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French Hill says proposed price-control measure could curb credit, urges housing and bank reforms
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Summary
Congressman French Hill, chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services, called a recently discussed federal price-control proposal "a price control," warned it could restrict credit for lower-score borrowers and urged passage of Republican bills aimed at lowering construction and compliance costs.
Congressman French Hill, chairman of the House Committee on Financial Services, told interviewers that a proposal he characterized as a federal "price control" risked reducing credit availability and worsening housing supply.
"This proposal is a price control," Hill said, adding that House Republicans have concerns the measure could cause credit to be "curtailed" for Americans with lower credit scores.
Hill said Republicans would instead pursue measures to lower homebuilding costs and increase capital availability for small lenders, pointing to the Main Street Capital Access Act and what he referred to as the "20 first century housing act." He said those measures, together with what he called the "1 big beautiful bill," would reduce compliance burdens on banks and lower construction costs.
"Regional banks and community banks, particularly those banks under $10,000,000,000, they make 60% of the 1 to 4 family home loans in this country," Hill said, urging policies that tailor regulation to bank complexity and reduce barriers to lending.
Hill warned that credit constraints could have macroeconomic effects: "If credit availability is denied or reduced, that could impact growth for 2026," he said, noting that roughly two-thirds of U.S. gross domestic product is consumption.
Hill also recommended expanding private-sector partnerships that use federal housing programs, saying his version of a housing bill would open programs such as HOME and the Community Development Block Grant program to private-sector partners to spur building.
The interview did not record formal legislative text or timelines for the bills Hill cited. Hill framed his arguments as political and policy priorities for House Republicans rather than enacted law.
He said Republicans would pursue their legislative priorities while opposing policies they view as price controls; he did not provide a timetable for committee hearings or votes on the measures he named.
