Tyler Norod stands on an abandoned lot in Biddeford's historic mill district. The pavement is cracked, and it's overgrown with weeds.
This was once the site of a controversial trash incinerator that was seen as eyesore for the community.
Once the site is cleaned up, it will eventually be the home of 45 affordable apartments and a public courtyard, with more units planned for a future phase.
Norod, president of the Westbrook Housing Development Corp., said it's the kind of revitalization project that nonprofits like his are eager to work on.
"It's not just our project, it's part of re-visioning an entire community's historic fabric and bringing some new life back into the community," he said.
Nerod had been hoping to break ground in August, but he said new federal requirements have brought the project to a standstill.
"Right now, we would be lucky — if we can even break ground at all — by the end of the year and more likely into 2027," he said.
That's because under the federal Build America, Buy America Act, affordable housing developers who receive funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development must source 95% of their construction materials from domestic manufacturers.
BABA, as it's called by developers, was passed by Congress in 2021 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act championed by the Biden administration. It was a lofty goal that's generally earned bipartisan support: Build more roads, bridges and public infrastructure using American-made construction materials, and support the domestic manufacturing industry at the same time.
But the requirements were also extended to certain affordable housing developments and have been slowly rolled out. Developers say the requirements couldn't have landed at a worse time, as Maine faces a shortage of tens of thousands of new homes.
"I've never seen anything quite as disruptive as BABA to this industry," Norod said.
Thousands of components to source
While there are a few hundred components that go into building a bridge or public highway, developers estimate there are 1,500 unique items that are used to build a typical multi-family building.
To comply with BABA, housing developers must track and confirm the origin of each one. It's painstaking work. Manufacturers haven't always been responsive. And it's expensive.
Laura Reading is developing two projects that are subject to Build America requirements: 48 apartments for older Mainers in Windham and a 60-unit project with a first floor child care center in downtown Portland.
"Construction prices generally seem to be going up 10-15% for sourcing a U.S. made product versus a foreign product," said Reading, who manages affordable housing projects for the Developers Collaborative.
And some components for these projects are just not made in the United States at all, she said.
"Door hardware, [parts for] elevators," Reading said. "We've ended up finding one that is compliant."
But finding an American-made, energy efficient heating and air conditioning system has been nearly impossible.
So last fall, Reading asked HUD for a waiver that would allow her to use a foreign-made HVAC system for both projects. The system is similar to one that the agency had approved for 15 other projects around the country, Reading said, so she hoped it would be a simple request to approve.
But they waited. And waited.
"There's this desperate need for affordable housing, and the longer that that gets put off, the longer these families ... are experiencing some form of housing instability," Reading said.
Eight months later, HUD approved the waiver. Reading said her team is now sprinting to tie up loose ends and secure their loans and financing from the state. She's hoping to break ground by September, because a key funding source that makes the project possible has a deadline for the developers to commit the money.
So far, no builder in Maine that's subject to the Build America requirements has been able to start construction.
A third project — 47 apartments for older Mainers in Bath — also recently received a waiver earlier this summer and is hoping to break ground this fall.
But others — projects that would produce a few hundred much-needed units in Maine — remain in limbo.
Norod is also waiting for a waiver from HUD for an HVAC system. And he's worried about further delays.
"If I'm in the middle of construction and all of a sudden there's a supply chain disruption, or the manufacturer who promised a certain product can no longer deliver it ... because they got a screw from Mexico instead of Alabama, what do I do? I can't stop construction," he said. "And I can't wait eight months for a waiver."
Searching for solutions
Maine developers say they support the goals of Build America, Buy America but believe the requirements must be eased — at least until the industry can manufacture more components for multi-family housing in the U.S.
They've shared their concerns with the Trump administration. Members of Maine's congressional delegation have asked the administration and HUD officials to expedite the approval of waivers for projects in the state.
Despite interest from Congress in the topic in recent months, Laura Mitchell, executive director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition, said the proposed solutions are not providing relief quickly enough.
The sweeping, bipartisan housing bill — which quietly became law this summer without President Donald Trump's signature — includes a provision directing the federal government to revise the Build America requirements for housing projects that receive a specific kind of HUD funds, but not all of them.
A separate bill in Congress that would exempt affordable housing projects from the Buy America requirements has yet to gain traction.
Mitchell said the best solution would be for the Trump administration to temporarily lift the mandate for housing projects, so the federal government can identify what products American manufacturers are realistically able to produce.
"We also in the short term need waivers to be approved within 30-60 days, not eight months," she said.
Other proposed solutions could lower the 95% target that developers must meet to source American-made products for housing projects to, say, 90% or less.
The Trump administration did not respond to multiple requests for comment about why waivers are taking months to approve, and whether it supports any changes to the requirements for affordable housing developers.
Back in Biddeford, Norod estimates his project will cost about $2 million more and take as long as a year to complete due to Build America requirements.
Despite the delays and extra costs, Norod said his nonprofit will continue to develop affordable housing.
But he worries the Build America challenges could deter others from getting into affordable housing development at all.
"I'm just hoping that the folks in D.C. will listen to us on the ground that are just trying to do what everyone right now is asking of us, which is to build more housing that Americans can afford," he said.
