With Washington paralyzed by a government shutdown, lawmakers in the U.S. Senate on Thursday passed a sprawling, bipartisan housing bill aimed at expanding the nation’s housing stock and bringing down costs.
The legislation, crafted by U.S. Sens. Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the top lawmakers on the Senate Banking Committee, was tucked into the $924.7 billion National Defense Authorization Act.
The legislation, an annual funding bill for the Pentagon, passed on a 70-20 vote, according to The Hill. The vote came after lawmakers reached a deal to move the stalled funding bill, the online news outlet reported.
The housing bill, a rare instance of bipartisan cooperation on an increasingly gridlocked Capitol Hill, cleared the Banking Committee in July.
In a statement, Warren called the bill a “historic step” toward addressing a housing crisis that has seen many Americans squeezed out of the market. It marked Congress’s first attempt in a decade to tackle the issue.
The bill, known as the “ROAD to Housing Act,” takes “important steps to boost the nation’s housing supply, improve housing affordability, and increase oversight and efficiency of federal regulators and housing programs,” Warren said.
“For far too long, Congress believed this problem was too big to solve. Today, we’re taking not a step – but we’re taking a leap in the right direction in a bipartisan fashion,” Scott said when the bill cleared the Banking Committee. “Many people around the country, [who] are frustrated with the way we do American politics, wonder, ‘Is there any issue that brings this nation together?’ And I’m here to say ‘hallelujah,’ we have found one – it is housing. And hallelujah is a southern term, but it’s a term of endearment.”
But even with Thursday’s vote, the bill’s fate is far from assured. It still has to control the Republican-controlled House before it can be sent to President Donald Trump for his signature.
Local leaders and their allies welcomed the bill, with one organization, the National League of Cities, calling it a “strong, collaborative effort” to address an issue that has stubbornly resisted solutions.
The average age for first-time home buyers is now close to 40, limiting one of the main ways people can build wealth, The Washington Post reported earlier this year.
The country is short between 1.5 to 4 million homes, economists estimate, and high housing costs — for rentals and for-sale listings alike — are blocking many Americans from finding a place to live, according to The Post.
The crisis took on particular urgency during the 2024 presidential campaign, with voters citing housing costs as a top economic issue, the newspaper reported.
“Almost 60% of the homes in Allentown are over 65 years old, but they’re not ready for retirement. While these homes are affordable to many, they also need some real investment to keep them safe and affordable for future generations of American families,” Allentown, Pa., Mayor Matt Tuerk said when the bill cleared the bill cleared the Banking Committee last summer.
Last year, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey signed a $5.1 billion bond bill aimed at tackling the Bay State’s housing crisis. Housing costs and rental costs in Massachusetts remain among the highest in the nation.
If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy.