Rounds Advances Major Housing Wins for South Dakota in Committee Markup

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) today successfully advanced key housing priorities for South Dakota during a bipartisan markup in the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee. As part of the Road to Housing Act, Rounds secured the inclusion of four of his bills, delivering the first major update to the Rural Housing Service in over a decade, eliminating burdensome red tape that hinders housing development in local communities and empowering communities with greater flexibility to address homelessness through locally driven solutions.

“Access to safe affordable housing is critical to the strength and future of our communities. I’m proud that my legislation became key provisions in this bill, including modernizing rural housing programs, cutting burdensome regulations and giving local communities more tools to address homelessness and housing shortages,” said Rounds. “These are real wins for South Dakota. President Trump and Secretary Scott Turner have made it clear that increasing our housing supply is a national priority and this legislation moves us in the right direction.”

Rounds’ legislation included in the Road to Housing Act:

• Rural Housing Service Reform Act: This bill would to improve federal rural housing programs and strengthen the supply of affordable housing in rural America by modernizing and strengthening several U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) rural housing programs. The Rural Housing Service Reform Act addresses longstanding challenges with maturing Section 515 properties, aligns income calculations with HUD standards, streamlines foreclosure and loan approval processes, and invests in IT upgrades to improve efficiency. It would also ease access to home repair loans and expand eligibility for USDA loan guarantees to include properties with accessory dwellings and in-home daycares.
• Unlocking Housing Supply Through Streamlined and Modernized Reviews Act: The bill would modernize the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process for housing projects/services funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
• Reducing Homelessness Through Program Reform Act: The legislation would cut federal red tape for homeless service providers by easing burdens on Continuum of Care organizations by moving to a two-year funding application and removing barriers that delay access to housing and services. It also strengthens local responses by improving coordination with healthcare and law enforcement, supporting workforce development, enhancing data use, including AI, and expanding feedback channels to inform HUD policy and improve federal accountability.
• Better Use of Intergovernmental and Local Development (BUILD) Housing Act: The bill would modernize the NEPA review process by increasing capacity sharing between HUD and state and local governments, aligning HUD’s standards with other agencies through delegated housing reviews, and granting the agency greater flexibility by allowing it to designate certain housing assistance as “special project funds.”

These bills were incorporated into the Road to Housing Act, sponsored by Senator Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). The comprehensive proposal would expand and preserve the housing supply by removing regulatory barriers, promoting innovative construction, addressing blight and supporting disaster recovery, while also improving housing affordability, expanding homeownership, reducing homelessness and increasing access for veterans. The bill advances accountability and oversight by promoting evidence-based policies, strengthening program integrity and improving coordination and transparency across federal housing programs to make efficient use of taxpayer dollars.

###