A bill that’s scheduled to be signed into law Wednesday will provide tax credits to build affordable housing in Maine.
The new law will help developers raise money to build new affordable housing or rehabilitate existing units.
Dan Brennan is the director of the Maine Housing Authority. He says the tax credits could help move some people off the waitlist for affordable housing, which includes 19,000 names.
“We have developers all around the state that are waiting for resources, so this represents a huge resource on the part of the state government,” he says.
The new law will take effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns in April. It’s a state version of a long-established federal program that has provided the funding for about two million units of affordable housing in the U.S.
Brennan says the state normally makes available between 200 and 250 units a year, and he says this funding will help the housing authority reach its aspirational goal of 1,000 units a year.
