-
November 26, 2024
From greenlighting two rounds of pro-housing planning funding to the launch of the Yes in My Backyard Caucus, members of the 118th Congress have demonstrated their willingness to better partner with communities on housing reform.
-
October 4, 2024
Policymakers at local, state, and national levels depend on planners to bring data, insights, and guidance that can shape the policies that change lives. This week, planning advocates brought those insights to Capitol Hill during APA’s annual Congressional Fly-In.
-
September 6, 2024
As communities look for solutions to increase their housing supply in a way that fits their needs, overly complicated zoning review processes often get in the way of development, rehabilitation, and adaptive reuse projects. One strategy offered to increase housing supply is to speed or streamline processes for housing development review and approval.
-
August 20, 2024
The Biden-Harris administration announced this week that year two of the Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO Housing) Program is open. This new round of grants focuses on communities that already have local reform projects in the works.
-
August 16, 2024
Top takeaways from a new series of federal actions aimed at closing the housing supply gap.
-
August 7, 2024
Since the 2002 master plan, Grand Rapids has seen more than $7 billion of construction invested in the city. Efforts like eliminating single family zoning and studies of individual neighborhood needs have now positioned Grand Rapids for bolder housing reforms with lower risk of gentrification or displacement of neighborhoods.
-
June 28, 2024
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announces the long-awaited Pathways to Removing Obstacles to Housing (PRO-Housing) grants.
-
June 25, 2024
Nearly 100 planners from across the country gathered online in June 2024 for APA’s Planners’ Day on Capitol Hill. Each advocate brought stories of the housing challenges their own communities’ are facing – and how planners are on the ground working to boost housing supply and expand affordability.
-
June 5, 2024
The newly introduced Reducing Regulatory Barriers to Housing Act would make HUD a better policy partner to communities embracing housing reform by providing ideas and information that leverage federal expertise, increase transparency through new tools like a national zoning atlas, and spur local innovation.
-
May 20, 2024
Planners across the country are joining APA for Planners' Day to tell Congress why communities need federal action on zoning reform.
-
May 8, 2024
This is a unique opportunity to sharpen your advocacy and communication skills, meet one-on-one with members of Congress, and explain why your community needs federal support for housing and zoning reform.
-
April 5, 2024
APA Public Affairs staff break down the support for housing and zoning reform in the FY24 spending bill and what it means for planners.
-
February 28, 2024
Five federal zoning reform bills, endorsed by APA, that every planner should know.
-
January 2, 2024
The Federal Highway Administration finalized an APA-supported planning rule for greenhouse gas emissions, including the release of a reduction tool to move climate change performance measurement forward.
-
December 12, 2023
Cleveland planners invited nearly 100 elected officials to come together and discuss the role of planning in shaping the city's future.
-
November 15, 2023
Minneapolis is appealing a recent court ruling that blocked the 2040 comprehensive plan from transforming housing in the city.
-
November 14, 2023
The Biden-Harris Administration announced new actions last month to support and accelerate commercial-to-residential conversions through new federal guidance on financing and tax incentives, technical assistance, and the reuse of federal properties.
-
November 8, 2023
The PRO-Housing Program cleared important legislative hurdles this month after gaining a second year of funding in the Senate transportation and housing funding bill and passing as an amendment in the House's version of the same funding bill.
-
October 18, 2023
Governors of Colorado, New York, and Hawaii have exercised their executive powers to implement various levels of zoning reform within their states.
-
October 13, 2023
A new report, sponsored by APA, finds that the nation's housing supply shortage is getting worse, faster — especially for small towns and suburban communities that face high housing demand in the aftermath of the pandemic.
-
August 30, 2023
A new federal competitive grant program – totaling $85 million – is now available to help local governments develop and implement policies that create and preserve housing options by breaking down barriers to zoning reform.
-
July 17, 2023
Federal investments in zoning reform, climate action, and infrastructure are on the line this week as Congress moves to reduce federal spending for the next fiscal year. APA unpacks the disappointing cuts and the legislative pathway forward.
-
May 31, 2023
A list of accessory dwelling unit bills that were introduced in 2023 state legislative sessions.
-
May 30, 2023
APA and AARP partner to create a guide to expand local supply and legal occupancy of ADUs
-
April 21, 2023
APA is launching “It Takes a Planner”, an effort aimed at building the influence of planners among state and local elected and appointed officials.
