U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs unanimously advances ROAD to Housing Act housing package

The U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs unanimously advanced the Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act of 2025, a comprehensive package intended to increase access to affordable housing by expanding and preserving housing supply, improving affordability, and strengthening oversight and efficiency in federal housing regulators and programs. The markup was described as the committee’s first bipartisan housing markup in more than a decade. The package comprises 40 provisions, including measures to help states and localities update zoning and land-use policies, streamline inspections across federal housing programs, and direct the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the US Department of Agriculture, and the Department of Veterans Affairs to coordinate to improve housing program implementation. Other elements highlighted include reforms to the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program, establishment of an Inspector General for NeighborWorks, a whole-home repairs pilot program, provisions aimed at improving rural housing program efficiency, initiatives to encourage redevelopment of underused commercial properties, and a proposal described as unlocking billions of dollars of investment in affordable housing. With committee approval, the ROAD to Housing Act package moves forward for further Senate consideration.