Mainers call on lawmakers to protect renters, boost housing production

Yahoo

25-04-2025

Apr. 25—Mainers involved in every aspect of the housing market, from struggling renters and affordable housing advocates to landlords and developers, all urged lawmakers Friday to pass a slate of bills to address the state's critical shortage of dwellings.
Proposals before lawmakers range from eviction-prevention programs to easing regulations to encourage more home construction.
"We are in crisis and we need action that works," said Rep. Ambureen Rana, D-Bangor.
In a daylong hearing, the Legislature's Housing and Economic Development Committee heard testimony Friday on eight bills designed to boost housing construction by reducing barriers, while also protecting housing access for the state's lowest-income residents.
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY
Last fall, Emily Barney was struggling. She had gotten behind on rent and tanked her credit score by using her credit card to pay bills.
She had to pick and choose which payments to make "almost like financial triage," the Frankfort resident told lawmakers.
Then she found the eviction-prevention program, a statewide pilot program that has provided funding to keep more than 800 families in their homes.
The program "came through in a big way," Barney said.
She and her daughter are once again housing secure.
"I have been able to pay off my credit cards and pay my bills and slowly work on my credit score," she said in written testimony. "I have been able to save money to pay on future rent and I am able to sleep better at night, not worrying that I will wake up to my car being repossessed. I am able to keep our situation stable for us both."
Barney testified in support of a bill presented by Rana, LD 1522, that would set up a $25 million fund to keep the program going. Rana called it one of the "most immediate and effective tools we have to stabilize Maine families."
By helping people who are facing eviction, the program reduces the strain on shelters, health care systems, schools and the courts, and has already shown success, she said.
When the program launched in November, more than 1,400 families signed up within the first month. Administrators quickly had to set up a waitlist. In total, more than 2,200 people have applied for assistance. Of those, 841 have received the subsidy, according to data from MaineHousing.
Statewide, families on average have received $746 per month on top of an additional payment of $4,695 in back rent.
A similar bill, LD 1287, proposed by Senate President Mattie Daughtry, D-Brunswick, would provide rental assistance as a way to bolster the state's workforce amid an ongoing labor shortage. The $1.9 million housing stability fund would provide up to $300 per month in rental assistance, again paid to the landlord, for people making 30% or less of the area's median income. Families would be limited to $3,000 in assistance in total.
Sen. Jill Duson, D-Portland, who presented the bill on Daughtry's behalf, said the two issues — the workforce and housing — are deeply intertwined.
"If folks don't have stable housing, it's difficult for them to maintain stable employment," she said.
Both bills were widely supported by affordable housing advocates, as well as low-income and immigrant families.
Heather Cameron, director of programs at ProsperityME, a nonprofit offering financial education for immigrant and refugee families, said in written testimony that stable housing allows families to continue contributing to their communities.
"We must endeavor to change our perception of short-term support as a burden and view it as an investment in the future of Maine," she said.
SAVING COSTS OR DISCOURAGING DEVELOPMENT?
One bill designed to tackle one side of the problem — housing affordability — was instead criticized for discouraging development.
Proposed by Sen. Donna Bailey, D-Saco, An Act Enabling Municipalities to Protect Tenants and Stabilize Rents provides a template for municipalities that choose to enact a rent control ordinance.
For towns that adopt an ordinance meeting the criteria in the bill, a violation of the ordinance would be classified as an "unfair trade practice," a designation that would allow the municipality to ask the Office of the Maine Attorney General for help with enforcement.
But the bill received near-unanimous disapproval during the hearing, largely from landlords who criticized what they said was an unreasonably strict model of rent control.
Daniel Bernier, representing a handful of landlord associations across the state, said the proposal, which also would eliminate no-cause evictions or lease renewal refusals, would deter people from investing in or even building new rental properties in cities that choose to adopt the ordinance.
Additionally, it would trigger a rush of rent increases as landlords hurry to raise rents before the new rules go into effect, he said. The bill would limit annual rent increases to 5% or the annual change in the consumer price index, whichever is less.
HOUSING PRODUCTION
Several bills were based on recommendations in a January report by HR&A Advisors, which included more than 40 suggestions for how Maine can tackle its housing crisis. The report, the third in a series, was intended to serve as a roadmap for lawmakers as they draft and consider new housing bills.
A bill proposed by Sen. Rick Bennett, R-Oxford, would establish a working group to study "factory-made housing."
Multiunit modular housing — an assembly-line, factory-style of construction — is becoming an increasingly attractive method of building for some developers thanks to lower building costs and faster turnaround times.
"It's essential that we both lower the cost of housing and boost its production," Bennett said.
Another proposal taken from the HR&A report would create a working group to study the regulatory barriers to construction.
Similarly, a bill proposed by Rep. Traci Gere, D-Kennebunkport, would reduce municipal lot size minimums to 5,000 square feet in designated growth areas connected to public water and sewer service. Many communities have 1-acre lot minimums, so reducing the size would allow for denser development. The bill, LD 1247, would also limit local ordinances relating to lot coverage, road frontage and setbacks.
"Our regulations prevent the creation of livable, walkable, affordable starter home neighborhoods," Gere said, calling the bill a commonsense step.
"We must change the rules so that builders and developers can build the housing we need," she said.
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