Senate Finance Committee Holds Hearing on Affordable Housing

On August 1, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on “America’s Affordable Housing Crisis: Challenges and Solutions.” In a bipartisan show of support for affordable housing, witnesses and members of the Committee from both sides of the aisle acknowledged the need to address the affordable housing crisis, and the discussion centered around the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (Housing Credit) as our nation’s primary tool for increasing the supply of affordable rental housing. The Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act (S. 548), introduced by Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch (R-UT), featured prominently in the discussion, with several members on the committee expressing support for many of the bill’s provisions to strengthen the Housing Credit. The committee is accepting statements for the record in response to the hearing, due August 15, and instructions can be found on the committee’s hearing webpage. Read a full summary of the hearing on Enterprise’s blog.