175.05 General duties and powers - attorney general as legal representative.
175.05 General duties and powers - attorney general as legal representative.
(A) The Ohio housing finance agency shall do all of the following related to the agency’s operation:
(1) Adopt bylaws for the conduct of its business;
(2) Employ and fix the compensation of an executive director who serves at the pleasure of the agency to administer the agency’s programs and activities. The executive director may employ and fix the compensation of employees in the unclassified civil service as necessary to carry out this chapter and may employ other personnel who are governed by collective bargaining law and classified under that law. The executive director shall file financial disclosure statements as described in section 102.02 of the Revised Code.
(3) Establish an operating budget for the agency and administer funds appropriated for the agency’s use;
(4) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Revised Code, hold all moneys, funds, properties, and assets the agency acquires or that are directly or indirectly within the agency’s control, including proceeds from the sale of bonds, revenues, and otherwise, in trust for the purpose of exercising its powers and carrying out its duties pursuant to this chapter. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Revised Code other than section 175.051 of the Revised Code, at no time shall the agency’s moneys, funds, properties, or assets be considered public moneys, public funds, public properties, or public assets or subject to Chapters 131. and 135. of the Revised Code.
(5) Maintain a principal office and other offices within the state.
(B) The Ohio housing finance agency may do any of the following related to the agency’s operation:
(1) Except as otherwise provided in section 174.04 of the Revised Code, determine income limits for low- and moderate-income persons and establish periodic reviews of income limits. In determining income limits, the agency shall take into consideration the amount of income available for housing, family size, the cost and condition of available housing, ability to pay the amounts the private market charges for decent, safe, and sanitary housing without federal subsidy or state assistance, and the income eligibility standards of federal programs. Income limits may vary from area to area within the state.
(2) Provide technical information, advice, and assistance related to obtaining federal and state aid to assist in the planning, construction, rehabilitation, refinancing, and operation of housing;
(3) Provide information, assistance, or instruction concerning agency programs, eligibility requirements, application procedures, and other related matters;
(4) Procure or require the procurement of insurance and pay the premium against loss in connection with the agency’s operations, to include the repayment of a loan, in amounts and from insurers, including the federal government, as the agency determines;
(5) Contract with, retain, or designate financial consultants, accountants, and other consultants and independent contractors, other than attorneys, whom the agency determines are necessary or appropriate;
(6) Charge, alter, and collect interest and other charges for program services including, but not limited to, the allocation of loan funds, the purchase of mortgage loans, and the provision of services that include processing, inspecting, and monitoring of housing units financed and the financial records for those units;
(7) Conduct or authorize studies and analyses of housing needs and conditions to the extent that those activities are not carried out by other agencies in a manner that is satisfactory for the agency’s needs;
(8)(a) Acquire by gift, purchase, foreclosure, investment, or other means, and hold, assign, pledge, lease, transfer, or otherwise dispose of real and personal property or any interest in that property in the exercise of its powers and the performance of its duties;
(b) Any instrument by which real property is acquired pursuant to this section shall identify the state agency that has the use and benefit of the real property as specified in section 5301.012 of the Revised Code.
(9)(a) Borrow money, receive gifts, grants, loans, or other assistance from any federal, state, local, or other government source, including the housing development fund and the housing trust fund, and enter into contracts in connection with those sources of assistance;
(b) Receive assistance or contributions from any nongovernment source to include money, property, labor, or things of value, to be held, used, and applied only for the purposes for which the grants and contributions are made and within the purposes of this chapter.
(10) Sue and be sued in its own name with respect to its contracts, obligations, and covenants, or the enforcement of this chapter. Any actions against the agency shall be brought in a court of competent jurisdiction located in Franklin county, Ohio.
(11) Enter into any contract, commitment, or agreement and execute any instrument necessary or incidental to the performance of duties and the execution of powers;
(12) Adopt an official seal;
(13)(a) Contract with any private or government entity to administer programs for which the agency receives sufficient revenues for its services or the agency supports with uncommitted agency resources that pay the agency’s operating costs;
(b) Administer state and federal programs for which the governor designates the agency to act as administrator. The agency may charge administrative fees to the state, the federal government, or a program recipient.
(14) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Revised Code, establish, maintain, administer, and close funds and accounts as convenient or appropriate to the agency’s operations;
(15) Establish a policy to permit the investment of agency funds in securities and obligations;
(16) Establish rules and procedures that the agency determines are appropriate to appeal the agency’s actions and decisions;
(17) Serve housing needs in instances that the agency determines necessary as a public purpose;
(18) Provide coverage for its employees under Chapters 145., 4123., and 4141. of the Revised Code;
(19) Adopt rules pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code;
(20) Do anything necessary or appropriate to exercise the powers of this chapter and carry out the purposes of this chapter and Section 14, Article VIII and Section 16, Article VIII, Ohio Constitution.
(C) The attorney general shall serve as the legal representative for the Ohio housing finance agency and may appoint special counsel for that purpose in accordance with section 109.07 of the Revised Code.
Effective Date: 07-01-2005