Bipartisan House leaders drafted an amended version of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, the most ambitious piece of housing legislation in generations and a critical measure to alleviate America’s housing shortage. Originally passed in the Senate, the amended version addresses outstanding issues and will likely be voted on within the next week. Tell your representatives to support the amended version and its smart growth provisions so that communities across America can access more affordable housing.

On Wednesday, May 13, senior leadership in the House of Representatives negotiated across party lines and released amended text for the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a major federal housing package bill, originally passed by the Senate.  While President Trump had called for the Senate version to pass as-is, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and housing advocates have urged changes to key provisions, including those on community banking and the ability of large institutional investors to build and keep homes for rent.

The amended bill retains key smart growth provisions from the previous version, as well as some additions and improvements, which would support housing development in well-connected places, of diverse housing types, and at affordable prices:

• NEW Title 1 miscellaneous provisions: This title includes sections that promise zoning guidance for point access block (single-stair) buildings, exempt infill development from environmental effects studies, create a publicly accessible, searchable federal database for publicly owned land, and offer grants to support local financial institutions in issuing small-dollar (under $100,000) mortgages. Under this guidance, an infill site is not eligible for preferential treatment if it is located in an area prone to flooding or wildfires.
• NEW Title 9 community banking provisions: This title provides regulatory relief for community and rural banks and credit unions and enables new community financial institutions to develop, especially in rural areas. Improving access to community banking allows for broader access to capital for housing development.
• IMPROVED Section 1001 (formerly 901) on large institutional investors: By changing the definition of “single family housing”, this section now allows institutional investors to purchase manufactured homes and homes built or renovated to rent. It also removes the requirement that homes owned by large institutional investors built as long-term rentals be sold after seven years to individual homebuyers. The provision, as previously written, would have negatively impacted housing supply and was the most controversial aspect of the previous version of the bill.

Despite these improvements, key provisions had been removed from the Senate version:

• Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) Program (Section 201): HUD’s RAD program has long been used to preserve and improve affordable housing and make existing housing stock accessible to residents seeking affordable housing.
• Price Act (Section 304): This program would have provided grant funding to improve manufactured housing communities, including improving housing units and adding community services.
• Reforming Disaster Recovery Act (Section 501): This program would have created a new Office of Disaster Management and Resiliency at HUD and permanently authorized HUD’s Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program.

The federal housing package, as a whole, supports much-needed housing development and is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to implement impactful housing reform in the U.S. Many of its provisions support smart growth by enabling the development of expanded housing options that meet a range of price points, adjusting for local housing needs, and accommodating various housing types. As America faces an affordability crisis and housing supply shortage, federal efforts to support new, diverse housing supply in the right places at the right price are needed more than ever.

The bill is expected to be voted on in the House within the next week. Because the House is attempting to suspend rules to fast-track a decision, it may require a ⅔ majority to pass, rather than a simple majority. If approved, the bill will return to the Senate for final revisions and approval before being sent to the President for signature.

While Smart Growth America and our advocacy partners have been engaging Congress on this legislation for months, constituent voices will be critical to helping this landmark bill move forward. Members of the House need to hear directly from the people and communities they represent about how the smart growth provisions in the bill can help meet their needs and why the bill deserves their support.

Tell your representatives to vote yes on the amended 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act and support the bill’s smart growth provisions:

Take action