This week, the House of Representatives passed the Housing for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 6644) by a vote of 390-9.
H.R. 6644 addresses regulatory barriers, modernizes Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs, and enhances Community Banking operations. Among other things, the Housing for the 21st Century Act:
- Increases the flexibility of the Home Investment Partnerships (HOME) Program to fund development of both affordable and workforce housing, and allows HOME grantees who are ineligible for the CDBG program to use HOME funds for housing-adjacent infrastructure needs.
- Permits, for the first time, Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) expenditures for new housing development. Currently, CDBG only permits rehabilitation for housing expenditures.
- Exempts certain infill and rehabilitation projects from National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) environmental impact reviews, thereby shortening timelines and reducing costs.
- Supports local government capacity improvements for housing development by establishing new grants for planning agencies and new HUD resources to aid localities that voluntarily undertake zoning and land use changes related to housing attainability.
- ExpandsVeterans Housing Programs and USDA Rural Housing Programs.
- The bill does not preempt state or local governments or contain unfunded mandates.
It awaits consideration in the U.S. Senate.
Contact: Paul Penna, Director of Government Affairs, ppenna@njlm.org, 609-695-3481, x110.