WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Todd Young (R-IN), and colleagues introduced the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act to increase affordable housing for families and workers by expanding and strengthening the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. The bill also helps build nearly 1.6 million new affordable homes over the next decade.
“Doing something to help someone buy a home is consistent with President Trump’s goal of helping working families,” said Dr. Cassidy. “No one should be priced out of a roof over their heads.”
“Affordable housing is needed in Indiana and across the country. The Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act will leverage private sector investment to increase the stock of affordable housing in both urban and rural communities. As a result, this will help to tackle the housing affordability crisis head-on to help Hoosier families, expand our workforce, and strengthen our communities,” said Senator Young.
Cassidy and Young were joined by U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), and Ron Wyden (D-OR) in introducing the legislation. It is endorsed by the ACTION Campaign and the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition.
“Ensuring access to affordable housing is a critical component in helping Tennessee continue to grow and prosper,” said Senator Blackburn. “The Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act strengthens the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, an important tool that helps to drive private sector investment in affordable housing for all Americans, including our nation’s veterans and seniors.”
Background
Currently, nearly one-in-four renters, over 11 million families, spend more than half of their household income on rent, cutting into other essential expenses like childcare, medication, groceries, and transportation. At the same time, over 600,000 Americans are experiencing homelessness on any given day, an increase over pre-COVID levels.
The Housing Credit has built or restored more than 4 million affordable housing units, nearly 90 percent of all federally funded affordable housing since its creation. Roughly nine million American households have benefited from the credit, and the economic activity that it generated has supported 6.6 million jobs and spurred more than $746 billion in wages.
More specifically, the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act would:
- Increase the number of credits available to states by 50 percent for the next two years and make the temporary 12.5 percent increase secured in 2018 permanent, which has already helped build more than 59,000 additional affordable housing units nationwide.
- Stabilize financing for workforce housing projects built using private activity bonds by decreasing the amount of private activity bonds needed to secure Housing Credit funding. As a result, projects would have to carry less debt, and more projects would be eligible to receive funding.
- Improve the Housing Credit program to better serve veterans, victims of domestic violence, formerly homeless students, Native American communities, and rural Americans.
The Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act was recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by U.S. Representatives Darin LaHood (R-IL-16), Suzan DelBene (D-WA-01), Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24), Don Beyer (D-VA-08), Randy Feenstra (R-IA-04), and Jimmy Panetta (D-CA-19).
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