Senate Hearing Puts Focus on Infrastructure Needs of States and Cities
This week, the Senate Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs Committee held a hearing examining the infrastructure needs facing America’s states, cities, and towns. Witnesses included Mayor Daniel Horrigan of Akron, Ohio, Mayor Cyndy Andrus of Bozeman, Montana, and Corey Woods of Tempe, Arizona. During the hearing, witnesses described how their cities are facing a growing housing crisis and stressed the need for affordable housing to be included in any congressional infrastructure package. For businesses to retain talented workers and for their communities to grow, they need help from the federal government to invest in affordable housing, the Mayors said. During the hearing, several Republicans said they were hesitant to include housing as part of infrastructure legislation. Ranking Member of the committee, Senator Pat Toomey (R-PN), said that instead of spending additional money for affordable housing, he would rather repurpose unused COVID-19 relief funds for “real physical infrastructure.” Ohio mayor Horrigan, disagreed and argued that housing is critical infrastructure stating that all other infrastructure — water meters, roads, electrical lines, broadband fiber, sewers — ultimately connect to houses.
To view the full Senate Banking Committee hearing on infrastructure needs, click here.
Bipartisan Bill to Expand Vouchers Introduced in the Senate
Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Todd Young (R-IN) recently reintroduced the Family Stability and Opportunity Vouchers Act, which if enacted, would create an additional 500,000 housing vouchers specifically designed for low-income families with young children to expand access to neighborhoods of opportunity with high-performing schools, strong job prospects, and other resources. The legislation, if enacted, would seek to eliminate homelessness among families with young children, as well as substantially reducing the number of children growing up in areas of concentrated poverty. Specifically, the bill would prioritize new vouchers for low-income pregnant women and families with children under age 6 who have a recent history of homelessness or housing instability, live in an area of concentrated poverty, or are at risk of being displaced from an opportunity area. The new vouchers would be coupled with counseling and services that have a proven track record of supporting parents and helping families move out of neighborhoods of concentrated poverty. The half-million new vouchers created through this legislation would be phased in over five years at 100,000 per year.
To view Senator Van Hollen’s press release on the reintroduction of the Family Stability and Opportunity Vouchers Act, click here.
House Subcommittee Examines Remedies for Unlawful Evictions
This week, the House Committee on the Judiciary’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties held a hearing focusing on potential legislative remedies for unlawful evictions occurring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Titled Potential Remedies for Unlawful Evictions in Federal Emergency Areas. The Chairman of the subcommittee, Representative Steven Cohen (D-TN), began the hearing by discussing his Emergency Eviction Enforcement Act of 2021 (HR 1451), a bill that would provide federal protections to renters who are at risk of eviction during a national emergency. The legislation would provide a “right of action” to renters who have been unlawfully evicted during national emergencies by allowing them – or the U.S. Justice Department – to challenge that eviction in court. If an eviction is found to be illegal, renters would also become entitled to damages paid out by the landlord. It would also allow the Office of the Attorney General to intervene on behalf of evicted tenants. Members heard several witness testify in support of the legislation, citing the need for stronger enforcement of the COVID-19 eviction moratoriums and data showing that people of color are at greater risk for eviction during a crisis. The hearing also focused on the needs of landlords who resorted to evictions where possible due to their lost rental income during the pandemic. Ranking Member of the committee, Mike Johnson (R-LA), stated that federal renter protections would be a government overreach–while HR 1451 was written in response to unlawful evictions that have taken place under a national eviction moratorium during the COVID-19 pandemic, the bill would seek to establish a renter’s right of action during all future national emergencies as well. The hearing concluded with both the witnesses and members of the subcommittee acknowledging that the number of evictions in the United States is a growing concern.
To view the full subcommittee hearing, click hear.
To view the full bill text of HR 1451, the Emergency Eviction Enforcement Act of 2021, click here.