Sponsor
Steven Horsford
Representative · D-NV
Representative · D-NV
The bill makes it easier and cheaper to convert federal land into affordable housing—helping low‑income renters and speeding development—but does so at the risk of reducing recreational/conservation land availability, shifting costs to local taxpayers, and potentially leaving gaps from rigid income rules and a time‑limited program.
Low-income households and renters gain increased access to affordable housing because federal lands can be identified and conveyed for affordable housing projects under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act.
Local and state governments and nonprofit developers can lower site acquisition costs and accelerate housing production by using surplus or underused federal lands for affordable housing.
Policymakers (Congress, state and local governments) receive regular, evidence-based reporting on housing shortfalls and fiscal implications, supporting more informed housing and budgeting decisions.
Recreation users and conservation stakeholders could lose access to or reduced availability of recreational/conservation public lands when federal lands are conveyed for housing.
Taxpayers and local governments may incur significant costs for site preparation, environmental review, remediation, infrastructure upgrades, or long‑term maintenance that accompany converting federal land to housing.
Middle‑income or moderate‑income households in high‑cost areas may be excluded from projects if statutory income definitions are applied inflexibly, limiting the bill’s intended affordability reach.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Makes affordable housing an explicit "public purpose" eligible for land conveyances under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act and creates a HUD-DOI Task Force to identify federal land for housing.
Official title: To facilitate the use of Federal lands for affordable housing, and for other purposes.
Introduced May 6, 2025 by Steven Horsford · Last progress May 6, 2025
Allows federal land conveyed under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act to be used for affordable housing by declaring development, operation, and maintenance of housing for extremely low-, very low-, or low-income families a qualifying “public purpose.” Creates a Joint Task Force led by HUD and DOI to identify underused federal land suitable for housing, streamline transfers, promote policies to increase affordable housing, and report to Congress annually; the Task Force must be formed within 30 days of enactment and sunsets after 10 years.