Vote Alert: Increase Subsidies for “Green Energy” Home Loans

This amendment, sponsored by Senator Isakson, would increase taxpayer subsidies from the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) for homes classified as “green energy” efficient. Proponents of the amendment argue that homes that meet the “green energy” standard will save those owners money on utility bills, and as such, those cost savings should be counted as increased income for loan applicants. Thus, the amendment would incentivize homebuyers to purchase “green energy” homes and further distort the housing market.  The practical effect of this social engineering policy is that loan applicants will take out bigger loans than they may be able to afford and artificially inflate home prices, as well as increase the amount of risk that taxpayers are exposed to by funding these loans.  It was these same sort of policies that led to the housing collapse of 2008. The amendment was agreed to on April 19, 2016 in a roll call vote of 66-31.

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Conservative position: NO