-
March 24, 2023
Governors address housing policies in state of state addresses in 2023.
-
January 20, 2023
State legislatures in 2022 focused on increasing affordable housing within their respective regions. The trend of state legislatures preempting zoning reform is expected to continue in 2023 across the country.
-
January 10, 2023
Congress passes a new $85 million grant program aimed at zoning reform. The funding represents a new and significant incentive and support for local zoning reform and planning for housing affordability.
-
September 20, 2022
The passage of the landmark Bipartisan Infrastucture Law saw the largest direct investment in community planning in a century. Here are 5+ new or expanded programs created by BIL that every planner should know about right now.
-
July 18, 2022
A recent report demonstrates that the underproduction of housing units affects 47 states and Washington D.C., and its impacts are being felt in all kinds of places, from dense urban areas to small, rural towns.
-
May 17, 2022
Get the latest information on housing reforms at state and federal levels, including the Biden administration's launch of the Housing Supply Action Plan.
-
March 14, 2022
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is preparing rules for implementing new federal broadband programs authorized and funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). Planners are actively working with administration officials to ensure that any new regulations proposed to support implementation position communities to better plan for broadband.
-
November 4, 2021
New federal support for zoning reform is in President Biden's Build Back Better framework thanks to planners' advocacy. White House leaders recently made the case for why tackling zoning and housing supply challenges is at the center of the President's economic agenda.
-
August 4, 2021
Planners' infrastructure priorities will hit an important milestone later this week (August 4, 2021) when the Senate passes the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
-
July 13, 2021
State governments are finding new ways to amplify local and regional planning efforts that take aim at curbing harmful carbon emissions and ensuring climate impacts do not disproportionately burden underserved communities. Here is a look at some actions states are taking to help communities secure net-zero futures.
-
May 20, 2021
Catch up on the latest efforts by planners who are leading zoning reform across the country.
-
April 13, 2021
Zoning reform efforts are underway in Connecticut, a state with a long history of exclusionary zoning. Several bills that aim to tackle zoning reform are in play at the legislature this session — and planners are weighing in.
-
April 2, 2021
A bipartisan bill that would empower planners to reform zoning and development codes, create housing action plans, and modernize regulatory structures has been introduced in Congress.
-
April 2, 2021
Planners and communities are eager to see transformational infrastructure policy move forward in Washington. While President Biden's infrastructure plan offers much promise, there are also important questions that remain unanswered about support for planning-led solutions in any infrastructure package.
-
March 25, 2021
Earmarks are back on Capitol Hill, giving planners a new pathway for securing funding for critical projects. APA's Jason Jordan breaks down what planners need to know to secure federal support for transportation project earmarks.
-
January 27, 2021
A new economic development bill includes provisions that will make it easier for towns and cities across Massachusetts to produce more housing by greenlighting certain local zoning changes with a simple majority vote.
-
September 9, 2020
With less than a month before the end of data collection for the 2020 Census, planners are making final efforts to help increase self-response rates in the hardest-to-count neighborhoods.
-
August 19, 2020
With the nation's current surface transportation law set to expire next month, APA Policy Director Jason Jordan explores the path to reauthorization legislation and the status of key planning priorities.
-
July 8, 2020
A new congressional climate action plan positions planning as one solution to tackling climate change. APA supported the creation of the plan by contributing ideas for how federal climate policy can set the context for effective local and regional plans.
-
February 3, 2020
As 2020 state legislative sessions start up, here are three top issues for planners.
-
August 6, 2019
State legislation is a part of housing reform. Here are APA's actions for the states.
-
August 2, 2019
The nation's current surface transportation law is set to expire on September 30, 2020. Learn where work on the bill stands now, the legislative process ahead, and how planners can influence the outcome.
-
July 11, 2019
Read about the three key housing crisis takeaways for planners in the new National League of Cities Housing Task Force report, Homeward Bound.
-
July 1, 2019
APA Amicus Committee Chair John Baker explains what the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn a longstanding property takings precedent means for planners.
-
May 13, 2019
APA Policy Director Jason Jordan reviews the current state of legislative debates on infrastructure in Washington and explores the ways in which APA and its planning advocates are influencing policy ideas in the making.
