S-2361-119
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
Sponsored by Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-DE)
What it does
This bill would authorize HUD to award grants to local governments, tribes, and municipal organizations to develop "pre-reviewed" building designs (pattern books) for small-scale mixed-income housing like duplexes, triplexes, and accessory dwelling units. It would authorize $15 million per year from 2027 through 2031, with at least 10 percent reserved for rural areas, and requires grant recipients to report on housing units produced and permits issued.
Who benefits
Local governments and tribes seeking funding to streamline permitting, developers of small multi-unit housing who could use pre-approved designs to speed construction, and prospective renters or buyers in communities where faster permitting could increase housing supply. Architecture and planning firms contracted to develop pattern books could also benefit.
Who is hurt
No group bears a direct, concrete cost, though local governments not selected for grants would not benefit, and jurisdictions that decline to update zoning to match pre-reviewed designs would see no effect. Existing homeowners near infill or accessory dwelling projects in participating areas may experience change in neighborhood density, and taxpayers fund the $15 million annual appropriation.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue the country faces an estimated shortage of 4.87 million housing units and that complex, slow permitting processes are a major barrier to construction, citing the finding that 50 percent of renters are cost-burdened. They contend pre-reviewed designs give developers predictability and speed while letting localities retain control over architectural standards, striking a balance between faster building and community input.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue $15 million annually is too small to meaningfully address a multi-million-unit shortage and that the program creates another competitive federal grant process with administrative overhead rather than addressing root causes like local zoning restrictions directly. They contend the grants could favor localities that already have planning capacity to apply, leaving under-resourced rural and small communities further behind despite the rural set-aside.