Goggin: Minnesota Senate Passes Legislation Prioritizing Housing Affordability and Homeownership

Today, the Senate passed a $115 million bill focused on opening an affordable path to homeownership for more Minnesotans. Senate File 969 focuses on housing affordability and closing the homeownership gap.

“This bill will open up the American Dream to more Minnesotans,” said Senator Mike Goggin (R-Red Wing). “Homeownership has the power to change lives for generations, but for a long time it has been out of reach for too many people. We are taking bold, important steps in the right direction with this affordable housing bill.”

 This legislation also includes an eviction moratorium phase-out passed earlier in the session. An eviction moratorium was originally established by Governor Walz through Executive Order 20-14, which became effective on March 24, 2020. This important change would restore property rights for owners while leaving vital protections in place for those who most need it. 

A number of other key provisions are included in the legislation:

  • $1.6 million a year to the Workforce Homeownership Program to provide one-time grants of up to $375,000 for the development of workforce and affordable homeownership projects across Minnesota.
  • $150,000 per year increase to the Home Ownership Education, Counseling, & Training (HECAT) Program which helps to prioritize decreasing the homeownership gap between white households and households of color.
  • Allows federally recognized American Indian tribes in Minnesota and tribal housing corporations to be eligible for housing grants in a natural disaster area
  • Requires the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency to consider how quickly a project can be constructed when scoring projects competing for funds.
  • Establishes that cities may not require a Planned Unit Development (PUD) if the builder’s residential development already complies with existing city zoning requirements, and bars PUDs from including aesthetic mandates which are otherwise prohibited by law. Simplifying and making it easier to build homes will help increase the supply and lower the costs of homes in our state. 
  • Ban municipalities from enacting rent control.