Over the past few years, affordable housing has become quite a challenge in the United States. According to the U.S. Federal Housing House Price Index (FHFA HPI), U.S. house prices rose 1.8% between Q4 2024 and Q4 2025.
The five U.S. states with the highest annual appreciation were:
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North Dakota
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Delaware
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Illinois
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Wisconsin
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Michigan
To address the challenge, Senate Banking Committee Chair Tim Scott and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren introduced the 21st Century Renewing Opportunity in the American Dream (ROAD) to Housing Act of 2025 to the Senate on March 2.
The bipartisan bill passed a key cloture vote in the Senate with an 84-6 vote on the motion to proceed. The House of Representatives passed it as a standalone bill last year.
The purpose of the bill is to increase affordable housing supply and reduce federal red tape.
"Across the country, families are feeling the strain of rising housing costs and limited supply," Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott recently said .
"The 21 st Century ROAD to Housing Act brings together real solutions to build more homes, reduce burdensome regulations, and expand opportunity for hardworking Americans."
Related: House passes Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act, blocks digital dollar rollout
Bill includes provision on CBDC ban
The bill includes a provision that bars the Fed from issuing a central bank digital currency (CBDC). But the provision will cease to be effective on Dec. 31, 2030.
The presidential administration has supported the bill, including the provision on the CBDC ban.
Bodies representing the crypto industry, such as the Blockchain Association, the Digital Chamber, and the Crypto Council for Innovation, hailed the inclusion of language prohibiting a CBDC in the legislation.
A CBDC is a digital form of a country's sovereign currency that is issued and regulated directly by the central bank. The Federal Reserve defines the CBDC as a "digital form of central bank money."
Last year, the House of Representatives officially passed the CBDC Anti-Surveillance State Act to block the Fed from issuing or even testing a CBDC without explicit congressional approval. It indicated strong Republican resistance to what the party view as a potential tool for state surveillance.
But some members of the Grand Old Party have observed that the language in the bill prohibiting CBDC isn't strong enough and are threatening to block the passage of the bill.
Popular on TheStreet Roundtable:
House Republicans could block ROAD to Housing Act
On March 6, a group of House Republicans wrote a letter to the House Speaker Mike Johnson and the Senate majority leader John Thune in which they questioned the Dec. 31, 2030 sunset in the provision. They also questioned the bill not including a ban on the Fed studying a CBDC.
The group said the Senate must amend the bill to include these provisions before it comes to the House and warned,
"Otherwise, we will do everything we can to ensure the 21 st Century ROAD to Housing Act is dead-on arrival."
They argued a CBDC would give the unelected Fed "unprecedented power" over Americans' finances that would violate their civil liberties and financial freedom.
"A CBDC is inherently anti-American and a looming issue we must put an end to before it is too late."
Michael Cloud from Texas's 27th congressional district, Scott Perry from Pennsylvania's 10th congressional district, Clay Higgins from Louisiana's 3rd congressional district, and Ralph Norman from South Carolina's 5th congressional district are among the 32 House Republicans who have signed the letter.
This story was originally published by TheStreet on Mar 10, 2026, where it first appeared in the Policy section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
