Senate Appropriation Commitee Calls on Localities to Consider Manufactured Housing in Affordable Housing Plans
On June 12, 2019, U.S. Todd Young (R-Ind) introduced bipartisan bill (S.1804) to require the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to issue guidelines that would include manufactured homes as affordable housing for federal funding. For more information about this legislation, including text from this bill, click our previous report, “U.S. Senate Bill Would Make Manufactured Homes Eligible For Federal Low-Income Housing Funds.”
The following from the Manufactured Housing Institute (MHI) updates the progress towards implementation of the HUD Modernization Act of 2019, S.1804.
HOUSING ALERT – The Senate Appropriations Committee has included language in its 2020 spending bill encouraging local governments to consider manufactured housing as a part of their affordable housing strategies. The language reflects MHI’s ongoing advocacy on Capitol Hill to ensure manufactured housing is at the forefront of efforts to address the nation’s affordable housing shortage.
In its 2020 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, the Senate Appropriations Committee directed HUD to issue guidelines for local authorities on assessing the inclusion of manufactured homes in a community’s housing affordability strategy and community development plans. Such plans are required under Part 91 of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations to receive federal funds under HUD’s formula grant programs for jurisdictions and for assessing performance and tracking results.
The inclusion of this language comes from MHI’s constructive and consistent advocacy to ensure manufactured housing is included in federally-funded state and local affordable housing initiatives. According to the bill language, “the Committee recognizes that manufactured housing is a significant source of unsubsidized affordable housing,” and that “making manufactured housing more available is an important tool to increase the overall supply of affordable housing.”
The Senate Appropriations Committee incorporated this language from S.1804, bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators Cortez Masto (D-NV), Scott (R-SC), Smith (D-MN), Cramer (R.-ND), and Young (R-IN), which MHI endorsed when it was introduced in June 2019. Prior to introduction, MHI worked with the bill sponsors to ensure the bill would positively promote manufactured housing across America.
MHI will continue to cultivate strong partisan support on Capitol Hill for manufactured housing and ensure that manufactured housing is a part of federal efforts to address the nation’s affordable housing challenges.
For more information regarding HUD’s testimony to Congress, click our previous post, “Secretary Carson Tells U.S. Senate That HUD Is Alleviating Impediments To Manufactured Housing.”
