Hoeven Statement on Passage of 21st Century Road to Housing Act

Hoeven Statement on Passage of 21st Century Road to Housing Act

Legislation Supports Greater Access to Affordable Housing, Homeownership

WASHINGTON - Senator John Hoeven, a member of the Senate Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Committee, today joined his Senate colleagues in voting to pass the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, bipartisan legislation to help increase access to affordable housing and support greater homeownership. Among other priorities, the legislation:

• Prohibits institutional investors from purchasing single family homes, with exceptions for 55 plus rental communities, programs to help improve a renter's credit or homes that are part of a built or rebuilt to rent program.
• Supports more affordable home construction and repairs, including through:
  • Streamlining National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) compliance for certain U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) projects.
  • Grants to fund whole-home repairs for low-income homeowners not covered by other programs.
  • Amending the Community Reinvestment Act to encourage greater bank investments in public housing projects.
  • Reforming the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program to ensure greater housing production and provide bonuses for accelerated homebuilding.
  • A pilot program to convert blighted buildings into affordable housing.
  • Reforming the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Housing Service to better support multifamily, housing and community facility projects in rural areas.
• Reauthorizes the HOME Investment Partnerships Program, which has been leveraged to support affordable housing projects across North Dakota.
• Improves veterans' access to home loans.

"This legislation will bolster our efforts in North Dakota and across the nation to build more affordable housing and help Americans secure the dream of homeownership," said Hoeven. "The reforms included in this bill aim to expand our country's available housing stock, including by keeping more existing homes on the market, reducing regulatory hurdles for housing projects and supporting home construction, repair and rehabilitation. These are important steps to make housing more abundant, affordable and accessible for everyday Americans."

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