Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the BHIP Funding topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Committee hears DHCD request to make BHIP permanent with $4 million in base funding
Summary
Department of Housing and Community Development officials urged the House General and Housing committee to fund BHIP with $4,000,000 in base support to replace expiring one‑time appropriations and temporary ARPA positions, saying without permanent funding the program cannot continue at current capacity.
Alex Farrell, commissioner of the Department of Housing and Community Development, told the House General and Housing committee on Feb. 4 that the governor’s budget includes a $4,000,000 request to make the BHIP program permanently funded. "Without base funding, VHIP will end," Farrell said, arguing that prior one‑time grants and ARPA‑funded staffing sustained the program but are not a durable path forward.
Farrell described BHIP’s early outputs and administrative limits: the department has funded nearly 1,200 units through the program to date and is managing it with two in‑house FTEs and homeownership centers that deliver services. He said a tranche of roughly 60 units is reaching the end of initial five‑year covenants and that 56 of those owners — about 93 percent — reported they intend to charge HUD fair‑market rents after the covenant ends, which the department cited as an early signal that affordability may persist.
Committee members pressed staff on capacity and program design. Farrell said ARPA supported many limited‑service positions that must end at the federal deadline (end of the calendar year), and that permanent funding is the path to convert positions through the state position pool. He estimated $4,000,000 a year would likely support roughly 75–80 units annually but acknowledged the market demand would exceed that level and a backlog of applications would remain.
Questions from members also focused on grant recipients and project size: Farrell said BHIP grants have predominantly supported small property owners and accessory dwelling unit conversions and that the program generally caps BHIP use for new construction to about six to eight units so the program remains targeted at small‑scale projects rather than large developments. Chris Donnelly, identified on the record with Champlain Housing Trust, said his organization sees strong demand when resources are available but could not provide a specific backlog estimate.
The committee did not take a vote on funding at the session; members are scheduled to continue budget review and to take up H.775 later in the day. The department said making BHIP base funded would enable longer‑term contracts with homeownership centers and more predictable market signaling to property owners and applicants.
