WASHINGTON, D.C. (KOAA) — The 21st Century ROAD to Housing bill is intended to help bring down the cost of housing, build more housing, and make home ownership more attainable.
Colorado Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper says the bill builds on what lawmakers did with the Bipartisan Infrastructure bill during the Biden administration.
"I think it's going to allow us to take advantage of a new attitude where people are recognizing that the whole community has got to believe in affordable housing," Hickenlooper said. "We've got to do that [get permitting] faster and less expensively and make sure that, as we get this federal money, we leverage it and get maximum advantage so that we're building houses at scale."
Hickenlooper had multiple provisions that made it into the bipartisan bill. He says he was looking for ways to "diminish red tape and bureaucracy as much as possible."
“Obviously building more housing is the most important part," Hickenlooper said. "We’re also here trying to make sure that giant corporations can’t buy up all the housing in someone’s neighborhood, driving up those prices."
Hickenlooper says the bill looks at how many homes a corporation can have.
"As this comes through the House, we'll fine tune that," Hickenlooper said. "The point is we don't want every day homes in people's neighborhoods to become a commodity that's bought and sold like shares in a stock in a publicly traded company."
As summarized by Congress, the bill also:
- Revises federal housing programs, including by expanding available financing for affordable housing
- Increases the statutory maximum loan limits for mortgage insurance programs administered by the Federal Housing Administration for multifamily homes and requires the use of a more specific inflation index for such loans
- Increases the maximum eligible income for the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD's) HOME Investment Partnerships Program (grants to states and localities to support housing for low-income households) and establishes a grant program to assist regional, state, and local entities with strategies to support affordable housing
In May, the median sales price for a single-family home in El Paso County was $549,000.
If the bill becomes law, Hickenlooper hopes Coloradans will see additional housing resources and streamlined work plans in 2027.
“We got to figure out how to make sure that our housing doesn’t become unattainable for A, the people that are already living here, but people who’ve come here," Hickenlooper said.
On Thursday, the bill passed a final procedural vote and a final vote is expected to take place early next week.
Email Senior Reporter Meghan Glova at meghan.glova@koaa.com.
Follow Meghan Glova KOAA on Facebook.
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