Bill > HCM2002

This Concurrent Memorial urges the United States Secretary of the Interior and Congress to address the housing shortage in western states, particularly Arizona, by allowing the sale of certain underused federal lands for residential development. The memorial highlights that the federal government's extensive land ownership in these areas restricts community expansion and contributes to rising housing costs, exacerbated by inflation. It references a previously introduced bill, the Helping Open Underutilized Space to Ensure Shelter Act, which proposed a formal process for state and local governments to nominate specific federal lands for purchase, with exemptions for protected areas like national monuments and wilderness. The memorial argues that such legislation would not only help alleviate housing shortages and make housing more affordable but could also generate funds for the Interior Secretary to invest in national parks, critical habitats, and wildfire prevention. It points to Nevada, where federal land ownership is high, as an example of how selling public land parcels for development can be beneficial, and advocates for other western states to have similar opportunities to foster growth and affordability.