NAAHL Joins Coalition Urging Congress and Administration to Reform BABA Implementation for Affordable Housing

Affordable Housing and Community Development Finance
Written By National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders

NAAHL has joined national and regional organizations in a sign-on letter urging Congress and the Trump Administration to reform the implementation of the Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) as it applies to affordable housing programs.

BABA, enacted as part of the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, requires manufactured products and construction materials used in federally funded infrastructure projects to be produced in the United States. While the goal of supporting domestic manufacturing is important, BABA's current application to affordable housing programs is resulting in significant cost increases, project delays, and administrative burdens that are impeding (and in some cases preventing) development of much-needed affordable housing.

The coalition letter outlines the core problems with current BABA implementation and offers concrete recommendations for reform, including temporarily suspending BABA requirements for affordable housing programs while a new implementation structure is developed, analyzing domestic manufacturing capacity for materials commonly used in housing construction, streamlining the waiver process, increasing the de minimis waiver threshold, and requiring timely review of waiver requests.

read the full letter here
read the full letter here
National Association of Affordable Housing Lenders

NAAHL is the only national alliance of banks, CDFIs, and other capital providers dedicated to expanding economic opportunity by financing affordable housing and neighborhood revitalization. NAAHL has worked to advance responsible community reinvestment, fight predatory lending, and strengthen public-private partnerships.

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