Overview
The Legislative Action Center provides information and tools for advocates to stay up-to-date and take action on federal affordable housing solutions before Congress.
You will find the most urgent priorities for Congress at the top of this page followed by other bills supported by NLIHC. Each issue area (in blue) expands to provide relevant bills, a brief summary, factsheets and talking points, and a TAKE ACTION button. Each TAKE ACTION button will direct you to an email template and portal to contact your members of Congress about that particular legislation.
Urgent Priorities for Congress
Your members of Congress need to hear from you about each of these time-sensitive priorities! Learn more and take action by clicking an issue area to expand it.
HoUSed
Together, we will advance anti-racist policies and achieve the large-scale, sustained investments and reforms necessary to ensure that renters with the lowest incomes have an affordable place to call home. To achieve this, we must:
- Bridge the gap between incomes and housing costs by expanding rental assistance to every eligible household. Today, only one in four households eligible for rental assistance receives it. Learn more about how we can ensure rental assistance is universally available.
- Expand and preserve the supply of rental homes affordable and accessible to people with the lowest incomes. There is no state or congressional district in America with enough affordable homes for families with the lowest incomes. Learn more about ways to build and preserve affordable homes.
- Provide emergency rental assistance to households in crisis by creating a national housing stabilization fund. Millions of households are one financial shock away from economic hardship that could quickly spiral out of control. Learn more about how we can stabilize households during a crisis.
- Strengthen and enforce renter protections. The power imbalance between renters and landlords put renters at risk of housing instability and homelessness. Learn more about how we can build power for renters.
Sign this letter calling on Congress to pass these critical resources and protections.
Infrastructure or Stimulus Package
An infrastructure and economic recovery package is moving through Congress with more than $332 billion in housing and transportation investments. As legislation is drafted to divvy up these funds, your members of Congress need to hear from you to ensure the #HoUSed campaign’s top priorities are included:
• $180 billion to majorly expand rental assistance
• $70 billion to preserve public housing
• $40 billion to build new homes through the national Housing Trust Fund
Urge your Senators and Representatives to include these resources in any infrastructure or recovery package by clicking “TAKE ACTION” below.
More Information:
Federal Budget
NLIHC monitors the annual federal budget process and advocates for the highest possible allocation of resources to support affordable, accessible homes for the lowest-income people. This year will be the first in a decade not limited by the Budget Control Act, which prevented Congress from funding housing investments at the scale necessary.
Urge your Senators and Representatives to provide the highest funding possible for affordable housing and community development programs:
- Call and email your members by clicking the TAKE ACTION button below.
- Add your organization to a sign-on letter urging Congress to invest in affordable housing and community development programs in Fiscal Year 2022.
More Information:
- Talking Points
- See NLIHC's Federal Budget page for Memo to Members and Partners articles with the latest updates.
Bills Supported by NLIHC
Your members of Congress need to hear from you about bold solutions to housing poverty and homelessness! Learn more and take action on any number of bills supported by NLIHC by clicking an issue area to expand it.
Note: Congress began a new session in January 2021 (117th Congress). Some of the legislation below is from the previous session (116th Congress) and will have to be reintroduced to be considered. Bills that have not yet been introduced will not have a bill number or original cosponsor(s) listed. You can still contact your members of Congress about any of these by clicking TAKE ACTION below each.
Investments to Build and Preserve Affordable Rental Homes
Any new federal housing resources must be targeted to address the underlying cause of the affordable housing crisis – the severe shortage of affordable homes for people with extremely low incomes. Urge your Senators and Representative to support the solutions in the bills below that would build and preserve affordable rental homes.
American Housing and Economic Mobility Act
This ambitious proposal as introduced in the 116th Congress would help end housing poverty and homelessness in America by directly addressing the underlying cause of the affordable housing crisis – the severe shortage of affordable rental homes for people with the lowest incomes – through a robust investment of nearly $45 billion annually in the national Housing Trust Fund. The bill also includes resources to repair public housing, build or rehabilitate housing on tribal and Native Hawaiian lands, and create and preserve affordable homes in rural areas.
Affordable Housing Tax Credit Improvement Act
The Affordable Housing Tax Credit Improvement Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would expand the Housing Credit by 50% over five years and make important reforms to help the program better serve families with the lowest incomes as well as rural and tribal communities.
