While Michigan state lawmakers work to approve a package of legislation intended to reduce housing costs, the U.S. House this week has done the same.

The House on Thursday approved the bipartisan 21st Century Road to Housing Act on a vote of 396 to 13. Congressman Bill Huizenga told us last week the package would revise several federal housing programs aimed at increasing affordable housing and expanding financing options.

Huizenga says the housing price crunch has become enough of a problem that just about everyone in Congress agrees something must be done.

“We also need to get at some of those root causes of why houses are so expensive, why they are not plentiful enough,” Huizenga said. “And that’s really part of the equation that I think has not been discussed enough is housing stock. We need entry-level housing. We need middle-income housing. We need rentals. There is just simply not enough housing available, which is then causing those prices to increase.”

Among its provisions, the measure raises loan limits for Federal Housing Administration multifamily programs, expands income eligibility for HUD’s HOME Investment Partnerships Program, and creates grants to help local and regional governments develop affordable housing strategies. The legislation also eliminates some federal regulations on residential construction and rehabilitation projects.

Huizenga’s family is in home construction and he told us that during COVID, costs skyrocketed because the supply chain broke down.

The legislation is now being reconciled with a Senate version and will soon go to the president.