By Anna Kaminski, Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — Conflicting housing bills passed the Kansas House on Wednesday, promoting expedited processes for new housing developments and potentially restricting options for low-income renters.
Senate Bill 418 earned bipartisan support for encouraging easier processes for building “middle housing,” which is affordable and attainable housing for middle-income earners.
The other, Senate Bill 391, devolved into a back-and-forth when one legislator called the city of Lawrence “crazy.”
SB 391 would bar cities and towns in Kansas from passing laws that require landlords to accept Housing Choice vouchers, or the federal government’s rental assistance program. It targeted Lawrence, the only city in the state with such a law. Democrats opposed the bill for encroaching on home rule and creating barriers to housing access.
Rep. Bob Lewis, a Garden City Republican, opposed the bill for different reasons.
“Look,” he said. “Lawrence is crazy.”
Some lawmakers laughed in response, and others, particularly Democrats who live in Lawrence and represent area districts, were indignant.
He continued: “And if they want to be crazy, I don’t know why we should stop them.”
Lewis said the landlords who brought the bill want the Legislature to protect them from the “political craziness” of Lawrence. They chose to invest there, he said.
If they want to leave, “my district is open for business,” he said.
Lawrence Democratic Reps. Mike Amyx, Barbara Ballard, Brooklynne Mosley and Suzanne Wikle defended the city.
“You know, Lawrence, Kansas, is actually an outstanding place to live,” Ballard said.
Wikle said Lewis’ comment was “one of the worst” she has heard on the House floor.
The bill passed the House in a 75-49 vote on Wednesday.
SB 418, dubbed the “By-Right Housing Development Act,” streamlines the approval process for moderately sized housing developments if they meet zoning codes, land use regulations and other requirements. The bill would create a trigger automatically approving housing developments containing fewer than 12 units and located on land less than an acre. It passed the House on Wednesday in a 97-27 vote. It passed the Senate in February.
“This part is the middle housing that we’ve been searching for,” said Rep. Nick Hoheisel, a Wichita Republican.
The bill was lauded by Republicans and Democrats as a way to address housing affordability and availability in Kansas. Elizabeth Patton, regional director for Americans for Prosperity in Kansas, said the bill creates a more diverse housing stock that could help new generations of Kansans more easily move to where opportunity lies. It is a first step, she said.
“Our state government had created an artificial housing shortage by creating layers of red tape for every new housing project,” Patton said. “Now, we’re solving it by letting developers build in the places where people want to live.”
The nationwide housing shortage is attributable to ripple effects of the 2008 financial crisis, resulting in high demand for housing but low supply, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Higher mortgage rates, rent costs and property taxes along with higher construction costs, have exacerbated the problem. Loosening zoning and permitting regulations is one way to address housing availability and affordability.
