PORTLAND, ME – Today, U.S. Senator Angus King (I-Maine) spoke at the Portland Housing Authority’s (PHA) 75th Anniversary Celebration at Sagamore Village in Portland. The celebration included staff members, community partners and approximately 300 residents of Sagamore Village, a PHA facility, as well as Portland city officials and Maine state legislators. 

 

“For 75 years, the Portland Housing Authority has brought stability into the lives of the region’s families, seniors, and those living with disabilities,” said Senator King. “The PHA’s long history of lending a helping hand to our neighbors should be an example for all of us on how to take care of each other – an example that I hope the organization will continue to set for the next 75 years.”

 

Senator King has been a long-time supporter of affordable housing for Maine people. Most recently, he joined with a bipartisan group of his colleagues to introduce the Task Force on the Impact of the Affordable Housing Crisis Act in July. The legislation seeks to better understand and respond to America’s affordable housing crisis by creating a bipartisan affordable housing task force. In June, Senator King visited the Portland Family Shelter and the Oxford Street Shelter to discuss challenges and ways to help Maine people struggling with homelessness. In March, Senator King, as a member of the Senate Budget Committee, supported the passage of the Fiscal Year 2018 Omnibus Federal Appropriations bill which included several priorities that Senator King had advocated for that benefit Maine, such as the agreement to expand availability of the low-income housing tax credit for the next for years. In 2015, Senator King introduced the Improving the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Rate Act. Senator King sent letters requesting increasing funding for the HOME program and homelessness assistance, and the Community Development Block Grant program.