Garamendi and Beatty Reintroduce Legislation to Address Affordable Housing Crisis

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Reps John Garamendi (D-CA-08) and Joyce Beatty (D-OH-03) reintroduced the bicameral HOME Investment Partnerships Reauthorization and Improvement Act to address America's housing crisis.

Since 1992, the state of California has received over $5.7 billion from the HOME program as it built or preserved 125,167 homes benefiting 48,499 families. This bill will increase the amount of federal funds available for the HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Companion legislation in the U.S. Senate is led by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (NV).

"While Republicans are cutting critical housing funding and evicting families, Democrats are focused on building new homes for working Americans," said Representative Garamendi. "The Bay Area is facing a housing crisis where minimum wage workers must work nearly 96 hours a week to afford a modest one-bedroom apartment. This is unacceptable. This bill reauthorizes the HOME Investment Partnerships Program to provide states and local governments with the funding to construct and rehabilitate affordable rental housing and provide homeownership opportunities for working families. I'm thankful to Senator Cortez Masto for introducing the companion legislation in the Senate, and we will work every day to ensure this bill passes."

"For over thirty years, the HOME program has provided critical funding for states to tackle the ever-growing housing crisis that is afflicting our country," said Congresswoman Beatty. "From young professionals looking to grow their family, to seniors that need critical home repairs, hardworking Ohioans deserve safe, affordable housing - and this legislation makes it possible. I am proud to join Senator Cortez Masto and Congressman Garamendi in counteracting Republican-led attempts to cut critical housing funding for the American people. Instead, this legislation authorizes ample funding for the HOME program for the next five years; powering Ohio housing equality forward."

The HOME program is the largest federal block grant to state and local governments to create affordable housing for low-income households. Since 1992, HOME has supported a wide variety of housing needs, from financing new construction and home repairs to funding down payment and rental assistance. It also provides additional funding to housing developments financed by the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, helping the program serve more extremely low-income people including seniors, veterans, those experiencing homelessness, and people with disabilities.

The program was last reauthorized in 1994 and needs critical updates to better address today's housing crisis.

This bill, the HOME act, would:

• Authorize $5 billion in HOME funding for fiscal year 2025 and boost the funding for the program five percent annually through 2029. This legislation would address chronic underfunding of the affordable housing investment program.
• Improve HOME's ability to provide down payment assistance to homebuyers and home repair assistance to homeowners.
• Enable HOME funds to support Community Land Trusts and other shared equity homeownership programs.
• Increase access to HOME funds for nonprofits and provide state and local governments loan guarantee options that would allow them to leverage their future HOME funds for investments today.

The legislation is cosponsored by Senators Angela Alsobrooks (MD), John Fetterman (PA), Michael Bennet (CO), Jacky Rosen (NV), Tina Smith (MN), and Chris Van Hollen (MD), and Representatives Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03), Shontel Brown (OH-11), Julia Brownley (CA-26), Salud Carbajal (CA-24), Andre Carson (IN-7), Judy Chu (CA-28), Dwight Evans (PA-3), Bill Foster (IL-11), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC), Ilhan Omar (MN-5), Emilia Sykes (OH-13), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Juan Vargas (CA-52), Nydia Velázquez (NY-7), and Bonnie Watson Coleman (NJ-12).

The bill is also supported by the National Council of State Housing Agencies, Institute of Real Estate Management, National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals, National Association of Realtors, Enterprise Community Partners, National Apartment Association, National Multifamily Housing Council, National NeighborWorks Association, National Community Development Association, National Alliance of Community Economic Development Associations, National Association of Local Housing Finance Agencies, Council of State Community Development Agencies, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, Local Initiatives Support Corporation, Grounded Solutions Network, and Habitat for Humanity.

You can find the full bill text HERE.

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