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Senate Finance Committee advances amendment to raise New Hampshire Housing Finance borrowing cap
Summary
The Senate Finance Committee voted to reconsider House Bill 1042 and approved amendment 1285 to increase borrowing capacity for the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority; supporters said the change would expand single-family and multifamily lending capacity while staff said there is no direct general-fund impact.
Senate Finance Committee members voted to reconsider House Bill 1042 and approved amendment 1285, authorizing the Legislative Budget Assistant to consolidate it with an earlier amendment for a single floor amendment.
Senator Perkins introduced amendment 20261285, saying it responds to a request from the New Hampshire Housing Finance Authority to increase its borrowing limit roughly twofold while preserving the existing proportional "buckets" under law. "As we all know, housing is a top issue for our voters today," Perkins said in introducing the change and offered to provide further detail if needed.
Rob Dapis, executive director of New Hampshire Housing, told senators the funds support single-family first-time homebuyer programs and multifamily preservation and creation. He said the authority currently carries about $1.6 billion in outstanding debt against an aggregate statutory cap of about $2 billion and that, absent action, the cap could be reached in early 2027. "We've got about $1.6 billion in————outstanding debt and right now the aggregate cap is about————2 billion," Dapis said, explaining why the authority is seeking additional capacity.
Committee members asked whether the change would affect the general fund. Staff and witnesses characterized the proposal as an increase to a contingent credit limit and said contingent liabilities do not produce a direct general-fund fiscal note in the same way as regular appropriations; the committee received no fiscal note showing a general-fund impact.
After discussion, Senator Waters moved the amendment, Senator Birdell seconded, and the committee voted "I" with the chair declaring the measure approved; the committee also authorized LBA to write a single amendment combining the two passed amendments for consideration on the floor. The committee recessed and later reconvened to continue the agenda.
What happens next: The consolidated amendment will be prepared by LBA and returned as a single floor amendment; committee members said they expect the amendment to be taken forward to the floor following the usual legislative scheduling.
