Housing in Montana has been one of the main battlegrounds for debate this legislative session. Lawmakers from both parties made promises to their constituents and while Democrats and Republicans came in with vastly different ideas on how to manage the housing crisis, they settled on a compromise in the form of House Bill 819.
HB 819 is essentially a conglomeration of all the housing policies debated this session. It would split Montana up into 16 districts that would each be managed by a federally certified non-profit called a “community reinvestment organization,” or CRO. There are all sorts of grants, loans and resources offered to the CROs, and it would be an organization’s job to figure out how to best use them for their district.
Rep. Paul Green, R-Hardin was the sponsor of the bill. He said housing is an issue that affects everyone in the state and he was proud to have pushed forward a solution to the state’s housing crisis.
