AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) Maine’s new advisor on housing policy is a veteran of the state’s push to create more affordable housing.

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills said Tuesday that Greg Payne has been appointed senior advisory on housing policy. Payne is the former director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition.

Mills said affordable housing is a critical issue for the state, where single-family home prices have increased by almost 25% this year. She said Payne will be in charge of development of policies to address the lack of affordable and workforce housing in Maine.

Payne said the state’s housing crunch has been made more difficult by the coronavirus pandemic. One of his first jobs will be to steward the state’s use of federal stimulus dollars to help create affordable housing.