While legislators still don’t have a deal on a new state budget, one key senator says there’s agreement on creating a new fund to help thousands of homeowners whose concrete foundations are crumbling because of a naturally occurring chemical reaction.

Sen. Cathy Osten, of Sprague, a co-chair of the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee, said she’s hoping that about $60 million will be set aside, enough to help homeowners with immediate problems.

“We have committed to having a fund in the budget on crumbling concrete. That piece will happen,” Osten said. “If we can get a budget through, this can get settled this year.”

Lawmakers have yet to reach an agreement on a new two-year state budget. They did not pass a plan before the fiscal year ended June 30.

Tim Heim, a founder of the Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling Basements, said many affected homeowners are frustrated that the General Assembly has not been able to provide financial relief. He said the $60 million won’t solve the entire problem, which he estimates could end up costing more than $1 billion, but it could help those homeowners whose homes have seriously deteriorated or become unlivable. For some homeowners, it could cost as much as $200,000 to replace an entire basement.

Heim and his group on Friday filed a request with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Connecticut to investigate how much various officials and entities knew about the problem and whether there was any wrongdoing. The frustrated residents argue that if the problem had been seriously reviewed years ago, the problem could have been solved and many homeowners could have avoided the misfortune of having deteriorating foundations.

Thirty-six communities in central and northeastern Connecticut have been identified has potentially having homes with failing foundations because of the presence of pyrrhotite, a mineral that naturally reacts with oxygen and water. Over decades, that reaction can cause the concrete to crack and crumble, making some homes unsellable and unlivable. The problem, which first came to light in the mid-1990s, has been traced to a Willington quarry that provided material to a concrete maker whose product was used in thousands of houses.

The Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection had received complaints from 545 homeowners with crumbling foundations as of July 14.

Representatives are currently waiting for the U.S. Department of the Treasury, which oversees the Internal Revenue Service, to agree to grant tax relief to the affected homeowners through a casualty loss deduction.