§ 45-53-3. Definitions. [Effective until January 1, 2026.]
The following words, wherever used in this chapter, unless a different meaning clearly
appears from the context, have the following meanings:
(1) "Adjustment(s)� means a request or requests by the applicant to seek relief from the
literal use and dimensional requirements of the municipal zoning ordinance and/or
the design standards or requirements of the municipal land development and subdivision
regulations. The standard for the local review board's consideration of adjustments
is set forth in § 45-53-4(d)(3)(iii)(E)(II).
(2) "Affordable housing planâ€� means a component of a housing element, as defined in § 45-22.2-4(1), that addresses low- and moderate-income housing needs in a city or town that is
prepared in accordance with guidelines adopted by the state planning council, and/or
to meet the provisions of § 45-53-4(e)(1) and (f).
(3) "Approved affordable housing plan� means an affordable housing plan that is part of
an approved and unexpired local comprehensive plan as provided for in § 45-22.2-8, § 45-22.2-9, or § 45-22.2-12.
(4) "Comprehensive plan� means a comprehensive plan adopted and approved by a city or
town pursuant to chapter 22.2 of this title.
(5) "Consistent with local needs� means reasonable in view of the state and local need
for low- and moderate-income housing, considered with the number of low-income persons
in the city or town affected and the need to protect the health and safety of the
occupants of the proposed housing or of the residents of the city or town, to promote
better site and building design in relation to the surroundings, or to preserve open
spaces, and if the local zoning or land use ordinances, requirements, and regulations
are applied as equally as possible to both subsidized and unsubsidized housing. Local
zoning and land use ordinances, requirements, or regulations are consistent with local
needs when imposed by a city or town council after a comprehensive hearing in a city
or town where:
(i) Low- or moderate-income housing exists which is: (A) In the case of an urban city
or town which has at least 5,000 occupied year-round rental units and the units, as
reported in the latest decennial census of the city or town, comprise twenty-five
percent (25%) or more of the year-round housing units, and is in excess of fifteen
percent (15%) of the total occupied year-round rental units; or (B) In the case of
all other cities or towns, is in excess of ten percent (10%) of the year-round housing
units reported in the census.
(ii) The city or town has promulgated zoning or land use ordinances, requirements, and
regulations to implement a comprehensive plan that has been adopted and approved pursuant
to chapters 22.2 and 22.3 of this title, and the housing element of the comprehensive
plan provides for low- and moderate-income housing in excess of either ten percent
(10%) of the year-round housing units or fifteen percent (15%) of the occupied year-round
rental housing units as provided in subsection (5)(i).
(iii) Multi-family rental units built under a comprehensive permit may be calculated towards
meeting the requirements of a municipality's low- or moderate-income housing inventory,
as long as the units meet and are in compliance with the provisions of § 45-53-3.1.
(6) "Infeasible� means any condition brought about by any single factor or combination
of factors, as a result of limitations imposed on the development by conditions attached
to the approval of the comprehensive permit, to the extent that it makes it financially
or logistically impracticable for any applicant to proceed in building or operating
low- or moderate-income housing within the limitations set by the subsidizing agency
of government or local review board, on the size or character of the development,
on the amount or nature of the subsidy, or on the tenants, rentals, and income permissible,
and without substantially changing the rent levels and unit sizes proposed by the
applicant.
(7) "Letter of eligibility� means a letter issued by the Rhode Island housing and mortgage
finance corporation in accordance with § 42-55-5.3(a).
(8) "Local review boardâ€� means the local planning board or commission as defined by § 45-22.2-4.
(9) "Low- or moderate-income housing� shall be synonymous with "affordable housing� as
defined in § 42-128-8.1, and further means any type of housing whether built or operated by any public agency
or any nonprofit organization or by any limited equity housing cooperative or any
private developer, that is subsidized by a federal, state, or municipal government
subsidy under any program to assist the construction or rehabilitation of affordable
housing and that will remain affordable through a land lease and/or deed restriction
for ninety-nine (99) years or such other period that is either agreed to by the applicant
and town or prescribed by the federal, state, or municipal government subsidy program
but that is not less than thirty (30) years from initial occupancy.
(i) Any housing unit that qualifies under this subsection (9) and under § 42-128-8.1 shall be counted as one whole unit toward the municipality's requirement for low-
or moderate-income housing.
(ii) Any mobile or manufactured home(s) that meet the requirements of § 42-128-8.1(d)(1)(ii) but are not subsidized by a federal, state, or municipal government subsidy and/or
do not have a deed restriction or land lease as described in this subsection (9),
shall count as one-half (½) of one unit for the purpose of the calculation of the
total of low- or moderate-income year-round housing within a city or town, as long
as a municipality contracts with a monitoring agent to verify that the requirements
of § 42-128-8.1(d)(1)(ii) are met for these units. Such units shall not be required to meet the income verification
requirements of § 42-128-8.1. The monitoring agent shall provide a listing of the eligible units to Rhode Island
Housing, who shall provide a report as to the qualifying mobile or manufactured homes
under this subsection (9) to the governor, speaker of the house of representatives,
senate president, and secretary of housing on an annual basis, beginning on or before
December 31, 2025.
(iii) Low- or moderate-income housing also includes rental property located within a municipality
that is secured with a federal government rental assistance voucher.
(iv) For the period beginning on or after July 1, 2024, any housing unit that qualifies
as low- or moderate-income housing under this subsection (9) and under § 42-128-8.1 and any rental property secured with a federal government rental assistance voucher
that does not otherwise meet the other requirements to qualify as low- or moderate-income
housing under this section shall be counted as one whole unit toward the municipality's
requirement for low- or moderate-income housing, as long as a municipality confirms
with the issuing authority that the voucher is in good standing and active.
(10) "Meeting local housing needs� means as a result of the adoption of the implementation
program of an approved affordable housing plan, the absence of unreasonable denial
of applications that are made pursuant to an approved affordable housing plan in order
to accomplish the purposes and expectations of the approved affordable housing plan,
and a showing that at least twenty percent (20%) of the total residential units approved
by a local review board or any other municipal board in a calendar year are for low-
and moderate-income housing as defined in § 42-128-8.1.
(11) "Monitoring agents� means those monitoring agents appointed by the executive office
of housing pursuant to § 45-53-3.2 and to provide the monitoring and oversight set forth in this chapter, including,
but not limited to, §§ 45-53-3.2 and 45-53-4.
(12) "Municipal government subsidy� means assistance that is made available through a city
or town program sufficient to make housing affordable, as affordable housing is defined
in § 42-128-8.1(d)(1); such assistance shall include a combination of, but is not limited to, direct financial
support, abatement of taxes, waiver of fees and charges, and density bonuses and/or
internal subsidies, zoning incentives, and adjustments as defined in this section
and any combination of forms of assistance.