S.Amdt. 4329

SA 4329. Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER (for herself, Mr. Crapo, Mr. Fetterman,
Mr. Tillis, Mr. Cassidy, and Mrs. Gillibrand) submitted an amendment
intended to be proposed to amendment SA 4308 proposed by Mr. Scott of
South Carolina (for himself and Ms. Warren) to the bill H.R. 6644, a
bill to increase the supply of housing in America, and for other
purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. ___. HOUSING SUPPLY FRAMEWORKS ACT.

(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The United States is facing a housing supply shortage.
This housing supply shortage has resulted in a record number
of cost-burdened households across regions and spanning the
large and small cities, towns, and coastal and rural
communities of the United States.
(2) Several factors contribute to the undersupply of
housing in the United States, particularly workforce housing,
including rising costs of construction, a shortage of labor,
supply chain disruptions, and a lack of reliable funding
sources.
(3) Regulatory barriers at the State and local levels, such
as zoning and land use regulations, also inhibit the creation
of new housing to meet local and regional housing needs.
(4) State and local governments are proactively exploring
solutions for reforming regulatory barriers, but additional
resources, data, and models can help adequately address these
challenges.
(5) While land use regulation is the responsibility of
State and local governments, there is Federal support for
necessary reforms, and there is an opportunity for the
Federal Government to provide support and assistance to State
and local governments that wish to undertake necessary
reforms in a manner that fits their communities' needs.
(6) Therefore, zoning ordinances or systems of land use
regulation that have the intent or effect of restricting
housing opportunities based on economic status or income
without interests that are substantial, legitimate, and
nondiscriminatory and that outweigh the regional need for
housing are contrary to the regional and national interest.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Affordable housing.--The term ``affordable housing''
means housing for which the monthly payment is not more than
30 percent of the monthly income of the household.
(2) Assistant secretary.--The term ``Assistant Secretary''
means the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy
Development and Research of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development.
(3) Local zoning framework.--The term ``local zoning
framework'' means the local zoning codes and other
ordinances, procedures, and policies governing zoning and
land-use at the local level.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Housing and Urban Development.
(5) State zoning framework.--The term ``State zoning
framework'' means the State legislation or State agency and
department procedures, or such legislation or procedures in
an insular area of the United States, enabling local planning
and zoning authorities and establishing and guiding related
policies and programs.
(c) Guidelines on State and Local Zoning Frameworks.--
(1) Establishment.--Not later than 3 years after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Assistant Secretary shall
publish documents outlining guidelines and best practices to
support production of adequate housing to meet the needs of
communities and provide housing opportunities for individuals
at every income level across communities with respect to--
(A) State zoning frameworks; and
(B) local zoning frameworks.
(2) Consultation; public comment.--During the 2-year period
beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, in developing
the guidelines and best practices required under paragraph
(1), the Assistant Secretary shall--
(A) publish draft guidelines in the Federal Register for
public comment; and
(B) establish a task force for the purpose of providing
consultation to draft guidelines published under subparagraph
(A), the members of which shall include--
(i) planners and architects;
(ii) housing developers, including affordable,
rehabilitation, and market-rate housing developers,
manufactured housing developers, and other business
interests;
(iii) community engagement experts and community members
impacted by zoning decisions;
(iv) public housing authorities and transit authorities;
(v) members of local zoning and planning boards and local
and regional transportation planning organizations;
(vi) State officials responsible for housing or land use,
including members of State zoning boards of appeals and State
Historic Preservation Officers;
(vii) academic researchers; and
(viii) home builders.
(3) Contents.--The guidelines and best practices required
under paragraph (1) shall--
(A) with respect to State zoning frameworks, outline
potential models for updated State enabling legislation or
State agency and department procedures;
(B) include recommendations regarding--
(i) the reduction or elimination of parking minimums;
(ii) the increase in maximum floor area ratio requirements
and maximum building heights and the reduction in minimum lot
sizes and set-back requirements;
(iii) the elimination of restrictions against accessory
dwelling units;
(iv) increasing by-right uses, including duplex, triplex,
or quadplex buildings, across cities or metropolitan areas;
(v) mechanisms, including proximity to transit, to
determine the appropriate scope for rezoning and ensure
development that does not disproportionately burden residents
of economically distressed areas;
(vi) provisions regarding review of by-right development
proposals to streamline review and reduce uncertainty,
including--

(I) nondiscretionary, ministerial review; and
(II) entitlement and design review processes;

(vii) the reduction of obstacles, regulatory or otherwise,
to a range of housing types at all levels of affordability,
including manufactured and modular housing, and size,
including units with 3 or more bedrooms;
(viii) State model zoning regulations for directing local
reforms, including mechanisms to encourage adoption;
(ix) provisions to encourage transit-oriented development,
including increased permissible units per structure and
reduced minimum lot sizes near existing or planned public
transit stations;
(x) potential reforms to strengthen the public engagement
process;
(xi) reforms to protest petition statutes;
(xii) the standardization, reduction, or elimination of
impact fees;
(xiii) cost effective and appropriate building codes;
(xiv) models for community benefit agreements;
(xv) mechanisms to preserve affordability, limit disruption
of low-income communities, and prevent displacement of
existing residents;

[[Page S847]]

