Clashing housing availability, affordability proposals weighed in
Springfield
[May 08, 2026]
By Sean Reed | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Plans to cut red tape and create less restrictive
zoning laws statewide has been a major focus for Illinois Gov. JB
Pritzker this year.
The governor’s plan, defended by many Democrats in the General Assembly,
has been put under the microscope and highly scrutinized in recent days.
The Building Up Illinois Developments housing initiative, or BUILD, is
an extensive proposal that would make sweeping changes statewide, aimed
at increasing housing supply, reducing costs, and speeding up
development.
The plan was recommended to the Illinois legislature by the governor
earlier this year, but has largely sat on the back burner until this
week.
State Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, defended the housing proposal
alongside staff from the governor’s office and outside proponents in a
hearing early Wednesday.
“[BUILD] creates a statewide floor for housing opportunity. It does not
tell every community to look the same. It does not eliminate
single-family homes. It does not erase local planning, but it does say
that in the middle of a statewide housing shortage local rules cannot
continue to make needed housing impossible to build,” Buckner said.
In response to Illinois Pritzker’s BUILD housing initiative, the
Illinois Municipal League has put forward a housing proposal of their
own: Reducing Expenses and Advancing Local, or REAL, Housing Act.
Brad Cole, executive officer of the IML, said the group released their
housing plan after repeatedly being excluded from discussion of the
BUILD plan.
Cole said being excluded, along with the nature of the proposal making
state-wide changes to laws, was why the IML went forward with their own
plan.
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“We want to work with the state and local governments together. The
BUILD initiative is just preempting local authority and setting
statewide requirements,” Cole said. “The bottom line is one size
does not fit all and just preempting local zoning authority doesn't
create any actual savings or affordability.”
The one point of agreement between all involved parties is the need
to address the current state of housing in Illinois. The House
Committee on Housing held a hearing on the topic Wednesday.
The key bill in question debated before the committee was House Bill
4964, which would essentially require real estate agents to publicly
list all homes that are for sale, unless a seller voluntarily opts
out.
Those in favor say the bill will address an ongoing problem of
agents only listing homes through private, selective networks, even
if a homeowner wants to make their listing public.
Private selling networks, according to bill proponents, reflect
discriminatory practices from time before the Fair Housing Act, make
it difficult for people to move into the state, and shut out small
brokers.
The Illinois Realtors Association spoke in opposition to the bill,
saying it codifies online listing platforms like Zillow into law,
and restricts a seller's private property rights by dictating how
and when their property is listed for sale.
Lawmakers have only a few weeks of their spring legislative session
remaining until it ends May 31. Extensive negotiations on housing
proposals are likely to continue through the final hours.
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