Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, released this statement on the week of the one-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act.

“A year ago this week, Democrats successfully passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. After just one year, we’ve seen the tremendous impact this landmark legislation has had on communities across the country. Since passage of the IRA, inflation has been cut by two-thirds. Not only that, but this bill has successfully cut costs for families and seniors, created green energy jobs right here in the United States, and reinvigorated our nation’s economy. However, the main obstacle preventing us from making further progress in reducing inflation is the ongoing affordable housing crisis. Economists have told the American public to buckle up, as housing prices are expected to continue rising over the next year. Without critical investments to increase affordable housing supply, inflation is likely to remain unnecessarily high and families will continue to struggle to make ends meet.

“Committee Democrats and I saw this coming and fought to secure over $150 billion in fair and affordable housing investments that would have further reduced inflation by creating more than 1.4 million affordable homes, lowering housing costs for all, and creating jobs that boost local economies. Unfortunately, these investments were left on the cutting room floor and did not make it into the final bill. So, while I applaud the historic progress we’ve made through the IRA, we need to finish the job and address worsening housing inflation head on. Earlier this year, as House Republicans have advanced efforts to slash housing investments by nearly 30%, including in rural communities, I reintroduced my legislative housing package aimed at tackling the affordable housing crisis, ending homelessness, and promoting homeownership opportunities for first-time, first-generation homebuyers. If signed into law, together these bills would not only combat our nation’s growing housing and homelessness crises and put the American dream of homeownership back within reach for all, but they would also further reduce inflation.

“I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to work in a bipartisan way to get these bills across the finish line and give families and our economy this needed relief. As I’ve said before, housing is not an afterthought, a ‘nice to have,’ or something that can wait until later – it is foundational to the prosperity of families, key to a healthy economy, and central to fighting inflation.”

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