About 200 New Jersey towns might be able to prevent the state from confiscating $160 million in unspent affordable housing trust funds.

An appellate court ruled last week that the state must give towns an opportunity to challenge the seizure by showing they’ve committed the money to affordable housing projects.

Evesham is one of several communities that acted recently to adopt plans, and Mayor Randy Brown is hopeful the state won’t get the 300-thousand-dollars still in its trust fund.

 “I’m not as concerned now as I was before because it seems to me from what we’ve been told that as long as there is an actual plan in place of what you’re going to do with your revenue then they won’t take it.” 

The Christie administration wants to take the money and put it in the state’s general fund.

Kevin Walsh with the Fair Share Housing Center says towns should be allowed to use the trust funds for affordable housing projects.

“They should be spending it as long as they can on housing that the state needs. We’re one of the most expensive states in the country for housing costs, and this money should be going out the door working with nonprofits and others to make housing more affordable.”