(xvi) with respect to State zoning frameworks--

(I) State model codes for directing local reforms,
including mechanisms to encourage adoption;
(II) a model for a State zoning appeals process, which
would--

(aa) create a process for developers or builders requesting
a variance, conditional use, special permit, zoning district
change, similar discretionary permit, or otherwise
petitioning a local zoning or planning board for a project
that includes a State-defined amount of affordable housing to
appeal a rejection to a State body or regional body empowered
by the State; and
(bb) establish qualifications for communities to be
exempted from the appeals process based on their available
stock of affordable housing; and

(III) streamlining of State environmental review policies;

(xvii) with respect to local zoning frameworks--

(I) the simplification and standardization of existing
zoning codes;
(II) maximum review timelines;
(III) best practices for the disposition of land owned by
local governments for affordable housing development;
(IV) differentiations between best practices for rural,
suburban, and urban communities, and communities with
different levels of density or population distribution; and
(V) streamlining of local environmental review policies;
and

(xviii) other land use measures that promote access to new
housing opportunities identified by the Secretary; and
(C) consider--
(i) the effects of adopting any recommendation on
eligibility for Federal discretionary grants and tax credits
for the purpose of housing or community development;
(ii) coordination between infrastructure investments and
housing planning;
(iii) local housing needs, including ways to set and
measure housing goals and targets;
(iv) a range of affordability for rental units, with a
prioritization of units attainable to extremely low-, low-,
and moderate-income residents;
(v) a range of affordability for homeownership;
(vi) accountability measures;
(vii) the long-term cost to residents and businesses if
more housing is not constructed;
(viii) barriers to individuals seeking to access affordable
housing in growing communities and communities with economic
opportunity;
(ix) with respect to State zoning frameworks--

(I) distinctions between States providing constitutional or
statutory home rule authority to municipalities and States
operating under the Dillon Rule, as articulated in Hunter v.
Pittsburgh, 207 U.S. 161 (1907); and
(II) Statewide mechanisms to preserve existing
affordability over the long term, including support for land
banks and community land trusts;

(x) public comments elicited under paragraph (2)(A); and
(xi) other considerations, as identified by the Secretary.
(d) Abolishment of the Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse.--
(1) In general.--The Regulatory Barriers Clearinghouse
established pursuant to section 1205 of the Housing and
Community Development Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 12705d) is
abolished.
(2) Repeal.--Section 1205 of the Housing and Community
Development Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 12705d) is repealed.
(e) Reporting.--
(1) Initial report.--Not later than 5 years after the date
on which the Assistant Secretary publishes the guidelines and
best practices for State and local zoning frameworks, the
Assistant Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that
includes--
(A) the States that have adopted recommendations from the
guidelines and best practices, pursuant to subsection (c);
(B) a summary of the localities that have adopted
recommendations from the guidelines and best practices,
pursuant to subsection (c);
(C) a list of States that adopted a State zoning framework;
(D) a summary of the modifications that each State has made
in their State zoning framework;
(E) a general summary of the types of updates localities
have made to their local zoning framework;
(F) in the case of the States that have adopted a State
zoning framework or recommendations from the guidelines and
best practices, a description of the effect of such
adoptions; and
(G) a summary of recommendations that were routinely not
adopted by States or by localities.
(2) Monitoring.--Two years after the date on which the
Assistant Secretary submits to Congress the initial report
required under paragraph (1), and biennially thereafter, the
Secretary shall--
(A) publish a report that--
(i) provides the latest information regarding the
information described in subparagraphs (A) through (G) of
that paragraph;
(ii) identifies, to the greatest extent practicable, the
adoption rates by States and localities of each guideline and
best practice established under subsection (c);
(iii) requests and establishes a public comment period on
the guidelines and best practices established under
subsection (c) that are routinely not adopted or adopted at
significantly lower rates by States and localities; and
(iv) includes other relevant information and criteria, as
determined by the Secretary; and
(B) review and consider all public feedback to the report
required under subparagraph (A) for the purpose of improving
the guidelines or best practices under subsection (c) to
further achieve the zoning goals stated in subsection (a).
(f) GAO Report on Housing Supply.--Not later than 18 months
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller
General of the United States shall submit to the Committee on
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the
Committee on Financial Services of the House of
Representatives a report that investigates barriers to
housing supply, which shall include an assessment of--
(1) the current state of--
(A) the rental and homeowner housing supply shortage;
(B) geographic patterns of that shortage;
(C) shortages in housing at various levels of
affordability; and
(D) shortages in housing appropriate for seniors, families
with children, and people with disabilities;
(2) the key drivers of the shortages described in paragraph
(1);
(3) regulatory, administrative, or procedural barriers that
exist in Federal housing programs that inhibit housing
development, and policy actions that can be taken to address
those barriers;
(4) the extent to which jurisdictions have successfully
implemented zoning or other policy reforms to increase
housing production and supply; and
(5) opportunities for increasing coordination between the
Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Federal
Housing Finance Agency, the Department of Agriculture, the
Department of the Treasury, and other agencies to address
housing supply.
(g) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be
construed to permit the Department of Housing and Urban
Development to take an adverse action against or fail to
provide otherwise offered actions or services for any State
or locality if the State or locality declines to adopt a
guideline or best practice under subsection (c).
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