Congress returns this week with the House of Representatives focused on passing the Senate’s version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The final Senate-passed version of the NDAA bill did not include Senate housing legislation that was passed by the Senate in October and included as an amendment to the NDAA. The ROAD to Housing Act (S.2651) is bipartisan legislation introduced by Senators Tim Scott (R-SC) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) aimed at increasing housing supply and improving affordability.

The housing legislation was dropped after House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (R-AR), objected to its inclusion. Hill had been a sponsor of H.R. 9990, the House version of the legislation, but a statement issued by the House Financial Services Committee explained that the “bill introduced this year by the Senate and originally included in the Senate-passed version is not the same bill as the one Chairman Hill sponsored last Congress.” Hill promised to work with the Senate next year “to send a bill to the president’s desk that reflects the views of both chambers and leads to more affordable choices for America’s homeowners and renters.”