An Act to Assist Communities with Converting Vacant School
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 2164
Committee: Housing and Economic Development
Sponsors: GERE
Amends: 30-A MRSA §5158-A

Legislative Document
No. 2164
H.P. 1453
House of Representatives, January 13, 2026
An Act to Assist Communities with Converting Vacant School 
Buildings into Housing
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203.
Reference to the Committee on Housing and Economic Development suggested and 
ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative GERE of Kennebunkport.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  30-A MRSA §5158-A is enacted to read:
§5158-A.  Vacant School Housing Conversion Program; fund established
The Vacant School Housing Conversion Program, referred to in this section as "the 
program," is established within the Maine Redevelopment Land Bank Authority, referred 
to in this section as "the redevelopment authority."
1.  Program.  The program authorizes the redevelopment authority to provide technical 
and financial assistance to a municipality that chooses to convert a vacant school building 
that has been closed and transferred to the municipality pursuant to Title 20-A, section 
4103, subsection 3 into a property that provides residential housing units, a percentage of 
which as determined in the memorandum of understanding under subsection 2 is dedicated 
as affordable housing as defined in section 5002, subsection 2.
2.  Program elements.  The redevelopment authority shall provide technical and 
financial assistance to a municipality that applies to the program in a manner determined 
by the redevelopment authority and meets the criteria as established by the redevelopment 
authority for participation in the program as determined by the redevelopment authority. A 
participating municipality shall enter into a memorandum of understanding with the 
redevelopment authority as a condition of participation.  The technical and financial 
assistance provided by the redevelopment authority pursuant to the memorandum of 
understanding may include, but is not limited to:
A.  Overseeing environmental assessment requirements, hazard abatement and clean-
up efforts;
B.  Determining the legal and financial feasibility of the property conversion;
C.  Navigating zoning and regulatory requirements of development;
D.  Acting as liaison between a municipality and state and local housing authorities;
E.  Determining the specific goals of a conversion in alignment with a comprehensive 
plan or stated community priorities for development of the property;
F.  Facilitating partnerships between municipalities that may seek to offer school 
buildings in each respective municipality as part of a package of properties for 
conversion;
G.  Structuring a request for proposals from entities seeking to purchase the property; 
H.  Identifying financing strategies, incentive programs and potential funding sources 
available to a municipality or entity chosen to develop the property; and 
I.  On behalf of a municipality, acting as the administrator of a request for proposals 
crafted in accordance with the memorandum of understanding and as manager of the 
contract for development of the property.
3.  Maine School Conversion Fund; establishment and use.  The Maine School 
Conversion Fund, referred to in this section as "the fund," is established within the 
redevelopment authority to support the development of vacant school buildings into 
properties that will provide residential housing and that include a minimum percentage of 
units, as determined by the municipalities and specified in the memoranda of understanding 
under subsection 2, dedicated as affordable housing as defined in section 5002, subsection 
2.  The fund may not lapse but must be carried forward to carry out the purposes of this 
section.  The fund may receive money from any available state, federal or private source.  
Money in the fund may be used by the redevelopment authority only when acting, pursuant 
to subsection 2, paragraph I, as the administrator of requests for proposals on behalf of a 
participating municipality and only for the purposes described in this section.  Expenditures 
from the fund may include, but are not limited to:
A.  Design and engineering feasibility studies;
B.  Providing access to established utilities for the property to be developed;
C.  Property improvements, such as demolition or environmental hazard mitigation 
necessary to attract requests for proposals from entities bidding to develop the vacant 
school buildings;
D.  Hazardous material removal or abatement and other environmental clean-up efforts 
for which alternative sources of funding are not available;
E.  Subsidies to support costs directly related to the affordable housing units included 
as part of the development; and
F.  Capital investment to leverage matching funds or nonstate grants.
4.  Report.  Beginning February 1, 2027 and annually thereafter, the redevelopment 
authority shall submit a report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over housing matters.  The report must summarize the technical and financial 
assistance provided to municipalities in accordance with this section for the previous 
calendar year, the status of school building conversions supported by the program, the 
number of housing units created and an evaluation of the impact attributed to the program 
on the economy and housing supply of participating municipalities.  The report must also 
include information collected by the redevelopment authority on the number of vacant 
school buildings for which conversion to a property that provides residential housing is 
feasible.
Sec. 2.  Appropriations and allocations.  The following appropriations and 
allocations are made.
MAINE REDEVELOPMENT LAND BANK AUTHORITY
Maine School Conversion Fund N562
Initiative: Establishes and provides ongoing funding to the Maine School Conversion Fund 
to assist municipalities with converting unused school buildings into properties that provide 
residential housing.
GENERAL FUND
2025-26
2026-27
All Other
$0
$5,000,000
__________
__________
GENERAL FUND TOTAL
$0
$5,000,000
SUMMARY
This bill establishes the Vacant School Housing Conversion Program within the Maine 
Redevelopment Land Bank Authority.  The program provides technical and financial 
assistance to municipalities seeking to develop vacant school buildings into properties that 
provide residential housing, including units dedicated as affordable housing.  The bill also 
establishes the Maine School Conversion Fund, which is used to support the development 
of vacant school buildings. The bill provides for an ongoing annual appropriation of $5 
million to the fund. The redevelopment authority administers the fund, and the fund's uses 
are limited to supporting development of vacant school buildings in municipalities that 
have memoranda of understanding with the redevelopment authority that it will act on 
behalf of the municipality to manage requests for proposals from entities seeking to develop 
the property.  Finally, the bill requires the redevelopment authority to submit an annual 
report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over housing 
matters regarding the program.