Cantwell provision in federal spending bill to boost housing tax credits by $3B

From the Seattle Times, published March 23, 2018

The omnibus spending bill passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump on Friday includes a provision championed by U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell to boost tax breaks that help finance the construction of affordable housing.

Cantwell expects the provision, which increases the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program over four years by 12.5 percent — an estimated nearly $3 billion, to yield about 700 additional units of new affordable housing in Washington state, a spokesman said.

“This down payment will help us deal with the tremendous deficit we have in affordable housing,” the Democratic senator said in a statement this week.