Floor SpeechBipartisan2026-06-22

21ST CENTURY ROAD TO HOUSING ACT

TaxesEnvironmentForeign PolicyTradeHousingLaborAgriculture

Context

On 2026-06-22, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) delivered a floor speech titled "21ST CENTURY ROAD TO HOUSING ACT" in the Senate.

Full Text

21ST CENTURY ROAD TO HOUSING ACT

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 104 (Monday, June 22, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 104 (Monday, June 22, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2982-S2984] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] 21ST CENTURY ROAD TO HOUSING ACT The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts. H.R. 6644 Ms. WARREN. Madam President, I rise today in support of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. We are closer than ever to passing the biggest housing bill since 1990, when the average price of a home in America sold for $150,000. Today, 36 years later, the average home is selling for over $500,000. The American dream of home ownership is now out of reach for millions of families. The median age of a first-time home buyer is now at an alltime high, and it is no secret why this has happened. Our Nation has a shortage of millions of homes. And our housing crisis doesn't just affect the opportunity to buy a home. Americans can't afford to rent either. More than a million evictions were filed just last year, and, meanwhile, private equity has swooped in to outbid families for homes and then turn around and jack up the rent on tenants. Congress has been sitting on its hands for decades as multiple generations of Americans have seen their dreams of home ownership slip out of reach, while Wall Street rakes in the profits. It is no wonder that, when you ask Americans why they don't like politics or why they don't trust Congress, they will often say something like: It just all feels like it is rigged. Yes, the system is broken, and I have been ringing the alarm bell about this for years. But, today, Congress is taking a big step toward fixing it. The bill we are passing today sends a clear message to every American struggling to find a place they can afford. Elected leaders understand the problem and are actually doing something to try to solve it. This bill acknowledges that outdated regulations and rules have gotten in the way of building more housing and building it fast. It represents an overwhelming bipartisan consensus that we [[Page S2983]] should use the power of the Federal Government to encourage communities to build more housing and to repair the housing we already have. For the first time ever, this bill will stop private equity from buying up single-family homes. Wow. You know, I have been speaking up for years about how private equity has come in and just taken over industry after industry after industry, stripping it for parts and running those businesses into the ground. Congress has never before held private equity accountable for anything. Today, that changes. No longer will private equity firms come in with an all-cash offer to snap up a house while a family loses out on their dream. Today's vote proves that it is possible to find bipartisan common ground on legislation that actually helps the American people. Importantly, it proves that bipartisan legislation doesn't have to be the weakest, most milquetoast agreement that doesn't offend anyone or do too much to help anyone either. It proves that we can legislate by taking really good ideas from every member of the Banking Committee-- Democrats and Republicans--from across the Senate, from across the House, from mayors and local governments, from housing experts and advocates, and instead of just beating each other down to strip out anything that anybody in that group doesn't like, we add in even more good ideas until we have the biggest housing bill in more than 30 years. I don't say this a lot, but today, I am proud to be a Member of the U.S. Senate. Today, we are doing something that will make a real difference in people's lives. I am grateful to the chairman of the Banking Committee, who led us in this effort and who kept us on task at all times. If it would help families, he said he was for it, and he helped make that happen. I am grateful for that. You know, I just want us all to remember that this housing bill is big, but our housing prices are even bigger. We have more work to do, and I hope that today's vote is only the first of many votes to follow to continue our efforts to lower the cost of housing all across America. Let's get this done. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from South Carolina. Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 5 minutes prior to the scheduled vote. