[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 41 (Thursday, March 7, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H1008-H1009]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     STATE OF THE UNION AND HOUSING

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Waters) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, in less than 12 hours, President Biden will 
deliver his State of the Union Address

[[Page H1009]]

and lay out his top policy priorities for our Nation.
  Last week, I sent the White House a request that the national 
affordable housing and homelessness crisis be included as part of the 
State of the Union Address, and I was very pleased to hear this morning 
that housing will, in fact, be included in the address.
  Mr. Speaker, I don't have a special guest. All the people of this 
country are my special guests today. I am speaking to them about this 
critical issue of housing and the need to take the people off the 
street.
  Unfortunately, the homeless on the street and in tents and broken-
down RVs will not hear this message tonight, but they expect their 
Members of Congress that they elect to office to speak up for them.
  I speak for them, fight for them, and expect everybody, Democrats and 
Republicans, to fight for the people in America who are homeless and 
who are looking for better and decent housing.
  While the Biden administration has helped our Nation achieve one of 
the strongest labor markets with record job creation and a record 
number of businesses forming, we simply cannot talk about the state of 
our Union without talking about the state of housing in this country.
  Housing is a critical part of every person's well-being, the largest 
part of family budgets, and a major part of our economy. Yet, rising 
housing costs continue to make up nearly 70 percent of core inflation, 
outpacing modest wage gains.
  To put it in plainer terms: Americans are making more money, but 
housing costs are so extreme that the extra money in their pockets 
still isn't enough. Indeed, more renters and homeowners are paying a 
greater share of their income on housing than ever before. Since 2020, 
home prices have skyrocketed by 47 percent. Rents have increased by 40 
percent during that same timeframe.
  It is no wonder that families in nearly every income bracket are 
feeling the pain of one of the worst housing and homelessness crises in 
our Nation's history.
  Today, a record 653,100 people are experiencing homelessness 
nationwide as we saw a sobering 25 percent spike in the number of 
people who are experiencing homelessness for the first time in their 
lives, between 2022 and 2023.
  I am talking about people we call our neighbors, family members, 
students, teachers, and frontline workers. Elderly Americans, who 
should be enjoying retirement, are one of the fastest rising groups of 
people experiencing homelessness.
  This is simply unacceptable. While the state of our Nation's housing 
is bleak right now, this doesn't have to be our future. We know how to 
solve the housing crisis.
  During the pandemic, Democrats secured unprecedented levels of 
housing relief through bills like the American Rescue Plan Act, which 
promoted equitable economic recovery, spurred more development of 
affordable housing, and helped nearly 3 million people experiencing the 
risk of homelessness. Over 12 million people successfully avoided 
eviction or foreclosure thanks to these investments.
  In short, Democrats proved what we can accomplish with substantial, 
targeted investments in housing, and we should use this as a blueprint 
to finally end this crisis.
  During this Congress, however, people on the opposite side of the 
aisle, the Republicans, have tried to defund Federal housing programs 
and even passed a bill to make homeownership more, not less, expensive.
  As the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, I 
commit to press the fight in Congress to secure robust investments in 
fair and affordable housing.
  I have introduced my groundbreaking housing bills, again, including 
the Housing Crisis Response Act, the Ending Homelessness Act, and the 
Down Payment Toward Equity Act. These bills would help create nearly 
1.4 million affordable, accessible, and resilient homes and reduce 
housing costs, end homelessness, and revive the dream of homeownership 
for all.
  I am looking forward to hearing President Biden's State of the Union 
Address, and I hope that housing is highlighted as a major policy and 
not just a passing mention.
  Mr. Speaker, you are going to hear a lot about housing. I am not 
going to give up on housing. I am going to speak to every Member of 
Congress about voting for housing to end this crisis.

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