President Biden and congressional leaders are working to complete “Build Back Better Act” negotiations in the Senate, with the goal of enacting the bill before Congress adjourns for the end of the year. While the House passed the bill on November 19 (see Memo,11/22), momentum has stalled in the Senate as President Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) work to secure the vote of every Democratic senator.
Congressional leaders are using a process known as “budget reconciliation” to enact the Build Back Better Act, which allows Congress to pass a bill with a simple majority of 51 votes in the Senate, rather than the 60 votes typically required to pass legislation in the chamber. Centrist Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Krysten Sinema (D-AZ) have not yet publicly agreed to vote for the legislation, and there remains disagreement over the size and scope of the package.
The bill includes an historic $150 billion investment in affordable housing and community development, including significant funding for the HoUSed campaign’s top priorities:
- $25 billion to expand housing vouchers to more than 300,000 households. See how many vouchers your state would receive here
- $65 billion to preserve public housing for its 2.5 million residents
- $15 billion for the national Housing Trust Fund to build and preserve over 150,000 affordable, accessible homes for households with the lowest incomes. See NLIHC’s breakdown of how much each state would receive through the Housing Trust Fund here.
Congress needs to hear from you about why investments in housing vouchers, public housing, and the Housing Trust Fund are critical to your community.
Take Action
Please email and call your senators today and urge them to support the Build Back Better Act and its historic investments in affordable housing, including rental assistance, public housing, and the Housing Trust Fund.