Op-ed: Senate housing bill targets rehabs, affordable new builds, accessory dwellings

By Sen. Alison Clarkson

The Vermont legislature is now deep into the work of our 2023 session. To date, 230 bills have been introduced, committees are taking testimony on various issues, and the priorities we identified before session began are beginning to take shape in legislation. The discussion about the Senate’s 107-page child care bill, S.56, and the Rand Report, which addresses the costs associated with our ambitious goals, has begun.

I serve on the Senate Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs Committee – and our areas of jurisdiction encompass two of our other top priorities for the session: housing and workforce development. We are now well into the work of what will be the Senate’s omnibus housing bill. And, while we’ve been involved, the House is taking the lead and is beginning the Workforce Development bill.

As a result of the massive influx of federal relief money over the last two years, Vermont has been able to appropriate over $400 million into housing – building new affordable, mixed income and middle income homes, rehabbing vacant, blighted and non-weatherized housing units, moving the homeless into homes, building new accessory dwelling units, expanding our supportive housing efforts, improving the infrastructure and renovating mobile home parks, modernizing our municipal by-laws, and investing in improvements to our downtowns and village centers. We have never had this kind of money to support our housing needs. The good news is that we will be able to bring several thousand units on-line with these efforts. The bad news is that it’s not enough.

The need for housing far outpaces our ability to build it fast enough or finance it. The Vermont Housing Finance Agency now suggests we need 35,000 to 40,000 new housing units ASAP. We haven’t gotten here overnight: Vermont has been under-building housing since the mid-1980s. So, exacerbated by Covid, people’s ability to work remotely, and more people relocating as climate change refugees, we find ourselves in a real housing crisis.

The primary objective of this year’s housing bill is to expand access to safe and affordable housing and reduce barriers to building more housing in our smart growth areas – in our downtowns and village centers, especially those served by sewer and water.

The committee is exploring reducing parking requirements, allowing duplexes where single family units are currently allowed, limiting the number of zoning appeals, increasing the Act 250 jurisdictional threshold for housing units from 10 to 20, increasing the number of units a Priority Housing project can build, reducing duplicative permitting, reducing burdens on minor subdivisions, establishing ‘by-right’ zoning, expanding home-sharing opportunities, and further investing in mobile home parks, the VT Housing Improvement Program and the creation of more Accessory Dwelling Units. This bill is in its early stages of development. You can follow its progress on our Senate Economic Development Committee webpage.

Every year the Vermont state treasurer encourages Vermonters to review the millions of dollars of unclaimed property that office holds to see if some it might belong to them. Last year the average claim was $400. This year the state treasurer has $119 million to return to rightful owners. You can search online at www.MissingMoney.Vermont.gov  or call the Unclaimed Property Division at (802) 828-2407 or toll-free in Vermont at 1-800-642-3191.

I appreciate hearing from you. I can be reached by email: aclarkson@leg.state.vt.us or by phone at the Statehouse Tuesday through Fridays at 802-828-2228 or at home Saturday through Mondays at 802- 457-4627.

Sen. Clarkson represents the Windsor District in the Vermont General Assembly.