br />www.eugene-or.gov Contact Telephone Number: 682-5533 <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />ISSUE STATEMENT <br /> <br />The Mayor and City Council conducted a public hearing on July 21, 2008, and scheduled a work session <br />to discuss the boundary and selection criteria associated with the Multi-Unit Property Tax Exemption <br /> <br />Program (MUPTE), section 2.945 of the Eugene Code, 1971. <br /> <br /> <br />BACKGROUND <br /> <br />The MUPTE program is enabled by state statute. In 1975, the Oregon legislature adopted the enabling <br />statutes for the MUPTE program as an incentive tool to complement the state land-use laws that were <br />approved in 1973. The intent was to “stimulate the construction of rental housing in the core areas of <br />Oregon’s urban centers…” <br /> <br />The MUPTE statutes allow cities to dictate the minimum number of units that a project must contain in <br />order to be MUPTE-eligible. Eugene has determined that eligible developments must consist of five or <br />more units and provide a public benefit. The program enables a ten-year property tax exemption on <br />housing improvements. The land and any non-housing improvements continue to be taxed. The <br />exemption applies to taxes owed to all jurisdictions because School District 4J also formally accepted <br />the provisions. This is permissible under state law because Eugene and 4J together receive over 50% of <br />property taxes in the City of Eugene. <br /> <br />Each application for an exemption must be approved by the council on a case-by-case basis. The state <br />enabling legislation sunsets in 2012 unless extended during a future legislative session. If that occurs <br />the City must then also adopt the revised provisions in order to continue offering the program. <br /> <br />Council Action History <br />In July 1977, City Council adopted the provisions of this state-authorized tax exemption program <br />through a resolution that determined “. . . to complement the Eugene Community Goals and Polices <br />adopted in 1974 which stated that ’High density dwellings should be encouraged close-in to <br />accommodate those people who prefer to live near the center of activity’…” Since that time both the <br />state statutes and Eugene’s implementation of them have been amended. For instance, the statutes now <br />allow multi-family ownership in addition to rental housing. The following is a summary of related <br />council actions during the last twelve years: <br /> <br />In 1996, the council redesigned the selection criteria for the program and then placed a moratorium on <br />accepting MUPTE applications after the passage of Measure 47 (a property tax limitation and redesign). <br /> Z:\CMO\2008 Council Agendas\M080813\S080813C.doc <br /> <br />