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H 7778Housing

Towns and Cities - Low and Moderate Income Housing

This bill expands the state housing database to include moderate-income units and mandates property owners list available units online.

Signed into law67 Yea2 Nay6 Not voting
Population
Affected
35
Email Legislator
Introduced Feb 12, 2026Committee House Municipal Government & Housing

Plain-English Summary

This legislation updates and expands Rhode Island's existing online database for affordable housing. Previously focused primarily on low-income rental units, the database will now include moderate-income housing and homeownership opportunities. The bill mandates that the Executive Office of Housing or Rhode Island Housing host this system. A key change is the requirement that owners of qualifying affordable properties must list their units on this database when they become available for lease or sale. Additionally, the system aims to allow residents to sign up for alerts when housing that meets their specific needs becomes available.

For younger readers

Imagine a big online list that helps families find homes that don't cost too much money. Right now, the list only shows some rental homes. This new law says the list must be bigger and show homes for people who earn a little more money, too, including houses they can buy. It also says that the people who own these buildings must put them on the list so everyone can see what is available. The website will also send a message to people when a new home opens up that matches what they are looking for.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Low-income rentersModerate-income familiesProperty developersLandlordsReal estate agents
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Increases equity and access to housing by creating a centralized, transparent resource for vulnerable populations to find low and moderate-income units without relying on word-of-mouth or exclusionary marketing.
  • The new alert system feature empowers working-class families to react quickly to vacancies, potentially reducing the time spent searching for stable housing.
  • Mandating that property owners list their units combats "gatekeeping" of affordable units, ensuring that public or subsidized resources are actually accessible to the general public.
  • While it improves the search process, the bill does not actually fund or create new physical housing units, failing to address the root cause of the housing shortage.
  • Reliance on an online-only database may unintentionally exclude the poorest residents or elderly individuals who lack consistent internet access or digital literacy (the digital divide).
  • The enforcement mechanisms are unclear in the text, meaning landlords who wish to avoid renting to certain populations might simply ignore the mandate without consequence.
For Conservatives
  • Promotes market efficiency by creating a centralized information hub, allowing supply and demand to meet more effectively without direct financial handouts.
  • Increases transparency regarding the state's affordable housing inventory, allowing taxpayers to see where subsidized housing exists and how it is being utilized.
  • Modernizes government services by utilizing technology to manage information, which is generally more efficient than bureaucratic paper processes.
  • Infringes on private property rights by mandating that property owners list their real estate assets on a government-run database, removing their freedom to market their property as they see fit.
  • Increases the regulatory burden on landlords and developers, adding another layer of compliance red tape to the housing market.
  • Expands the scope and administrative overhead of the Executive Office of Housing, growing the size and reach of the state government.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 26 additions · 12 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 45-53-14 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-53 entitled "Low and Moderate Income Housing" is hereby amended to read as follows: 45-53-14. Database of low-income rental units Database of low- or moderate- income rental units.

(a) The executive office of housing established pursuant to § 42-167-1 or the Rhode Island housing and mortgage finance corporation established pursuant to § 42-55-4 (the “corporation”) shall maintain host an online database (“database”) of residential developments that meet the definition of low- or moderate-income housing under § 45-53-3 low-income housing tax credit developments that are designated only for households at or below sixty percent (60%) of area median income, adjusted for household size and subsidized housing developments, as referenced in the corporation’s Rhode Island resource guide, which are designated only for households at or below eighty percent (80%) of area median income, adjusted for household size (collectively “low- income rental units”) in the state on the executive office of housing or the corporation’s website. The corporation shall place an emphasis on To the extent possible, the database containing shall contain the following:

(1) Current, updated information on the existing inventory of low- or moderate-income rental units housing in the state;

(2) The contact person or entity and contact information pertaining to individual developments;

(3) To the extent the information is available, a A copy of the application to apply for housing in individual developments; and

(4) Information pertaining to any special populations, including, but not limited to, elderly, disabled, homeless individuals, and victims of domestic violence, served by individual developments.

(5) To the extent possible, the database shall allow individuals to identify the different types of affordable housing they are interested in and be alerted when developments that meet that criteria become available for lease or sale.

(b) This database shall be accessible to the public by July 1, 2023.

SECTION 2. Chapter 45-53 of the General Laws entitled "Low and Moderate Income Housing" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 45-53-14.1. Listing by owners of low- or moderate-income housing.

(a) Any owner of a property qualifying as low- or moderate-income housing, as defined by § 45-53-3, shall list that property on the database referenced in § 45-53-14.

(b) For developments completed after January 1, 2027, the property should be listed prior to or concurrently with the opening of the property for lease-up, accepting applications or, in the case of homeownership units, listing units for sale.

(c) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) of this section, low- or moderate-income homeownership units shall only be listed on the database prior to their initial sale and prior to or concurrently with listing the property for re-sale.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2027.