Rent Relief Act

Kamala Harris discussing the Rent Relief Act.

The Rent Relief Act was a U.S. federal bill proposed by Kamala Harris in 2018 that would offer tax credits to renters who earn less than $100,000 and spend over 30 percent of their income on rent and utilities. ^[1]

Kamala Harris stated that the bill "[bolster] the economic security of working families."^[2]

The bill was criticized for its proposal that would create rental subsidies, but fail to address the underlying cause of the high housing prices.^[3]^[4] The Tax Foundation found that the proposed program would benefit landlords more than renters and lead to market distortion.^[5]

Experts have stated that in housing supply-constrained states like California, this proposal would increase rents as landlords would increase their prices to absorb the additional money tenants would now have available for rent payments.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b CADEI, EMILY (June 3, 2019). "Californians' rents could go up under Kamala Harris' housing plan". Sacramento Bee. Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved 23 July 2024. But in California, where housing scarcity is driving an affordability crisis, experts warn that Harris' proposal could have the unintended consequence of increasing rents for everyone. ... Harris' proposed tax credit is "a sensible policy" in Iowa, ... and other parts of the country where housing supply is keeping up with demand, said Caroline Danielson, policy director and senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California. But "in a place like California, where we have a housing supply crunch, it seems to me like we would get ourselves into a vicious cycle and not solve our problems," Danielson said. Jenny Schuetz, a housing policy expert in the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., agreed. With housing so scarce in the state, "Landlords collectively are likely to increase their asking rents for all apartments if they expect that some group of people in the city will have more money to spend on rent," Schuetz told McClatchy. "This just gives more money to landlords without fixing the underlying problem."
^ Brinklow, Adam (July 24, 2018). "Senator Kamala Harris pitches tax relief bill for renters". Curbed SF. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
^ Matthews, Dylan (2 February 2019). "Cory Booker and Kamala Harris's affordable housing plans, explained". Vox. Archived from the original on 27 May 2024. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
^ "Bill Calls for Renter Tax Credit". Housing Finance. July 20, 2018. Archived from the original on 1 March 2024. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
^ Muresianu, Alex; Kaeding, Nicole (25 July 2018). "Senator Harris's Rent Relief Tax Credit is a Well-Intentioned Misfire". Tax Foundation. Retrieved 23 July 2024.