📰BIDDEFORD | Ensuring that housing is safe, affordable and available
- 7 hours ago
- 3 min read
~Featured Monthly Column~
By Senator Henry Ingwersen, District 32
June 25, 2026, Last week, I was happy to see that the people of Arundel voted overwhelmingly in support of a new ordinance that protects residents of mobile home communities like Shady Oaks from steep rent increases. As many are aware, out-of-state corporations have been buying up mobile home parks and raising the rents beyond what folks – mostly seniors or single or young people – can reasonably afford. This new ordinance, which limits both the amount that rent can be raised and the frequency, is a small step that will make a big difference. I hope other municipalities follow suit and take similar action.
I am also proud of the work that my colleagues and I did in the Legislature to ensure that housing is safe, affordable and available. This work is critical for Mainers with low and middle incomes who are looking to rent or buy. With this year’s Supplemental Budget and several new laws, here’s how we took action:
We extended the Affordable Housing Tax Credit to incentivize the development of new affordable housing units.
We expanded opportunities for working families to build and maintain small rental housing in rural areas through the Rural Affordable Rental Housing Program.
We invested $7.5 million in the Affordable Homeownership Program to lower the cost of building starter homes for working families.
We supported the construction and rehabilitation of homes for Mainers with low incomes by maximizing the federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit.
We established the Middle-Income Housing Support Program to lower the cost of housing construction.
Housing, as we all know, is a complex issue, and having a roof over one’s head looks different for everyone. That’s why, in addition to taking action to support future homeowners, we helped renters and those at risk of losing shelter for themselves and their families.
We reduced red tape for duplexes, triplexes, four-unit homes and accessory dwelling units.
We invested in emergency shelter operations to give Mainers facing a housing crisis a safe place to go.
We increased access to emergency assistance through the Emergency Housing Relief Fund to provide rental assistance, re-housing support and homelessness prevention services to Maine families.
We allocated $11 million for the Eviction Prevention Program to keep people housed before a crisis becomes a catastrophe.
We strengthened privacy rights for tenants so that their personal information is not shared with the intent to harass, intimidate or force them from the property outside of the legal eviction process.
Some of these initiatives will go into effect sooner than others, but we clearly set a lot of items in motion. I am hopeful these investments will address some of the immediate housing needs that we are grappling with right now, and put Maine on a longer-term path toward having enough affordable, accessible housing for everyone who chooses to live, study, raise a family, work or retire here.
I am fortunate that many of my kids and grandkids have a safe, warm place to call home in Maine, and I promise to do all I can to make sure that all families have that blessing in their lives, as well.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Sen. Ingwersen was elected to the Maine House of Representatives in 2018, representing the 32nd district, serving Arundel, Dayton, and Lyman.
Sen. Ingwersen is currently serving his second term in the Maine Senate and serves as the Senate Chair of the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee and as a member of the Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry Committee.
To learn more about Sen. Henry Ingwersen, ease visit https://www.mainesenate.org/senator/senator/henry-ingwersen/
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