House committee reviews strike-all draft of S.127, delays final action after debate on TIF, VHFA report and community-index weighting

The House General & Housing Committee met April 24 to review a draft strike‑all amendment to S.127, the Senate housing bill currently under consideration, and paused final action to gather additional testimony and incorporate outstanding sections.

Committee members and staff said the draft reflects a mix of language from the House H.479 and the Senate S.127 and highlighted remaining issues including tax increment financing (TIF) language, brownfields provisions, the Vermont Infrastructure Sustainability Fund (a bond/revolving loan program), and an optional Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) report on off‑site construction contingent on funding.

The draft amendment was presented by Cameron Wood of the Office of Legislative Council, who described the document as a working draft that “strikes all after the enacting clause and inserts in lieu thereof the following,” and cautioned it had not completed editorial review. Wood walked the committee through provisions retained from the House bill (H.479) and language brought over from the Senate, and noted several sections were left as reserves because related language is being handled in other committees.

The committee discussed several substantive points the draft would change or preserve. Under the BHIP (broad housing investment) program, the draft keeps the option for five‑year forgivable loans that the House version supported; Wood flagged minor phrasing fixes for staff review. A set‑aside requiring a minimum 30% of certain units for identified populations remains in the draft; members debated shortening the window that unused set‑aside funds revert to other loan pools from 12 months to nine months to speed…