In 2023, the Minnesota Legislature created a new program,
Local Affordable Housing Aid (LAHA), which distributes a portion of the proceeds from a 0.25% metro area sales tax to cities. The City of Crystal received its first distribution of LAHA funds in 2024 and will have received $802,729 by the end of 2026. In subsequent years, the city expects to receive approximately $330,000 annually.
In 2026, the city began using LAHA funds for home repair grants for households up to 115% of area median income, with an additional grant for households at or below 80% of area median income. These grants are anticipated to use most, if not all, of the city’s annual LAHA allocation.
Required Local Affordable Housing Aid Certification: As a condition of receiving housing aid funds from the State of Minnesota, the City of Crystal must commit to using housing aid funds to supplement, not supplant, existing locally funded housing expenditures. Between 2024 and 2025, and excluding grants funded with tax increments (TIF), the City of Crystal increased its non-LAHA, non-TIF expenditure on the home repair grant program from $26,841 to $28,431.