Senate Passes Bipartisan Zenzinger Bill to Help Save Coloradans Money on Housing

SB22-146 will provide $25 million to expand critical workforce housing

DENVER, CO - Senator Rachel Zenzinger (D-Arvada)’s bipartisan bill to help save Coloradans money on housing cleared the Senate today.

Cosponsored by Sen. Dennis Hisey (R-Fountain), SB22-146 will expand access to critical workforce housing for communities across Colorado, and was developed based on recommendations from the state’s Affordable Housing Transformational Task Force.

“Coloradans across the state are struggling to afford a place to live, and the time to act is now,” Zenzinger said. “This bill will improve support systems for middle income families whose modest resources squeeze them between skyrocketing housing costs and ineligibility for assistance, save people money, and help more Colorado families thrive.”

The legislation provides $25 million for the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority’s Middle-Income Access Program, which finances projects to build housing for families and individuals in the “missing middle” with incomes too high to qualify for low income housing tax credits, but still too low to afford market rates.

Specifically, this funding will help finance developers seeking to build rental housing affordable to Coloradans earning 80 percent or above of the area median income through acquisition, new construction, or rehabilitation of existing properties.

To date, the Middle Income Access Program has leveraged $14 million of CHFA-invested funds to support five developments comprising over 600 units. Developments leverage significant private sector investment and have brought much needed housing to communities such as Estes Park, Keystone, Steamboat Springs, Gypsum, and Denver.

SB22-146 will now move to the House for further consideration. You can track the bill’s progress HERE.