House Passes Bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act

Today, the House of Representatives passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a bipartisan housing package sponsored by House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (R-AR) and Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA), by a vote of 396-13. The bill includes dozens of provisions aimed at increasing housing supply and bringing down costs. The bill now moves to the Senate, which must decide whether to take up the House version or work with the House to reconcile it with the bill the Senate passed in March.

The House-passed bill includes a number of provisions of importance to NAAHL members, including provisions to:

• Increase banks’ public welfare investment (PWI) cap, opening up the opportunity for more private investment in affordable housing;

• Update and reauthorize the HOME Investment Partnerships program;

• Modernize rural housing programs and provide a path to preserve hundreds of thousands of affordable rural units; and

• Cut red tape and streamline environmental reviews for homes constructed with funds from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Agriculture.

The House-passed bill notably does not include several key provisions that were in the Senate version such as permanently authorizing CDBG-Disaster Recovery and PRICE. For a full breakdown of how the House bill compares to the Senate-passed version, see NAAHL’s comparison chart.

In the lead up to passage, the White House released a Statement of Administration Policy in support of the House-version of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. In the statement, the White House urged the Senate to take up and pass the legislation, while also requesting that both chambers resolve any remaining differences expeditiously. Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC) and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) released a joint statement that “there’s still work to be done” and that they “are committed to continuing to work with the White House and our colleagues in this House on a housing bill that can pass the Senate and get to the President’s desk.” 

NAAHL will continue to push for swift passage of a broad bipartisan housing package.