S. 2416 — Identifying Regulatory Barriers to Housing Supply Act

This section declares the purpose of the Act to discourage overly burdensome land use policies, remove barriers to affordable housing, and further the original intent of the Community Development Block Grant program (i.e., flexible federal grants to state and local governments for community and economic development activities benefiting low- and moderate-income persons).

This section states congressional findings that the United States faces a shortage of millions of homes contributing to record numbers of cost-burdened households; that the shortage costs the economy $2 trillion annually in lost opportunities and lower productivity; that zoning and land use reforms are needed alongside investments in fair and affordable housing; and that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) must maintain adequate staffing to implement this legislation and related programs.

This section establishes a new subsection (n) in the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 requiring recipients of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) entitlement grants under section 5306(b), state CDBG grants under section 5306(d)(1), and certain non-entitlement local CDBG grants under section 5306(d)(2)(B)—i.e., metropolitan cities, urban counties, states, and units of general local government—to submit to HUD, at least once every five years prior to receiving a grant, a plan describing, for each of 22 specified land use policies applicable to their jurisdiction (e.g., allowing accessory dwelling units on single-family lots, eliminating off-street parking requirements, enabling office-to-apartment conversions), (A) whether already adopted in the prior five years, (B) plans to adopt and implement, and (C) anticipated benefits. (As background, CDBG provides flexible block grants to states and localities primarily benefiting low- and moderate-income persons through community development activities, including housing, and currently requires grantees to detail planned uses and hold public hearings.) Submissions must use a standardized form prescribed by regulation, are non-binding on fund use, receive no HUD endorsement upon acceptance, and may not be used for enforcement; the requirement takes effect one year after enactment and applies to all covered recipients regardless of grant receipt date.