Subject-matter jurisdiction; Whether the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) had exclusive jurisdiction under 26 USC § 42(h)(6)(E)(i)(I); Tenant protection period (TPP)

The court held that the trial court did not err by finding it lacked jurisdiction over plaintiff’s claim. Plaintiff sued defendants seeking to enforce a regulatory agreement that allowed her to live in low-income housing for an extended period. The trial court granted summary disposition for defendants, finding that MSHDA, as the delegate of the Secretary of the United States Treasury, has exclusive jurisdiction under § 42(h)(6)(E)(i)(I) to determine whether defendant-Trillium’s acquisition of the property by a deed in lieu of foreclosure was part of an arrangement with defendant-Muskegon Redevelopment to terminate the property’s extended-use period. On appeal, the court rejected plaintiff’s argument that MSHDA does not have exclusive jurisdiction to determine whether defendants breached the regulatory agreement by engaging in a series of transactions to terminate the extended-use period and commitment to provide low-income housing. “The record does not contain any evidence that the Secretary or MSHDA concluded that Trillium’s acquisition of” plaintiff’s apartment building “was part of an arrangement with Muskegon Redevelopment to terminate the extended-use period. Unless the Secretary or MSHDA makes such a determination, the plain and unambiguous language of [§] 42(h)(6)(E)(i)(I) directs that the extended-use period ‘shall terminate . . . on the date the building is acquired by . . . [an] instrument in lieu of foreclosure . . . .’” The record reflects that “MSHDA, as the delegate of the Secretary, reviewed Trillium’s acquisition paperwork, concluded that the extended-use period terminated effective [5/26/17] (the date of execution of the deed in lieu of foreclosure), and, at the expiration of the TPP in 2020, recorded a ‘Release of Regulatory Agreement[’] with the register of deeds stating that the [11/23] regulatory agreement was ‘terminated and released.’” Affirmed.