The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act and the Case for Integrated Decommissioning and Deconstruction
Jessica Irving Marschall, CPA, ISA AM
President and CEO, GM-ESG | The Green Mission Inc. | Probity Appraisal Group | Marschall Accounting Service
May 2026
Introduction
On May 20, 2026, the United States House of Representatives passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644) by a vote of 396 to 13. Earlier this year, on March 12, 2026, the Senate passed a separate version of the legislation, and the two chambers must now reconcile their respective texts before the bill can be presented to the President for signature.
The level of bipartisan support surrounding the legislation is notable in the current political environment. Housing affordability has increasingly become one of the few domestic policy issues generating broad agreement across political lines. According to polling published by the Bipartisan Policy Center, a substantial majority of voters support federal action addressing housing affordability, while the National Association of REALTORS continues to estimate a nationwide housing shortage measured in the millions of units.
Although much of the public discussion surrounding the legislation has focused on housing production and affordability, the bill also has important implications for the broader built environment. In particular, the legislation may significantly increase demand for adaptive reuse, building conversion, rehabilitation, and redevelopment projects. Those activities inherently involve decisions regarding the removal, preservation, reuse, donation, disposition, and valuation of existing building materials and fixtures.
For organizations operating at the intersection of corporate decommissioning, deconstruction, appraisal, sustainability consulting, and ESG reporting, the legislation represents more than housing policy, additionally it signals the continued evolution of the circular built environment and the increasing integration of sustainability considerations into redevelopment economics.
What the Bill Does
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act is primarily a policy and regulatory reform package rather than a direct federal spending initiative. The legislation focuses on reducing barriers to housing production, encouraging redevelopment activity, and supporting rehabilitation of existing structures.
One of the most significant components of the bill involves changes to environmental review procedures associated with federally supported housing projects. Section 205, referred to as the Better Use of Intergovernmental and Local Development Housing Act, expands HUD’s authority to streamline environmental review procedures under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and broadens the delegation of review authority to local governments, states, and tribal entities. Section 206 further expands categorical exclusions applicable to certain housing-related activities.
The legislation also places substantial emphasis on adaptive reuse and vacant-property redevelopment. Section 210, the Revitalizing Empty Structures Into Desirable Environments Act (RESIDE), establishes a pilot grant framework within the HOME Investment Partnerships Program to support conversion of vacant commercial and industrial buildings into housing. Eligible activities include rehabilitation, demolition, environmental remediation, and redevelopment activities associated with economically distressed communities and Opportunity Zones. Please see related articles from our other company MAS LLC here:
Opportunity Zones 2.0: A New Era of Community Investment Under the OBBBA
Understanding Opportunity Zone Tax Incentives and Qualified Opportunity Funds
Additional provisions focus on preserving and improving existing housing stock. Section 202, the Whole-Home Repairs Act, creates a pilot program supporting grants and forgivable loans for residential repairs and modifications. Section 209, the Accelerating Home Building Act, supports development of pre-reviewed housing plans for accessory dwelling units, duplexes, triplexes, quadplexes, and cottage court developments.
The bill also includes provisions encouraging greater land transparency and addressing institutional ownership concerns. Section 104 requires Community Development Block Grant grantees to publish searchable databases of undeveloped parcels under their control, while Section 1001 introduces limitations related to large institutional ownership of single-family housing inventory.
Taken together, these provisions create an environment likely to accelerate redevelopment, rehabilitation, conversion, and adaptive reuse activity across both urban and suburban markets.
The Materials Challenge Within Redevelopment
Every adaptive reuse project, office conversion, rehabilitation initiative, or redevelopment effort ultimately confronts the same operational issue: what happens to the existing materials and building components already present within the structure?
EPA reporting has consistently demonstrated that construction and demolition debris represents one of the largest waste streams generated in the United States, substantially exceeding the volume of municipal solid waste produced annually. Although recycling infrastructure for concrete, asphalt, and structural metals has expanded in recent decades, large volumes of usable materials continue to enter landfills, including dimensional lumber, architectural millwork, cabinetry, plumbing fixtures, finish materials, doors, lighting, and specialty architectural elements.
Many of these materials retain substantial functional utility and secondary market value. Traditional demolition practices typically treat these components as waste requiring disposal. Decommissioning and deconstruction practices instead approach the same materials as recoverable assets capable of reuse, resale, repurposing, or charitable donation.
As adaptive reuse activity increases, the question of material recovery becomes increasingly important not only from an environmental perspective, but also from an economic and supply-chain standpoint.
The Circular Built Environment Thesis
The redevelopment framework encouraged by the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act naturally aligns with principles associated with circular economy construction practices.
When a vacant department store is converted into workforce housing, or when a former institutional building is rehabilitated into residential use, significant quantities of reusable materials are often already present within the existing structure. Through organized decommissioning and selective deconstruction, these materials may be preserved and redirected into secondary markets or future redevelopment projects.
