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R48849 — Housing for the 21st Century Act

Reports · published 2026-05-07 · v1 · Active · crsreports.congress.gov ↗

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Authors
Katie Jones · Maggie McCarty · Henry G. Watson · Andrew P. Scott · Darryl E. Getter
Report id
R48849
Summary

The Housing for the 21st Century Act (H.R. 6644) was passed by the House on February 9, 2026. The bill contains six titles comprising 38 sections, which address several housing policy topics as well as several banking topics. According to the committee report accompanying the reported version of the bill (H.Rept. 119-457), its purpose is “to make it easier to build and afford housing, including modernizing outdated government programs, lowering costs by removing unnecessary federal requirements, and increasing local flexibility over housing decisions.” The version of the bill passed by the House differs from the version reported by the House Committee on Financial Services in several ways, including the addition of a new Title VI, “Strengthening Community Banks’ Role in Housing.” Most of the sections in the Housing for the 21st Century Act are similar to previously introduced stand-alone bills. Additionally, many of the provisions in the Housing for the 21st Century Act are similar to provisions included in the Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream to Housing Act of 2025 (S. 2651; also known as the ROAD to Housing Act). Some sections are substantially identical, others have some similarities but notable differences. Some provisions are present in one bill and not the other. Table A-1 of this report compares provisions from the Housing for the 21st Century Act to those in the ROAD to Housing Act. On March 12, 2026, the Senate passed H.R. 6644 with the substitute amendment S.Amdt. 4308 under the short title of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. This report does not discuss the Senate-passed version of H.R. 6644; for more information, see CRS Report R48922, Comparison of House- and Senate-Passed Versions of H.R. 6644, coordinated by Henry G. Watson. Major Components of the Housing for the 21st Century Act Title I contains seven sections concerning housing supply and housing development regulations. Several national indicators suggest that housing supply may be relatively low compared to demand, which can be a contributing factor to decreasing housing affordability. The sections in Title I would seek to publish land use policy guidelines and best practices, including for single-stair reform; establish a grant program for home building pattern books; adjust and streamline certain environmental review processes; adjust Federal Housing Administration (FHA) multifamily loan limits; and require a Government Accountability Office (GAO) study of workforce housing. Title II contains five sections, four of which would make reforms to existing federal housing programs: the HOME Investment Partnerships program, the Community Development Block Grant, the Section 504 rural housing home repair program, and the Housing Choice Voucher program. A fifth section proposes a new competitive grant program to assist planning and implementation activities associated with affordable housing. Title III contains three sections concerning manufactured housing, small-dollar mortgages, and an increased cap on bank investments to promote the public welfare. Title IV contains eight sections, which propose to exclude veterans disability compensation when determining income for eligibility for certain housing programs, add a disclosure about potential eligibility for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)-guaranteed loans to the Uniform Residential Loan Application for mortgages, increase interagency coordination on housing programs, create a new pilot program within the Family Self-Sufficiency program, make changes to HUD’s housing counseling program, create a new eviction helpline grant program, create a new temperature sensor pilot program in public and assisted housing, and require GAO studies on housing for elderly/disabled persons, housing near superfund sites, and residential heirs property. Title V contains two sections concerning congressional oversight of federal housing officials and Public Housing Agencies. Title VI contains 13 sections, which propose to modify the classification of custodial and reciprocal deposits for certain banking institutions; modify examination and other requirements for certain banking institutions; modify processes regarding failed and insolvent banks; modify and review processes regarding new, rural, and small banking institutions; and provide budgetary savings by reducing the aggregate amount of surplus funds of the Federal Reserve banks.

Bills cited (57)

Curated by CRS — every bill listed in this report's relatedMaterials. Edge type cited_in_report, gold confidence.

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