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina. Madam President, I thank the ranking member for her kind comments and for her hard work on behalf of the American people. People oftentimes ask the question: Is there anything that is not broken in the Nation's Capital? I will tell the Presiding Officer, as a great member of the Banking Committee herself, that the answer is that there are some things that are not broken to the point they cannot be fixed in the Nation's Capital. One of those things is our ability to not think left or right, blue or red, Black or White, rich or poor; it is to think about and focus on the journey many of us have taken to become U.S. Senators. The fact of the matter is that I grew up in the Deep South, in South Carolina, in a little place called North Charleston. Without any question, having grown up in a single-parent household mired in poverty, the issue of housing is particularly interesting to me. I remember when my parents were divorced, my brother, my mother, and I shared a bedroom and a bed for years in a little 700-square foot, rented unit by my grandparents. I will tell you that the American dream just seemed out of reach for so many in my neighborhood--certainly for those of us living on Meeting Street Road, which was a dirt road during those times. Later, my mother was able to afford a small apartment that was 600 square feet or so, and my brother and I had the pleasure of having our own room that was separated from my mother's. That is what I called a blessing from the God, the King of Kings himself--without any question. But my mother and my grandparents taught me something very powerful and necessary. They taught me faith in the Lord, perseverance through hard times, and opportunity. Those three together can transform the hardest of hard circumstances, and that belief has guided my work on this very important issue of housing. Young people today are feeling in a similar fashion that I did then in that they are delaying marriage, they are delaying having kids, they are delaying putting down roots--not because they lack ambition but because housing prices are too darned high and housing supply is too low. Rent is too high, starter homes are too hard to find, and the American dream slips further and further away for far too many. Mr. FETTERMAN. Katie, whoo! Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina. Even the Senator from Pennsylvania is so excited that he had to recognize the Presiding Officer. I will simply say that the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act even gets the junior Senator from Pennsylvania's vote. You may ask yourself, why is that the case? I have four really important reasons that is truly the case. First, it is because we cut redtape, and when you cut redtape, you actually reduce the cost of housing. Second, it unlocks the housing supply. When you put more housing supply on the market, more people have a chance to become a first-time home buyer. Today--today--today--the first-time home buyer is 40 years old. It is just too old. Our bill protects taxpayers. Some have asked the question, how does this make housing more affordable? I want to highlight two provisions-- one that the ranking member talked about, which is what President Trump said during his State of the Union. It is simple: Houses should be for people and not for corporations. We make it easier for people to have access to housing because of the provision that President Trump placed in this legislation. Now, why are there Republicans who disagree with the President on this one? I don't know. You will have to ask those Republicans. John Kennedy and the ranking member have a piece of legislation that we embedded in this bill that simply says something that is remarkable from Congress, remarkable from the Senate, and that is, frankly, common sense to everybody outside of Washington, DC: If you build more housing, you should get more incentives. If you don't build more housing, you should lose those incentives, and they should go to the places where they are building more housing. Yes, I recognize this is common sense everywhere but here. Finally, I will say that the House of Representatives did a fine job of embedding in this housing legislation important priorities that I believe will make housing more affordable, more accessible, and, frankly, that will help banks--community banks, which are the primary places you go for a mortgage--be more engaged in this process. Once again, this was a bipartisan, bicameral issue to do the work of the people. I will close with this because I know my 5 minutes is nearly up. If we would just focus on the American people and listen when they speak, we would remember two things: No. 1, they hire us, and we work for them. No. 2, like E.F. Hutton--the Presiding Officer is too young to know who he is--when E.F. Hutton speaks, we ought to listen. Our E.F. Hutton is called the American people, and when we listen, we bring this Nation closer together. Public service should not be about those of us in public service; it should be about the journey we took. For me, that is as a kid born into poverty to a great mother who believed in faith, perseverance, and opportunity. If we do our part, more kids today who are being raised in similar situations and circumstances that I was might have hope in the American dream. Somewhere, you can read faith, hope, and love. Hope is not a bad second place, though. Let's provide more hope and more results for more Americans by simply doing the right thing. Amendm

