Congress’ housing response? Not much
Of 115 bills considered since 2017, none have passed, study says
Looking for housing relief? Don’t count on Congress.
The 115th Congress introduced just 115 housing-related bills in the last two years — and none passed, according to a new study by Apartment List.
“The 115th Congress is roughly batting zero for 115,” said Apartment List chief economist Igor Popov.
Nor has California’s growing affordability crisis motivated its delegation to lead the charge. Just one local representative — Oakland Democrat Barbara Lee — ranked among the top 25 members sponsoring housing bills. The state’s Democratic senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris, also proposed reform measures.
Housing has taken center stage in the state capital and in city halls throughout the Bay Area as officials grapple with a shortage of affordable homes, skyrocketing prices, growing traffic
and myriad proposed solutions. In November, California voters will consider ballot measures to loosen restrictions on cities’ ability to impose rent control, and on a $4 billion bond package aimed at creating housing for military veterans and low-income residents. Not to mention dozens of local measures.
New state laws already have given developers more leverage over local officials to build affordable housing. Cupertino residents are facing the issue with the redevelopment of Vallco Mall.
Carl Guardino, CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, didn’t fault the local delegation on housing. He noted that the gridlock in Congress did not thwart other key regional issues in the past two years, including funds for expanding BART to San Jose and electrifying CalTrain.
“It’s incredibly difficult to move any issue in Washington, D.C.,” said Guardino, whose group typically brings tech CEOs to the U.S. Capitol at least twice a year. “It’s the Founding Fathers’ intentional checks and balances on steroids.”
The Bay Area congressional delegation has worked with business and local elected leaders to address the housing shortage — largely through supporting state and local initiatives, he said. “Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither was our housing challenge,” Guardino said.
Although state and local laws dictate most development and rental policies, there are plenty of housing-focused issues for Congress. Federal agencies regulate mortgages, subsidize low-income housing, provide targeted development funds and enforce fair housing laws, among other responsibilities.
Apartment List reviewed 10,200 bills submitted by Congress members since January 2017. The proposals included policies covering apartments, home financing and ownership. The study did not consider revenue bills, such as tax reforms that passed last year, Popov said.
Those tax cuts changed the equation for homeowners in high-cost, high-tax states like California and New York. Mortgage interest rate deductions on new loans were capped at $750,000, and state and local property tax deductions were cut to $10,000. Taxpayers got a boost in the standard deduction, with married couples receiving
a $24,000 exemption.
The Apartment List study considered sponsored and co-sponsored bills, mentions of housing policy made by Congress members during floor speeches, and the amount of material on congressional websites.
About 70 percent of housing bills came from members of three congressional groups — the Black Caucus, Hispanic Caucus and the Asian Pacific American Caucus. The study found housing affordability in a district did not always correlate with a member’s interest in the issue.
Oakland’s Lee led the local delegation on housing issues, sponsoring two housing-related bills and co-sponsoring four others. Lee gave 11 speeches addressing affordable housing on the floor of the House, according to Apartment List.
Democrat Maxine Waters of Los Angeles was the most active member, sponsoring six bills, co-sponsoring another three and delivering a dozen speeches on housing.
Local representatives, including Ro Khanna, DSanta Clara, and Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose, recently have addressed the housing crisis in district meetings with advocates and industry insiders.
“I don’t want to live in the Silicon Valley that only has Facebook or Google engineers able to live here,” Khanna said in a March speech to housing advocates, policy experts and politicians in Santa Clara. He called for the Department of Housing and Urban Development and other agencies to support development around rail and bus lines.
Last week, Lofgren told members of the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors that housing and traffic were among the top concerns of her constituents. The federal government, which supports financing of mortgages and affordable housing, has “dropped the ball” on promoting housing development, she said.
“We have a big problem. It’s not entirely a federal problem, obviously,” Lofgren said. “State and localities, as well as the private sector, have a role to play. We are way behind on what we need to build.”
Lofgren opposed the Republican tax bill, saying it hurt coastal states with high costs of living. The issues need to be addressed for younger generations, she said. “Where are our sons and daughters going to live?”