Senate Considers Bipartisan Proposals to Combat Housing Affordability Crisis  

By: Gabriel Smith, Legislative Affairs Analyst

This week, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs held a hearing, “Examining Proposals to Address Housing Affordability, Availability, and Other Community Needs.” On display were a wide range of bipartisan proposals committee members and their colleagues have introduced to address rising costs, housing shortfall, corporate investment in single family homes, rural communities, and alarming spikes in homelessness.  

Democrat-invited witnesses included Peggy Bailey of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) and Matt Josephs of the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) while Republicans invited Dr. E.J. Antoni of The Heritage Foundation. Democrats on the committee spent their time engaging witnesses on the benefits of expanding existing programs, lessons learned from the COVID-19 era, and improving existing tax credits to provide a much-needed boost to existing supply. Republicans on the committee engaged largely with Dr. Antoni to argue that the affordability crisis can largely be attributed to inflation caused by the Biden administration’s policies, rampant government spending, and red tape limiting flexibility at the local level.  

Despite Senators agreeing that rising costs and lower incomes perpetuate the housing crisis, and that improved housing supply is a top priority, they remain divided about how their actions can help achieve prosperity for lower-income renters and first-time homebuyers in the long term. Republicans wary of federal spending argued that subsidies, downpayment assistance and rental assistance are examples of lawmakers attempting to spend their way to unsustainable solutions. On the other hand, Democrats acknowledge that although the existing programs are not perfect, they are helping and should be improved.  

Regarding improved supply, Matt Josephs encouraged the passage of the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act (LIHTC improvements) and the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act, estimating that the over 2 million homes for rent and homeownership the bills would create could cut significantly into the 3.8 million home supply gap. Witnesses also encouraged passage of the Rural Housing Reform Act, which would create thousands of rental units to improve supply.   

Regarding consumers and landlords, Peggy Bailey praised the Fair Housing Improvement Act that would prohibit voucher discrimination for prospective renters and the Choice in Affordable Housing Act to encourage greater landlord participation. Bailey also challenged lawmakers to consider bold actions such as providing rental assistance directly to residents along with a demonstration program that allows families to deposit a portion of their rent increase from added earnings into an escrow account to build their savings. 

NAHRO will continue to monitor Congress and any other breaking news on appropriations and will provide analysis and updates as information becomes available.