- See NLIHC's Housing Related Tax Credits page to learn more
- Talking Points
Fulfilling the Promise of the Housing Trust Fund Act
The Fulfilling the Promise of the Housing Trust Fund Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would significantly increase funding for the national Housing Trust Fund (HTF), which provides states resources to build and preserve rental homes affordable to the lowest-income people in America. The bill preserves and redirects an existing 10-basis point – or 0.1% – “guarantee fee” currently levied by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to the HTF, increasing funding to the program by billions every year.
- Factsheet on the national Housing Trust Fund
Bridging the Gap Between Incomes and Rents
Low wages, wage inequality, racial inequities, and a severe shortage of affordable rental homes leave too many people unable to afford their housing. Urge your Senators and Representative to support the solutions in the bills below that would help close the significant gap between renters’ wages and the cost of rental homes across the country.
Family Stability and Opportunity Vouchers Act
The Family Stability and Opportunity Vouchers Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would provide 500,000 new housing vouchers and counseling services to help families with children move to areas of opportunity. The bill is also supported by the Opportunity Starts at Home campaign.
Rent Relief Act and the Housing, Opportunity, Mobility, and Equity (HOME) Act
Each of these bills as introduced in the 116th Congress would provide a renter’s tax credit that could help ensure the lowest-income households are able to afford a safe, decent, accessible home. A renter’s tax credit should be targeted to extremely low-income renters and could complement the existing Low Income Housing Tax Credit that, on its own, is rarely affordable to the lowest-income people.
- NLIHC’s chart comparing these renters’ tax credit proposals
- Talking Points
Preventing Evictions and Ending Homelessness
Far too many families are struggling to keep a roof over their heads. Nearly 11 million families spend more than half of their income on rent, and the number of people experiencing homelessness has increased nationally over the past few years. Urge your Senators and Representative to support the solutions in the bills below that would prevent evictions and end homelessness.
Eviction Crisis Act
The Eviction Crisis Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would establish a national housing stabilization fund to help families facing a financial shock avoid eviction. The bill is also supported by the Opportunity Starts at Home campaign.
- Factsheet from the Opportunity Starts at Home campaign
Ending Homelessness Act
Original cosponsors of H.R.1856: Representative Maxine Waters (D-CA).
The Ending Homelessness Act proposes to invest more than $13 billion over five years, including $1 billion annually for the national Housing Trust Fund, to address the shortage of affordable housing and to combat homelessness.
Advancing Fair Housing and Equity
People of color are significantly more likely than white people to experience evictions and homelessness in the United States, the result of centuries of structural racism that continues today. NLIHC is committed to advancing anti-racist policies that create robust housing choice. Urge your Senators and Representative to support the solutions in the bills below that would advance fair housing and racial equity.
Proposals to Expand Fair Housing Act Protections
The Fair Housing Improvement Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would expand the Fair Housing Act to prohibit housing discrimination based on source of income or veteran status. The Fair and Equal Housing Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would prohibit housing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
- Factsheet
- Talking Points
Fair Chance at Housing Act
The Fair Chance at Housing Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would reform the ways in which public housing authorities and owners of federally-assisted housing screen out applicants or evict tenants based on their involvement with the criminal justice system.
- Factsheet
- Talking Points
- See NLIHC's Housing and Criminal Justice page to learn more
Preserving Public Housing and Other Federally Assisted Housing
For decades, Congress has failed to provide adequate funding to maintain public housing and other federally assisted housing in good condition, and as a result, billions of dollars are needed to address the backlog in capital improvement needs. Urge your Senators and Representative to support the solutions in the bills below.
Public Housing Emergency Response Act
The Public Housing Emergency Response Act as introduced in the 116th Congress fully addresses the $70 billion capital needs backlog to repair and preserve public housing for current and future generations.
Ensuring Equitable Disaster Recovery
Disasters are becoming more frequent, destructive, and widespread due to climate change, and often leave the lowest-income and most marginalized people susceptible to the greatest harm. Major investments and reforms are needed to meet the threat and inequities in our nation’s current disaster housing recovery framework. Urge your Senators and Representative to support the solutions in the bills below.
Reforming Disaster Recovery Act
The Reforming Disaster Recovery Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would permanently authorize and reform the federal government’s primary long-term disaster rebuilding program, the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery program, which provides states and communities with the flexible resources needed to rebuild affordable housing and infrastructure after a disaster.
- Factsheet
- Talking Points
- NLIHC’s Disaster Housing Recovery work
- Additional resources
Housing Victims of Major Disaster Act
The Housing Victims of Major Disasters Act as introduced in the 116th Congress would require the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to activate the Disaster Housing Assistance Program to provide temporary rental assistance and wrap-around services to those households displaced by disasters.
