119-s2390

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2390 Introduced in Senate

    (IS) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 S. 2390

To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to reclassify 
 the application of certain requirements under the National 
 Environmental Policy Act of 1969 for housing-related activities.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 July 23, 2025

 Mr. Rounds (for himself and Mr. Kim) introduced the following bill; 
 which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and 
 Public Works

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

To require the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to reclassify 
 the application of certain requirements under the National 
 Environmental Policy Act of 1969 for housing-related activities.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Unlocking Housing Supply Through 
Streamlined and Modernized Reviews Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

 In this Act:

    (1) Infill project.--The term ``infill project'' means a 
 project that--
        (A) occurs within the geographic limits of a 
 municipality;
        (B) is adequately served by existing utilities and 
 public services as required under applicable law;
            (C) is located on a site of previously disturbed 
 land of not more than 5 acres and substantially 
 surrounded by residential or commercial development;
            (D) will repurpose a vacant or underutilized parcel 
 of land, or a dilapidated or abandoned structure; and
        (E) will serve a residential or commercial purpose.

    (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
 of Housing and Urban Development.

SEC. 3. NEPA STREAMLINING FOR HUD HOUSING-RELATED ACTIVITIES.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall, in accordance with 

section 553 of title 5, United States Code, and 

section 103 of the National 
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4333), expand and 
reclassify housing-related activities under the necessary 
administrative regulations as follows:

    (1) The following housing-related activities shall be 
 subject to regulations equivalent or substantially similar to 
 the regulations entitled ``exempt activities'' as set forth in 
 

section 58.34 of title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, as in 
 effect on January 1, 2025:
        (A) Tenant-based rental assistance, as defined in 
 

section 8

    (o) of the United States Housing Act of 1937 
 (42 U.S.C. 1437f

    (o) ).
        (B) Supportive services, including health care, 
 housing services, permanent housing placement, day 
 care, nutritional services, short-term payment for 
 rent, mortgage, or utility costs, and assistance in 
 gaining access to Federal Government and State and 
 local government benefits and services.
            (C) Operating costs, including maintenance, 
 security, operation, utilities, furnishings, equipment, 
 supplies, staff training, and recruitment and other 
 incidental costs.
            (D) Economic development activities, including 
 equipment purchases, inventory financing, interest 
 subsidies, operating expenses, and similar costs not 
 associated with construction or expansion of existing 
 operations.
        (E) Activities to assist homebuyers to purchase 
 existing dwelling units or dwelling units under 
 construction, including closing costs and down payment 
 assistance, interest rate buydowns, and similar 
 activities that result in the transfer of title.
        (F) Affordable housing pre-development costs 
 related to obtaining site options, project financing, 
 administrative costs and fees for loan commitment, 
 zoning approvals, and other related activities that do 
 not have a physical impact.
        (G) Approval of supplemental assistance, including 
 insurance or guarantee, to a project previously 
 approved by the Secretary.
        (H) Emergency homeowner or renter assistance for 
 HVAC, hot water heaters, and other necessary uses of 
 existing utilities required under applicable law.

    (2) The following housing-related activities shall be 
 subject to regulations equivalent or substantially similar to 
 the regulations entitled,
            (i) ``categorical exclusions not 
 subject to 

section 58.5'' and
            (ii) ``categorical exclusions not 
 subject to the Federal laws and authorities cited in sections 
 50.4'' in 

section 58.35

    (b) and 

section 50.19, respectively of 
 title 24, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on January 
 1, 2025, if such activities do not materially alter 
 environmental conditions and do not materially exceed the 
 original scope of the project:
        (A) Acquisition, repair, improvement, 
 reconstruction, or rehabilitation of public facilities 
 and improvements (other than buildings) if the 
 facilities and improvements are in place and will be 
 retained in the same use without change in size or 
 capacity of more than 20 percent, including replacement 
 of water or sewer lines, reconstruction of curbs and 
 sidewalks, and repaving of streets.
        (B) Rehabilitation of 1-to-4 unit residential 
 buildings, and existing housing-related infrastructure, 
 such as repairs or rehabilitation of existing wells, 
 septics, or utility lines that connect to that housing.
            (C) New construction, development, demolition, 
 acquisition, or disposition on up to 4 scattered site 
 existing dwelling units where there is a maximum of 4 
 units on any 1 site.
            (D) Acquisitions (including leasing) or disposition 
 of, or equity loans on an existing structure, or 
 acquisition (including leasing) of vacant land if the 
 structure or land acquired, financed, or disposed of 
 will be retained for the same use.

    (3) The following housing-related activities shall be 
 subject to regulations equivalent or substantially similar to 
 the regulations entitled,
            (i) ``categorical exclusions subject 
 to 

section 58.5'' and
            (ii) ``categorical exclusions subject to 
 the Federal laws and authorities cited in sections 50.4'' in 
 

section 58.35

    (a) and 

section 50.20, respectively, of title 24, 
 Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on January 1, 2025, 
 if such activities do not materially alter environmental 
 conditions and do not materially exceed the original scope of 
 the project:
        (A) Acquisitions of open space or residential 
 property, where such property will be retained for the 
 same use or will be converted to open space to help 
 residents relocate out of an area designated as a high-
 risk area by the Secretary.
        (B) Conversion of existing office buildings into 
 residential development, subject to--
            (i) a maximum number of units to be 
 determined by the Secretary; and
            (ii) a limitation on the change in building 
 size to not more than 20 percent.
            (C) New construction, development, demolition, 
 acquisition, or disposition on 5 to 15 dwelling units 
 where there is a maximum of fifteen units on any 1 
 site. The units can be 15 1-unit buildings or 1 15-unit 
 building, or any combination in between.
            (D) New construction, development, demolition, 
 acquisition, or disposition on 15 or more housing units 
 developed on scattered sites when there are not more 
 than 15 housing units on any 1 site, and the sites are 
 more than a set number of feet apart as determined by 
 the Secretary.
        (E) Rehabilitation of buildings and improvements in 
 the case of a building for residential use with 5 to 15 
 units, if the density is not increased beyond 15 units 
 and the land use is not changed.
        (F) Infill projects consisting of new construction, 
 rehabilitation, or development of residential housing 
 units.
        (G) Buyouts, defined as the voluntary acquisition 
 of properties properties located in a
            (i) floodway,
            (ii) floodplain, or
            (iii) other area, clearly 
 delineated by the grantee, that has been impacted by a 
 predictable environmental threat to the safety and 
 wellbeing of program beneficiaries caused or 
 exacerbated by a Federally-declared disaster.

SEC. 4. REPORT.

 The Secretary shall submit to the chairs and ranking members of the 
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the 
Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives an 
annual report during the 5-year period beginning on the date that is 2 
years after the date of enactment of this Act that provides a summary 
of findings of reductions in review times and administrative cost 
reduction, with a particular focus on the affordable housing sector, as 
a result of the actions set forth in this Act, and any recommendations 
of the Secretary for future congressional action with respect to 
revising categorical exclusions or exemptions under title 24, Code of 
Federal Regulations.
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