WASHINGTON – The Senate overwhelmingly passed a bipartisan housing reform bill on March 12 as both parties attempt to laser focus on affordability issues ahead of the midterm elections.
The legislation, part of an effort to bring down home costs for everyday Americans, mostly would ban large institutional investors from competing with traditional buyers for existing single-family homes, a priority for President Donald Trump that he brought up during his recent State of the Union address.
Among other things, it would also reduce some regulatory barriers to building and incentivize affordable housing production by creating and providing grants to local governments and tribes.
The bill represents a rare area of largely bipartisan unity on Capitol Hill, and was authored by Sens. Tim Scott, R-South Carolina, and Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts (an uncommon conservative-progressive partnership).
The bill passed 89-10.
Though the legislation is supported by the White House, the fate of a vote in the House of Representatives is less certain at the moment, given a lack of universal support among Republicans in that chamber as conservatives have pushed back over a provision related to digital currency. Still, the House passed its own, different version of the same bill last month with 390 members in support of it.
In an interview March 11 on CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Scott said he thinks the legislation will ultimately also pass the House.
“We think we’ve given the sweeteners necessary,” he said.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, told reporters before the vote it’s possible the legislation may need to be workshopped more to look like the House’s version, but the “quickest way to get this done” would be approval of the Senate-passed bill.
In a March 2 statement of administration policy, the White House signaled Trump would sign the Senate’s version of the bill if it passes both chambers.
“This landmark, bipartisan legislation represents significant advances in federal housing policy to further the goals of expanding housing supply and affordability,” the statement said. “By streamlining regulations, modernizing finance options, and promoting innovative construction methods, this bill will lower housing costs for families, seniors, and veterans across the country.”
But in a speech to House Republicans during their policy retreat in Florida this week, the president seemed to contradict his own position, saying everyday Americans “don’t talk about housing.” He argued a voting restrictions bill known as the SAVE America Act should be the bigger priority in Congress.
Zachary Schermele is a congressional reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at [email protected]. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele and Bluesky at @zachschermele.bsky.social.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Senate passes big housing reform bill with broad bipartisan support
Reporting by Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
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