Trump Refuses to Sign 21st Century Road to Housing Act, Bill Becomes Law Automatically

President Donald Trump refused to sign the 21st Century Road to Housing Act in protest over Congress’s failure to pass the SAVE America Act, and the housing bill became law automatically after the 10-day window passed without a signature or veto.

“Senators celebrate bipartisan housing bill becoming law despite Trump's refusal to sign Trump stood firm against signing the bill despite huge GOP support”

ABC News

The bill was approved by Congress with House passage by a vote of 358-32 and Senate passage by a vote of 85-5, and it became law at midnight Saturday when Trump did not sign it.

ABC News

In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “I will not sign the Housing Bill, which has been fully approved by Congress and sent to the White House, in PROTEST over the fact that the United States Senate is not capable of passing THE SAVE AMERICA ACT.”

ABC News reported that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle celebrated the bill becoming law overnight Saturday despite Trump’s refusal to sign it, and it said the White House did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment.

The Hill described Trump’s refusal as largely symbolic under the Constitution’s rule that a bill becomes law if it is not signed or vetoed within 10 days excluding Sundays, after House Speaker Mike Johnson sent the bill to Trump’s desk on June 29.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sen. Tim Scott said the law puts the “American Dream” in closer reach, while Republican Sen. Mike Rounds praised the bill’s bipartisan support as “A good example of what we can accomplish when we work together.”

Democrats attacked Trump’s refusal to sign, with Sen. Elizabeth Warren saying, “Donald Trump couldn’t pick up the pen because he just isn’t interested in lowering costs for American families,” and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto calling Trump’s delays “childish.”

AP News

The Guardian quoted Elizabeth Warren saying, “Trump refused to sign it, but he couldn’t stop it,” and it framed the measure as stopping private equity from buying up homes.

NBC News reported that Trump called the housing bill “a yawn” and “so unimportant” compared to legislation that would require proof of citizenship for all voters, and it said he canceled a planned signing ceremony at the Capitol on June 24.

In the same NBC News account, House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that if Trump did not sign, “it’s still law. We’ll still celebrate it,” after Johnson submitted the housing bill to the White House.

The 21st Century Road to Housing Act is described as aiming to address the country’s housing shortage by increasing the supply of homes and overall homeownership, while also limiting Wall Street investors from buying homes that could go to families instead.

“Landmark US housing bill becomes law despite Trump protest President Donald Trump allowed landmark housing legislation to become law overnight on Friday without his signature”

BBC

NBC News said the legislation seeks to cut federal housing rules, slim-down environmental reviews, make it faster to build homes and limit the ability of corporations to buy single-family homes, while also noting it does not address all causes of housing woes such as a shortage of construction workers, climbing insurance costs and wages that have not risen fast enough for renters and buyers.

NPR reported that the law includes a cap on corporate landlords that own at least 350 houses, and it said the law removes a requirement that manufactured homes have a permanent chassis, with housing policy experts saying it could save $5,000 to $10,000 in construction costs per home.

The BBC said the legislation marks the most comprehensive action from Congress on lowering house costs for renters and homebuyers in the 21st Century, and it quoted Dennis Shea of the Bipartisan Policy Center saying, “This bill becoming law is a genuine milestone—and I don't use that word lightly.”

At the same time, the BBC reported that Democrats say the SAVE legislation disenfranchises eligible voters, and it said Trump wanted Republicans to prioritize the voter ID bill ahead of the November midterm elections.