On Friday, November 19th, the US House of Representatives passed the Build Back Better Act, H.R. 5376, by a vote of 220-to-213. The legislation includes over $150 billion in housing investments, including:
- $65 billion for Public Housing to rebuild and repair the federal public housing stock.
- ~$25 billion for Housing Choice Vouchers to help low-income tenants afford rent, which could help reduce homelessness.
- $15 billion for the National Housing Trust Fund to increase the stock of affordable housing for low-income families.
The bill also includes many investments and updates to the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program, including:
- Increasing the annual 9% credit allocation by 10% plus annual adjustments for the years 2022-2024.
- Reducing the 50% bond financing test to 25% for the years 2022-2026.
- Providing a permanent maximum 50% basis boost for developments serving extremely low-income (ELI) households.
- Repealing the Qualified Contract option for properties receiving LIHTC allocations after January 1, 2022, and modifies the specified statutory price for those properties that still make use of the qualified contract option.
- Modifying rights related to the Right of First Refusal in property acquisitions.
- Creating a Neighborhood Homes Investment Tax Credit to encourage building or rehabilitation of affordable homes (for home ownership) in distressed neighborhoods.
The bill will now move to the Senate and is expected to be taken up the week of December 6th. The Senate Parliamentarian may still consider issues raised by Senators on whether any provisions passed in the House’s bill follow the Senate rules for reconciliation legislation. Thus, there still may be investments that are pulled from the final bill considered by the Senate.
(Check back for more updates.)