Biden Housing Plan Proposes Unprecedented Labor Mandates

The White House on Wednesday unveiled details of its plan to produce, preserve and retrofit 2 million affordable housing units under the American Jobs Plan. While the plan calls for expanding the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), HOME Investment Partnerships program, project-based rental assistance, and other affordable housing programs, it imposes unprecedented labor mandates on projects funded by these sources. According to the White House Fact Sheet, employers seeking to avail themselves of tax credits or funding opportunities would be required to "pay workers prevailing wages; enter into project labor, community workforce, and local hire agreements; and use workers from registered apprenticeships and other labor or labor-management training programs. Employers receiving funding would also be required to remain neutral when their employees seek to organize a union and bargain collectively and may not require their employees to agree to mandatory individual arbitration." NAHB members are eager to build more homes to meet the housing shortage and continue to lead the nation's economy recovery. However, these labor mandates jeopardize future economic growth and will inflate the cost of home construction. As the White House works with Congressional leaders to turn the proposal into legislation, NAHB will oppose any attempts to tie critical affordable housing incentives to unworkable and expensive labor mandates.