Referenced legislation: HR6644, HR6644

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21ST CENTURY ROAD TO HOUSING ACT Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 104 (Monday, June 22, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 104 (Monday, June 22, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S2982-S2984] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] 21ST CENTURY ROAD TO HOUSING ACT The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts. H.R. 6644 Ms. WARREN. Madam President, I rise today in support of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. We are closer than ever to passing the biggest housing bill since 1990, when the average price of a home in America sold for $150,000. Today, 36 years later, the average home is selling for over $500,000. The American dream of home ownership is now out of reach for millions of families. The median age of a first-time home buyer is now at an alltime high, and it is no secret why this has happened. Our Nation has a shortage of millions of homes. And our housing crisis doesn't just affect the opportunity to buy a home. Americans can't afford to rent either. More than a million evictions were filed just last year, and, meanwhile, private equity has swooped in to outbid families for homes and then turn around and jack up the rent on tenants. Congress has been sitting on its hands for decades as multiple generations of Americans have seen their dreams of home ownership slip out of reach, while Wall Street rakes in the profits. It is no wonder that, when you ask Americans why they don't like politics or why they don't trust Congress, they will often say something like: It just all feels like it is rigged. Yes, the system is broken, and I have been ringing the alarm bell about this for years. But, today, Congress is taking a big step toward fixing it. The bill we are passing today sends a clear message to every American struggling to find a place they can afford. Elected leaders understand the problem and are actually doing something to try to solve it. This bill acknowledges that outdated regulations and rules have gotten in the way of building more housing and building it fast. It represents an overwhelming bipartisan consensus that we [[Page S2983]] should use the power of the Federal Government to encourage communities to build more housing and to repair the housing we already have. For the first time ever, this bill will stop private equity from buying up single-family homes. Wow. You know, I have been speaking up for years about how private equity has come in and just taken over industry after industry after industry, stripping it for parts and running those businesses into the ground. Congress has never before held private equity accountable for anything. Today, that changes. No longer will private equity firms come in with an all-cash offer to snap up a house while a family loses out on their dream. Today's vote proves that it is possible to find bipartisan common ground on legislation that actually helps the American people. Importantly, it proves that bipartisan legislation doesn't have to be the weakest, most milquetoast agreement that doesn't offend anyone or do too much to help anyone either. It proves that we can legislate by taking really good ideas from every member of the Banking Committee-- Democrats and Republicans--from across the Senate, from across the House, from mayors and local governments, from housing experts and advocates, and instead of just beating each other down to strip out anything that anybody in that group doesn't like, we add in even more good ideas until we have the biggest housing bill in more than 30 years. I don't say this a lot, but today, I am proud to be a Member of the U.S. Senate. Today, we are doing something that will make a real difference in people's lives. I am grateful to the chairman of the Banking Committee, who led us in this effort and who kept us on task at all times. If it would help families, he said he was for it, and he helped make that happen. I am grateful for that. You know, I just want us all to remember that this housing bill is big, but our housing prices are even bigger. We have more work to do, and I hope that today's vote is only the first of many votes to follow to continue our efforts to lower the cost of housing all across America. Let's get this done. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from South Carolina. Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to speak for up to 5 minutes prior to the scheduled vote. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina. Madam President, I thank the ranking member for her kind comments and for her hard work on behalf of the American people. People oftentimes ask the question: Is there anything that is not broken in the Nation's Capital? I will tell the Presiding Officer, as a great member of the Banking Committee herself, that the answer is that there are some things that are not broken to the point they cannot be fixed in the Nation's Capital. One of those things is our ability to not think left or right, blue or red, Black or White, rich or poor; it is to think about and focus on the journey many of us have taken to become U.S. Senators. The fact of the matter is that I grew up in the Deep South, in South Carolina, in a little place called North Charleston. Without any question, having grown up in a single-parent household mired in poverty, the issue of housing is particularly interesting to me. I remember when my parents were divorced, my brother, my mother, and I shared a bedroom and a bed for years in a little 700-square foot, rented unit by my grandparents. I will tell you that the American dream just seemed out of reach for so many in my neighborhood--certainly for those of us living on Meeting Street Road, which was a dirt road during those times. Later, my mother was able to afford a small apartment that was 600 square feet or so, and my brother and I had the pleasure of having our own room that was separated from my mother's. That is what I called a blessing from the God, the King of Kings himself--without any question. But my mother and my grandparents taught me something very powerful and necessary. They taught me faith in the Lord, perseverance through hard times, and opportunity. Those three together can transform the hardest of hard circumstances, and that belief has guided my work on this very important issue of housing. Young people today are feeling in a similar fashion that I did then in that they are delaying marriage, they are delaying having kids, they are delaying putting down roots--not because they lack ambition but because housing prices are too darned high and housing supply is too low. Rent is too high, starter homes are too hard to find, and the American dream slips further and further away for far too many. Mr. FETTERMAN. Katie, whoo! Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina. Even the Senator from Pennsylvania is so excited that he had to recognize the Presiding Officer. I will simply say that the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act even gets the junior Senator from Pennsylvania's vote. You may ask yourself, why is that the case? I have four really important reasons that is truly the case. First, it is because we cut redtape, and when you cut redtape, you actually reduce the cost of housing. Second, it unlocks the housing supply. When you put more housing supply on the market, more people have a chance to become a first-time home buyer. Today--today--today--the first-time home buyer is 40 years old. It is just too old. Our bill protects taxpayers. Some have asked the question, how does this make housing more affordable? I want to highlight two provisions-- one that the ranking member talked about, which is what President Trump said during his State of the Union. It is simple: Houses should be for people and not for corporations. We make it easier for people to have access to housing because of the provision that President Trump placed in this legislation. Now, why are there Republicans who disagree with the President on this one? I don't know. You will have to ask those Republicans. John Kennedy and the ranking member have a piece of legislation that we embedded in this bill that simply says something that is remarkable from Congress, remarkable from the Senate, and that is, frankly, common sense to everybody outside of Washington, DC: If you build more housing, you should get more incentives. If you don't build more housing, you should lose those incentives, and they should go to the places where they are building more housing. Yes, I recognize this is common sense everywhere but here. Finally, I will say that the House of Representatives did a fine job of embedding in this housing legislation important priorities that I believe will make housing more affordable, more accessible, and, frankly, that will help banks--community banks, which are the primary places you go for a mortgage--be more engaged in this process. Once again, this was a bipartisan, bicameral issue to do the work of the people. I will close with this because I know my 5 minutes is nearly up. If we would just focus on the American people and listen when they speak, we would remember two things: No. 1, they hire us, and we work for them. No. 2, like E.F. Hutton--the Presiding Officer is too young to know who he is--when E.F. Hutton speaks, we ought to listen. Our E.F. Hutton is called the American people, and when we listen, we bring this Nation closer together. Public service should not be about those of us in public service; it should be about the journey we took. For me, that is as a kid born into poverty to a great mother who believed in faith, perseverance, and opportunity. If we do our part, more kids today who are being raised in similar situations and circumstances that I was might have hope in the American dream. Somewhere, you can read faith, hope, and love. Hope is not a bad second place, though. Let's provide more hope and more results for more Americans by simply doing the right thing. Amendm Referenced legislation: HR6644, HR6644