--- title: The Lone Democrat Who Voted Against the Bipartisan Housing Bill description: The Democratic lawmaker referred to one aspect of the bill as "bananas." canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/03/13/democrat-brian-schatz-voted-against-senate-housing-bill/ author: Tiago Ventura article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-03-13T17:21:49.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-19T07:44:52.048Z article:section: Politics og:title: The Lone Democrat Who Voted Against the Bipartisan Housing Bill og:description: The Democratic lawmaker referred to one aspect of the bill as "bananas." og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/03/13/democrat-brian-schatz-voted-against-senate-housing-bill/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte21efb9331c20027/69b4095b08907d635f6e86d2/Senate.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Senate.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Lone Democrat Who Voted Against the Bipartisan Housing Bill twitter:description: The Democratic lawmaker referred to one aspect of the bill as "bananas." twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte21efb9331c20027/69b4095b08907d635f6e86d2/Senate.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # The Lone Democrat Who Voted Against the Bipartisan Housing Bill  by [Tiago Ventura](https://time.com/author/tiago-ventura/)  ## Tiago Ventura Mar 13, 2026 5:21 PM UTC  The east side of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 12, 2026. The east side of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 12, 2026.Chip Somodevilla–Getty Images  by [Tiago Ventura](https://time.com/author/tiago-ventura/)  ## Tiago Ventura Mar 13, 2026 5:21 PM UTC The Senate overwhelmingly passed a sweeping housing affordability bill Thursday, but one Democrat broke with his party to vote against the measure. The [21st Century ROAD to Housing Act](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/6644), aimed at lowering housing costs, cleared the chamber in an 89–10 vote, garnering mass support across party aisles. The nine Republican Senators who opposed the measure were Ted Budd of North Carolina, Ted Cruz of Texas, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Mike Lee of Utah, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Rick Scott of Florida, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Tommy Tuberville of Alabama, and Todd Young of Indiana. Sen. Cruz [said](https://www.cruz.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/sen-cruz-statement-on-voting-against-21st-century-road-to-housing-act) the bill “restricts those hoping to build new rental housing for Americans by requiring build-to-rent homes to be sold within seven years.” “Restricting the supply of newly-built rental units should not be enshrined in law,” he argued. Sen. Paul echoed that criticism earlier in the week, arguing the bill amounts to the government [eroding ](https://x.com/SenRandPaul/status/2031034395369275393)contract and property rights. But it was Democrat Brian Schatz of Hawaii’s ballot that stood out most as he notably voted no, arguing the language in a key provision was too broad. When contacted, Schatz’s office referred TIME to [remarks](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6S9fQpj4L0) the Senator delivered on the Senate floor the day before the vote. During that address, Schatz—who serves on the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development— heralded the significant pro-housing provisions within the bill, but objected to a section he described as a “drafting error,” arguing that it could stifle the supply of rental construction. At issue is a provision requiring large investors who own more than 350 single-family or duplex homes to sell those properties after seven years—a stipulation Schatz referred to as “bananas.” “The definition of ‘institutional investor’ says, essentially, anyone who owns and operates more than 350 units to rent. That's bananas. We are now targeting LLCs, limited partnerships, real estate investment trusts, individual owners, family companies, pension funds—anyone who wants to build housing and then provide it for rent is going to be forced to sell after seven years,” he claimed_._ Schatz, who [aligns](https://www.schatz.senate.gov/news/press-releases/schatz-young-lead-roundtable-discussion-on-housing-supply-yes-in-my-backyard-policies) with the pro-building “Yes in My Back Yard” (YIMBY) movement, argued that investors would not recoup costs within seven years and that, as a result, new construction would be discouraged. “We have decided, for no particular reason other than what I think is a drafting error, to demonize people who want to build rental housing for folks,” he claimed.  Sen. Brian Schatz speaks to reporters after a briefing in Washington, D.C., on March 3, 2026. Nathan Posner—Getty Images The legislation, spearheaded by Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, who worked together to garner votes from both parties in the chamber, would establish grants and pilot programs to expand housing supply, revise federal definitions to encourage new construction, and limit the ability of large hedge funds to accumulate single-family homes. "The big problem is, we just don't have enough housing in America, and we need more housing of every kind," Warren [said](https://x.com/CBSNews/status/2032218712405651894) after the bill passed Thursday. "Every provision in this bill, and there are more than 40 of them, push in exactly the same direction, and that is different ways to help bring down the cost of building more housing and to urge communities to get more housing done." Scott [echoed](https://www.cnbc.com/video/2026/03/11/sen-tim-scott-on-bipartisan-housing-bill-powell-criminal-probe-and-kevin-warsh-nomination.html) Warren’s sentiment, but was adamant that the bill is firmly “center right” by “cutting red tape” and giving local jurisdictions more power. The bill will now move to the lower chamber. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise [said](https://youtu.be/88ShGXl%5F%5FCA?t=161) earlier this week he is hopeful they can “find a common ground to make housing more affordable for families” between the two chambers. Still, the path ahead is uncertain. President Donald Trump [has vowed](https://time.com/article/2026/03/10/trump-save-america-act-republicans-congress-voter-ID-senate-john-thune/) not to sign additional legislation until Congress passes the [SAVE America Act](https://time.com/7280834/save-act-voting-access-history/), his voting reform legislation that would require voters to show proof of citizenship and end most mail-in balloting. “I’m not going to sign anything until this is approved,” Trump said, adding that its passage would “guarantee the midterms.” “If you don’t get it, big trouble,” he warned Republicans. The vote comes as the U.S. continues to grapple with a nationwide housing shortage, with the Administration [signaling](https://time.com/7313848/trump-bessent-national-housing-emergency-declaration-affordability-crisis-explainer/) in late 2025 that it may consider declaring the crisis a national emergency. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/03/13/democrat-brian-schatz-voted-against-senate-housing-bill/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/03/13/democrat-brian-schatz-voted-against-senate-housing-bill/"},"headline":"The Lone Democrat Who Voted Against the Bipartisan Housing Bill","datePublished":"2026-03-13T17:21:49.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-19T07:44:52.048Z","description":"The Democratic lawmaker referred to one aspect of the bill as \"bananas.\"","url":"https://time.com/article/2026/03/13/democrat-brian-schatz-voted-against-senate-housing-bill/","keywords":["democrats","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte21efb9331c20027/69b4095b08907d635f6e86d2/Senate.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tiago Ventura","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tiago-ventura/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte21efb9331c20027/69b4095b08907d635f6e86d2/Senate.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Senate.jpg","caption":"","creditText":"Chip Somodevilla–Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/democrats/","name":"democrats"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/03/13/democrat-brian-schatz-voted-against-senate-housing-bill/","name":"The Lone Democrat Who Voted Against the Bipartisan Housing Bill"}}]}] ```