U.S. House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) Ranking Member Patrick McHenry (R-NC) sent a letter on March 3 to House appropriators on behalf of HFSC Republicans outlining their priorities for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 omnibus spending bill. These priorities include increasing oversight of pandemic relief funds, protecting investors and supporting access to capital, protecting consumers, countering China’s global influence, and supporting an increase in housing supply through local zoning and regulation reform.
In the letter, Ranking Member McHenry argues that federal oversight of coronavirus relief funds “took a backseat” in 2020 and 2021 and urges appropriators to include in the FY22 budget provisions to ensure that federal funds are being used appropriately. The letter also calls for a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report to study the impact of local zoning, ordinances, and land-use restrictions on housing supply and access to affordable housing.
While NLIHC supports reforms to zoning and land use restrictions, these reforms should not be framed as the “first step” in addressing the affordable housing crisis. Even states with lax zoning laws, like Texas, have a severe shortage of affordable housing for households with extremely low incomes. Reducing barriers is necessary and can decrease the cost of construction but cannot, on its own, reduce prices enough to serve the lowest-income households. In addition to zoning and land-use reforms, significant federal investments in affordable housing targeted to people with extremely low incomes are also needed to effectively address the affordable housing crisis.
Read Ranking Member McHenry’s full letter here.
Read NLIHC’s article on land use regulation and affordable housing here.