The 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program is the nation’s most significant federal resource for financing affordable rental housing. It provides private developers with a dollar-for-dollar reduction in federal tax liability in exchange for producing or rehabilitating housing that is affordable to low-income households.

Each year, developers may apply for LIHTC through the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA). The City of El Paso’s role is to receive applications, evaluate them under the City of El Paso’s policy, and issue one of three possible actions:

• Resolution of Support (adds 17 points to the TDHCA application)
• Resolution of No Objection (adds 14 points to the TDHCA application)
• No Action

These resolutions are optional but highly valuable to developers in the competitive TDHCA scoring process. Once City Council acts, developers must still submit and compete for funding directly with TDHCA.

Key Resource – Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP)

Developers are strongly encouraged to review the TDHCA Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP), which sets the official rules, scoring, and deadlines for LIHTC applications statewide. The QAP is critical for understanding how TDHCA scores projects and how City resolutions impact competitiveness.

Submissions

The City of El Paso accepts Requests for Municipal Resolutions every fall. Developers requesting a resolution from the City of El Paso must submit a complete Request for Municipal Resolution application packet to [email protected] by the deadline to be considered.