WASHINGTON–Three senators have reintroduced the American Housing and Economic Mobility Act to address, saying the Warren legislation is meant to address nation’s housing crisis.
According to its co-sponsors, the bill would leverage federal funding to build nearly three million new housing units, bring down rents by 10% for American families, and create incentives for local governments to eliminate unnecessary land use restrictions that drive up costs.
The bill was introduced by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the ranking member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Miss.), Ranking Member of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance,
One Day Before Hearing
The bill was introduced the day before the first hearing on housing in this Congress in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
The senators released a statement in conjunction with the bill’s introduction citing an independent analysis by the non-partisan Moody’s Analytics, which found the bill would build or rehabilitate nearly 3 million housing units over the next decade and bring down rents for lower-income and middle-class families by 10%, saving the average family $140 per month.
“To fully offset the cost of this historic effort, the bill returns the estate tax thresholds to their levels at the end of the George W. Bush administration, institutes more progressive rates above those thresholds, and closes certain loopholes,” the senators said in a statement.
‘Suffering Under the Weight’
“Americans are suffering under the weight of sky-high housing prices, and Congress must act. My comprehensive bill would build 3 million new homes across America, bring down rents by 10%, and create incentives for local governments to cut unnecessary red tape that drives up costs,” said Warren said in a statement. “I look forward to continuing bipartisan conversations about meaningful solutions to our nation’s housing crisis.”
“Housing means dignity, safety, and security, and as a Senator who grew up in public housing, I know that strengthening housing availability and affordability is critical to helping folks establish a solid foundation to build a healthy future,” said Senator Reverend Warnock. “That is why I am proud to fight for this transformational legislation that will unleash construction of millions of new homes and create hundreds of thousands of new jobs in the process.”