Terms Used In Rhode Island General Laws > Chapter 45-53 - Low and Moderate Income Housing

• Advice and consent: Under the Constitution, presidential nominations for executive and judicial posts take effect only when confirmed by the Senate, and international treaties become effective only when the Senate approves them by a two-thirds vote.
• Affordable housing plan: means a component of a housing element, as defined in Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Approved affordable housing plan: means an affordable housing plan that has been approved by the director of administration as meeting the guidelines for the local comprehensive plan as promulgated by the state planning council; provided, however, that state review and approval, for plans submitted by December 31, 2004, shall not be contingent on the city or town having completed, adopted, or amended its comprehensive plan as provided for in Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Comprehensive plan: means a comprehensive plan adopted and approved by a city or town pursuant to chapters 22. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Consistent with local needs: means reasonable in view of the state 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. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• in writing: include printing, engraving, lithographing, and photo-lithographing, and all other representations of words in letters of the usual form. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-16
• 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 impossible for a public agency, nonprofit organization, or limited equity housing cooperative to proceed in building or operating low- or moderate-income housing without financial loss, within the limitations set by the subsidizing agency of government, 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 public agency, nonprofit organization, or limited equity housing cooperative. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Letter of eligibility: means a letter issued by the Rhode Island housing and mortgage finance corporation in accordance with Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Local board: means any town or city official, zoning board of review, planning board or commission, board of appeal or zoning enforcement officer, local conservation commission, historic district commission, or other municipal board having supervision of the construction of buildings or the power of enforcing land use regulations, such as subdivision, or zoning laws. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Local review board: means the planning board as defined by Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Low- or moderate-income housing: means any 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 housing affordable to low- or moderate-income households, as defined in the applicable federal or state statute, or local ordinance 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. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Meeting housing needs: means adoption of the implementation program of an approved affordable housing plan and 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. See Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• 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 Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Monitoring agents: means those monitoring agents appointed by the Rhode Island housing resources commission pursuant to Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
• 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 Rhode Island General Laws 45-53-3
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• person: may be construed to extend to and include co-partnerships and bodies corporate and politic. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-6
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Remand: When an appellate court sends a case back to a lower court for further proceedings.
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• town: may be construed to include city; the words "town council" include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9
• town council: include city council; the words "town clerk" include city clerk; the words "ward clerk" include clerk of election district; the words "town treasurer" include city treasurer; and the words "town sergeant" include city sergeant. See Rhode Island General Laws 43-3-9
• Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
• Writ of certiorari: An order issued by the Supreme Court directing the lower court to transmit records for a case for which it will hear on appeal.