By Kim Johnson, NLIHC Senior Director of Policy
The Senate is expected to hold a floor vote on the bipartisan “Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act” (S.2651) this week, after Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) expressed his support for getting the housing bill “immediately on [the Senate’s] agenda.”
The bill, introduced by Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott (R-SC) and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and endorsed by NLIHC, includes 40 provisions, including some of NLIHC’s priorities:
The “Reforming Disaster Recovery Act” contains critical reforms proposed by NLIHC’s Disaster Housing Recovery Coalition (DHRC) members to help ensure the federal government’s long-term disaster recovery program, HUD’s Community Development Block Grant–Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) program, better serves disaster survivors with the lowest incomes.
- The “Rural Housing Service Reform Act” would help preserve affordable rental and homeownership opportunities for low-income people and families living in rural areas, cut red tape, and encourage public-private partnerships to increase investment in the country’s rural housing supply.
- The “Reducing Homelessness Through Program Reform Act” includes several reforms to ease administrative burdens, streamline inspection and income verification processes to get people into homes more quickly, and encourage collaboration between the various agencies, systems, and organizations that serve people experiencing homelessness.
The “ROAD to Housing Act” includes two provisions from the “Choice in Affordable Housing Act” related to streamlining inspections for the HCV program.
The bill passed out of committee with unanimous support, 24-0, last July (see Memo, 8/1/25), and passed the Senate as an amendment to the “National Defense Authorization Act” (NDAA) in October (see Memo, 10/14/25). However, the “ROAD to Housing Act” was not included in the final NDAA, after House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) Chair French Hill (R-AR) objected to its inclusion, citing a lack of support from House Republicans (see Memo, 12/8/25).
The House passed their own bipartisan housing supply bill, the “Housing for the 21st Century Act” (H.R.6644), with overwhelming support (390-9) earlier this month (see The Connection, 2/13). Introduced by HFSC Chair Hill and Ranking Member Maxine Waters (D-CA), NLIHC has also endorsed the “Housing for the 21st Century Act,” which includes 27 provisions related to streamlining local, state, and federal processes; reforming federal programs, including the HOME Investment Partnership program, Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, and Rural Housing Service (RHS) programs; manufactured housing; veterans’ access to housing; housing counseling; rental housing for elderly and disabled residents; and federal program oversight.
The Senate is expected to pass the “ROAD to Housing Act” as a standalone bill this week. Once both bills are passed through their respective chambers, members of the House and Senate will need to come together in a conference committee to reconcile the difference between the two bills and reach an agreement on final bill text that would pass both chambers.