NMHC & NAA to House: Thanks for Passing YIMBY

On March 2, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4351. The bill, known as the Yes in My Backyard Act, or YIMBY, requires certain grantees under Title I of the Housing and Community Development act of 1974 to submit plans potentially tracking discriminatory land-use policies. If the bill makes it into law, localities would be prohibited from discriminatory land-use policies and housing decision disclosures when it comes to determining what gets built where.

The bill was introduced by Congressmen Denny Heck (D-WA) and Trey Hollingsworth (R-IN) in late September, 2019, and is currently in the Senate as S. 1919. The sponsors are Senators Todd Young (R-IN) and Brian Schatz (D-HI). As of this writing, the Senate bill has been read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs.

The National Multifamily Housing Council (NHMC) and National Apartment Association (NAA) wasted no time in their positive response, pointing out that passage of the YIMBY Act would help address housing affordability issues by “removing barriers to housing development desperately needed in communities across the country,” the organizations noted in a joint statement.

The statement went on to suggest that research indicated the need to build 328,000 apartment units every year, between 2016 and 2030, to meet the nation’s housing needs. “However, the apartment industry faces significant barriers to new apartment construction, development and renovation,” the NMHC and NAA commented.

According to public advocacy organization Up for Growth Action, part of the reason for the current housing shortage can be traced to “exclusionary land use policies — including zoning and density restrictions, onerous parking requirements and other burdensome development regulations . . .” The NAA added that land availability, rising labor costs and “input from local citizens” also influence housing development.

For comments, questions or concerns, please contact Amy Sorter