A bill aimed at addressing Arizona’s state housing crisis was vetoed by the governor earlier this year.
Introduced on Jan. 17, House Bill 2570, known as the Arizona Starter Homes Act, aims to reduce restrictions on home designs and developments for single-family homes.
Section 1A of HB 2570 states that a municipality may not interfere with a home buyer’s right to choose the features, amenities, structure, floor plan and interior and exterior design of a home.
Introduced by Representative Leo Biasiucci from District 30, HB 2570 aims to help solve Arizona’s affordable housing crisis. Democratic lawmakers were more in favor of this bill than Republicans. Republicans feared it would give free rein to developers.
“This week, I voted against HB2570,” Matt Gress, a Republican representative from Phoenix, said. “It’s a bill that would completely destroy neighborhoods across Arizona.”
Since COVID-19 in 2020, housing affordability in Arizona has plummeted. Increasing population growth, zoning restrictions, increased home values and inflation are all factors contributing to Arizona’s housing crisis.
“Before the pandemic began, 71.2% of homes sold were affordable, and that’s down to 32.5%,” Dr. George Hammond, director of the Economic and Business Research Center at the University of Arizona’s Eller College of Management, said.
On March 18, Gov. Katie Hobbs vetoed HB 2570, stating that she felt the bill was too extreme a measure.
“This is unprecedented legislation that would put Arizonans at the center of a housing reform experiment with unclear outcomes.” Hobbs said in a statement.
Representative Analise Ortiz, a member of Arizona House Democrats, spoke out against the division to veto HB 2570.
“HB2570 was a historic bipartisan solution to our state’s housing crisis and it would have created a pathway to the American Dream of homeownership that too many Arizonans find themselves locked out of.” Rep. Ortiz said in a statement.
Not only has this veto sparked frustration from lawmakers, but Arizonans as well.
Cyrus, who is an Uber driver who did not want to give his last name for privacy reasons, said it should have been done a while ago. He said specifically 2019, due to the influx of migration into Arizona that was “inevitable”, and the housing shortage being “already felt” as well as inflation. He said he felt politicians did not initiate it in a timely manner.
When asked about the process of purchasing a home, he said it was “very challenging” because with his family being so large, he said they could not afford what they actually wanted.
“We ended up purchasing the home that we felt was worth the money we were paying for it, however, about 45 miles away from downtown,” Cyrus said. “It was otherwise impossible to find what was good, appropriate, and worthy of the cost.”
As Arizona’s housing crisis continues, the debate over HB2570 has left many frustrated. Now the focus is on how the state will address the growing demand for affordable housing in the face of rising costs.
Edited by Shi Bradley
