Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Housing package: tax‑credit increase, VHIP and manufactured home funding, infrastructure fund and two VHFA middle‑income asks
Summary
Commissioner Alex Farrell of the Department of Housing and Community Development presented a multi‑part housing package to the House Commerce & Economic Development Committee asking for permanent and one‑time funding to boost production and preserve existing housing.
Commissioner Alex Farrell of the Department of Housing and Community Development outlined multiple budget requests on Feb. 20 that the department said are designed to accelerate housing production and preserve existing units across Vermont.
Key requests and rationale: Farrell told the House Commerce & Economic Development Committee that the department seeks to raise the annual allocation for the downtown and village center tax credit program from $3 million to $5 million as permanent forgone revenue, citing the program’s leverage. “By its very nature, these tax credits require a high level of private investment,” Farrell said, adding the most recent leverage figure the department has seen is “about 17 to 1.”
Permanent programs and staffing: Farrell also asked to convert successful programs from one‑time to base funding. For the Vermont Home Improvement Program (VHIP), a program that rehabilitates and repurposes existing housing stock and…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
