WMFHA Joins Whos Who in Housing to Support the Yes in My Backyard Act

On May 14, Up for Growth Action sent a letter of support for H.R. 3507, the Yes in My Backyard (YIMBY) Act to the House Financial Services committee. WMFHA along with a long list of real estate housing and industry stakeholders signed the letter applauding the committee for moving the bill to markup and outlining the reasons this legislation is needed.

H.R. 5307 and S. 1688 the Yes in My Backyard Act are a top priority for NAA and its affiliates and have been for the past few congressional cycles. The YIMBY Act requires localities that receive Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding to publicly report on whether they have adopted a suite of local policies that affect housing affordability and availability. It does not require that recipients adopt any specific approach: instead, it encourages communities to play a constructive role in solving the housing crisis. Recognizing and eliminating exclusionary housing policies - zoning and density restrictions, onerous parking requirements, and other regulations - is an essential first step in decreasing barriers to new housing of all price levels. The YIMBY Act will help communities recognize their agency in combating the national housing shortage and provide the federal government with a constructive role in reaching important policy ends.

WMFHA is represented on the Up for Growth for Action board of directors by Director of Government Affairs, Ryan Makinster.