National Housing Emergency Act of 2026

This bill aims to address the severe housing shortage across the United States by requiring the President to declare a national housing emergency . This declaration would trigger the use of authorities under the Defense Production Act of 1950 to incentivize and increase the domestic production of materials essential for residential housing construction and rehabilitation. During the declared emergency, the bill mandates the removal of several federal regulatory barriers that currently impede housing development. It would nullify certain sections of the Cranston-Gonzalez National Affordable Housing Act and the Community Development Banking and Financial Institutions Act, and exempt Department of Housing and Urban Development-funded housing projects from Federal environmental review requirements. The bill also streamlines environmental reviews for projects using multiple federal programs and expedites "Buy America" waiver processes for housing materials. A key provision establishes a "Pro-Growth Requirement" for states and local governments to receive federal block grant funding, such as surface transportation grants. To comply, grantees must demonstrate positive housing growth and implement actions to reduce barriers to development, including reducing minimum lot size, allowing manufactured homes and multi-family units in single-family zones, eliminating parking requirements, and streamlining permitting processes. Furthermore, the bill sets a minimum residential code standard for new construction or rehabilitation and prohibits states and local governments from imposing land-use regulations that substantially burden residential housing construction during the emergency. The national emergency would conclude once 4 million additional housing units are constructed or rehabilitated, or by October 1, 2031, whichever comes first.