By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – The 21st Century Road to Housing Act, described as the country’s biggest housing bill in decades, is set to become law with or without President Trump’s signature.
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The bill passed both chambers of Congress with bipartisan support last month.
As of Friday, President Trump said he would not sign the legislation until the Senate passed the Save America Act. If no action is taken by 9 p.m. Arizona time, the bill becomes law automatically.
What’s in the bill
Ann Chanecka, the city of Tucson’s director of housing and community development, said three provisions in the bill could have a direct impact on the housing market here.
The first involves reforms to manufactured home regulations. Chanecka said manufactured homes make up 10% of the city’s housing stock, and the new law would make them cheaper to build and easier for buyers to finance.
The second provision would simplify the environmental review process for federally funded affordable housing projects.
“When you’re building in areas that are already built out, that have already been built quite a bit, it can still take a lot of time and money for those processes, and this bill will streamline that,” Chanecka said.
The third provision would allow the city’s largest source of federal funding to be used for new construction, rather than being limited to existing homes in need of repair.
Tucson’s housing costs have climbed
Chanecka said home values in Tucson have more than doubled in recent years, outpacing income growth.
“The average home family value — it used to be around $200,000 in Tucson, and now it’s over $400,000,” she said.
She added that the affordability gap has left many residents struggling.
“We know there are too many families in Tucson that are paying more than they can afford for their housing, and we also know there’s way too many people unhoused in Tucson,” Chanecka said.
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Local builders weigh in
David Godlewski, president and CEO of the Southern Arizona Home Builders Association, said the bill addresses some of the regulatory barriers that have slowed housing production.
“There are a lot of grants that are set up to help streamline the regulatory process, to incentivize communities that are reducing barriers to housing,” Godlewski said.
He noted that many of the bill’s provisions primarily affect subsidized affordable housing rather than market-rate new construction, but said any measure that simplifies permitting and increases inventory benefits Tucson.
“This is the type of bold thinking that we need to make sure we’re providing the housing for the future of our region,” Godlewski said.
Chanecka said she is encouraged by the legislation but cautioned that results will not be immediate.
“I think it’s a step in the right direction. I do think it’s not an immediate fix in terms of housing affordability,” she said.
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