Editorial: Congress Should Extend, Not End, Tax Exempt Bonds for Affordable Housing

A Seattle Times editorial calls on House Republicans to drop its plans to eliminate private activity bonds, which help finance much of the country's affordable housing. "Over the past 30 years, the tax-exempt bonds have helped build nearly 55,000 affordable apartments for working families in Washington state, with about 24,000 of those in King County," according to the Seattle Times editorial board.

The editorial board estimates that the GOP tax plan would prevent some 1,100 affordable apartments from breaking ground in King County. A similar fate would meet another 1,000 units around the state.

Instead of cutting the tax-exempt bonds, the editorial suggests that Congress should adopt a proposal by a proposal from Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, and Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, to expand low-income housing tax credits.