MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers took action on three affordable housing bills on Wednesday. The bipartisan measure enacted by the governor supports efforts to bolster affordable housing options. The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) will implement modifications to existing programs and administer a new workforce home revolving loan program.
Assembly Bill 194, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 237, makes certain modifications to three competitive loan programs created in the 2023-25 Biennial Budget supported by $525 million—the largest state investment in workforce housing in state history. To date, the Vacancy-to-Vitality, Infrastructure Access, and Restore Main Street loan programs have supported the development of over 1,600 workforce housing units statewide.
“These loan modifications bring us closer to increasing housing choices for everyone in the state,” said Elmer Moore, Jr., CEO & Executive Director of WHEDA. “More Wisconsin families will soon have a place to call home thanks to meaningful changes to the Vacancy-to-Vitality, Infrastructure Access, and Restore Main Street loan programs, ensuring the funding works more effectively for communities. We’re deeply grateful to the many partners whose practical feedback helped shape these improvements.”
WHEDA has begun updating loan term sheets and award plans to reflect these changes. The Spring Cycle applications will open in late April with final submissions due in late May. Award announcements are expected in June 2026.
Assembly Bill 182, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 236, makes changes to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Program, including a requirement that, if possible, at least 35 percent of the state tax credits be allocated to rural area housing projects.
Additional modifications remove the requirement that a qualified low-income housing project be financed with tax-exempt bonds and make a technical change to the credit for insurers so that an insurer that is a shareholder of a tax-option corporation, a partner of a partnership, or a member of an LLC may claim the credit.
WHEDA has begun incorporating these modifications into the upcoming 2027-28 Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP). An announcement of the new QAP is expected in late May 2026.
Assembly Bill 454, now 2025 Wisconsin Act 239, creates a workforce home revolving loan program to provide gap financing to supplement a conventional mortgage for the purchase of a single-family residence in Wisconsin that is new construction, and that will be the eligible applicant’s primary residence.
Under the bill, the program would be initially funded with a reallocation of up to $10 million from funds previously allocated for the Restore Main Street loan program created through the 2023-2025 Biennial Budget.
WHEDA is working to determine authorized lender interest and their readiness timeline and will provide specific timelines for accepting applications as we collect more information.
An online version of this News Release is available here.
An online version of Governor Evers’ Press Release is available here.
ABOUT WHEDA
The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) is a self-supporting public entity whose mission is to help Wisconsin thrive by expanding access to affordable housing choices. To learn more about the Authority and its programs, visit wheda.com or call 800-334-6873.
