§ 45-60-3. General powers and duties of the board. (a) The board shall have all of the powers necessary and convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this chapter, including, without limitation, those general powers provided to a nonprofit corporation and including, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the power to:

(1) Upon application from an eligible applicant in a form prescribed by the board, provide funding in the form of grants, loans, loan guarantees, lines of credit, rental assistance or any other means determined to further the goals of the trust for eligible activities;

(2) Enter into cooperative agreements with private organizations or individuals or with any agency or instrumentality of the United States or of this state or town to carry out the purposes of this chapter;

(3) Purchase, sell, build, develop or restore real estate, the objective of which is to create affordable year-round and seasonal housing in perpetuity;

(4) Sell property to eligible applicants, such property may be deed-restricted such that affordability will remain in perpetuity;

(5) Rent or lease real estate the board may own or lease from others;

(6) Solicit bequests and accept donations;

(7) The selling to or renting/leasing to applicants will be done in accordance with the provisions of the Rhode Island Fair Housing Practices Act, chapter 37 of title 34;

(8) Collect taxes on behalf of the town of New Shoreham from those owners engaged in the business of renting, leasing, letting, or granting a license to use any seasonal rental in accordance with §§ 45-60-6 and 45-60-7, and the taxes so imposed shall be in addition to all other taxes imposed by law.

(b) The board shall adopt reasonable rules and regulations governing the conduct of trust affairs, including the acquisition and management of its holdings, not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter. All rules and regulations of the trust are subject to the approval of the town council.

(c) All meetings of the housing board shall be open to the public except that this provision shall not be deemed to prevent holding of executive sessions, provided all votes are taken in public or closed meeting with recorded vote taken in accordance with chapter 46 of title 42, the Rhode Island open meetings law.

History of Section. (P.L. 2002, ch. 45, § 1; P.L. 2002, ch. 51, § 1; P.L. 2005, ch. 355, § 1; P.L. 2005, ch. 435, § 1.)