CONTACT: Rep. Rob Brooks (608) 267-2369

Madison, WI—Today, Governor Scott Walker signed Assembly Bill 770, “The Housing Affordability and Development Act” authored by Representative Rob Brooks (R-Saukville), into law.

Assembly Bill 770 seeks to make housing more affordable for Wisconsin families by reducing the costs and streamlining the process associated with building a home and developing new residential subdivisions.

“By modernizing their approach to housing development regulations, state and localities can restrain unchecked housing cost growth, protect homeowners, and strengthen their economies,” said Representative Rob Brooks.

Among other things, Assembly Bill 770 requires cities and villages with a population of ten-thousand or more to (a) perform a self-audit of their regulations and approval process for residential subdivisions to create ways to reduce the cost of housing within a community by at least twenty percent, and (b) identify and calculate all the fees imposed on the construction of a new home. Moreover, this bill modifies Wisconsin’s impact fee law to ensure that any impact fee aid by homeowners is being properly assessed and used for proper purposes. Finally, the “Housing Affordability and Development Act” creates financial incentives for local units of government to appropriate less expensive housing that most workers and families can afford.

“Assembly Bill 770 was the culmination of more than two-years of hard-work by stakeholders on all sides of residential development issues. Feedback from stakeholders on all sides of the issue allowed us to craft state-of-the-art legislation that is a win-win for homeowners, developers, and local units of government,” Representative Brooks said.

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