A properly managed decommissioning process generally begins with a detailed inventory and condition assessment of furniture, fixtures, equipment, and building components. Reusable materials may then be segregated for redeployment, resale, donation, or incorporation into future construction projects. Selective deconstruction methods allow contractors to preserve the integrity of architectural features, finish materials, structural components, and mechanical systems that might otherwise be destroyed during conventional demolition.
The resulting material flow supports many of the same redevelopment and rehabilitation activities encouraged by the legislation itself. Salvaged doors, millwork, hardware, lighting, flooring, masonry, and specialty architectural elements can reduce costs for affordable housing projects, rehabilitation efforts, and infill developments while simultaneously diverting usable material from landfill disposal.
In this way, redevelopment policy and deconstruction practice become increasingly interconnected. Adaptive reuse projects generate demand for reusable materials, while organized decommissioning and deconstruction create the supply infrastructure necessary to support that demand.
Historic Buildings, Schools, and Corporate Campuses
Some of the strongest opportunities for integrated decommissioning and adaptive reuse involve building categories already central to national redevelopment discussions: historic structures, obsolete educational facilities, and underutilized office and corporate campus properties.
Historic buildings frequently contain architectural materials and craftsmanship that are difficult or economically impractical to reproduce in modern construction. Heart pine flooring, old-growth lumber, leaded glass, slate roofing, dimensional stone, ornamental millwork, and hand-finished architectural details often retain substantial reuse value when preserved appropriately.
When historic properties undergo rehabilitation or conversion, selective deconstruction allows non-original or non-essential components to be removed while preserving historically significant elements. Salvaged materials may then support additional restoration or adaptive reuse projects elsewhere in the region.
Former school buildings also present strong adaptive reuse potential. Many mid-century educational facilities possess durable structural systems, large floor plates, and layouts adaptable to residential conversion. During decommissioning, these facilities often yield recoverable inventories including lockers, casework, lighting systems, gymnasium flooring, doors, hardware, and specialty fixtures with active secondary market demand.
Similarly, aging corporate campuses and office properties affected by hybrid work patterns and organizational consolidation may contain extensive inventories of reusable furniture, fixtures, equipment, and architectural components. In some cases, the aggregate Fair Market Value of these recoverable materials can be substantial.
As redevelopment pressures increase, these property categories may become increasingly important sources of reusable building materials supporting future housing and rehabilitation projects.
Tax Considerations and IRC Section 170
For taxpayers electing to donate salvaged materials to qualifying charitable organizations, the Internal Revenue Code provides an established framework governing charitable contribution deductions for donated property.
Under IRC Section 170, taxpayers may be eligible to claim charitable contribution deductions associated with qualifying donations of property, subject to numerous substantiation, appraisal, and reporting requirements. Donations exceeding certain thresholds generally require qualified appraisals prepared by qualified appraisers in compliance with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP).
When properly documented and substantiated, charitable donation strategies involving salvaged building materials may allow certain taxpayers to offset a portion of costs otherwise associated with demolition, hauling, and disposal activities. However, the availability and amount of any charitable deduction depends on the taxpayer’s individual facts and circumstances, including property characterization, holding purpose, adjusted basis considerations, and applicable IRC Section 170 limitations.
For developers, corporations, institutions, and property owners undertaking major redevelopment or conversion projects, these tax considerations may materially influence project economics and disposition strategy decisions.
The Green Mission Inc. has participated in numerous IRS-qualified deconstruction appraisal engagements involving both residential and commercial properties, with valuation methodologies grounded in secondary market analysis and USPAP-compliant appraisal practices.
ESG Reporting and Embodied Carbon Considerations
Integrated decommissioning and deconstruction practices also intersect directly with evolving ESG reporting expectations.
Material diversion metrics, embodied carbon retention, landfill avoidance, workforce development partnerships, and supply-chain documentation increasingly represent measurable data points relevant to sustainability reporting frameworks. Organizations reporting under SASB standards administered through the IFRS Foundation, TCFD-aligned reporting frameworks, or evolving international sustainability disclosure standards are increasingly expected to document these categories of operational impact.
Adaptive reuse and redevelopment projects supported through federal housing initiatives may therefore create additional demand for integrated sustainability reporting tied directly to decommissioning and material reuse activities.
Organizations capable of combining decommissioning logistics, valuation services, materials tracking, and ESG documentation within a coordinated workflow may be particularly well positioned as redevelopment activity expands. These are some of the services we offer at GM-ESG.
Engagement with the Environmental Protection Agency
We recently participated in an EPA working group discussion and are excited to learn of the many government and private organizations already starting to tackle the affordable housing crisis through adaptive reuse.
As federal housing policy increasingly intersects with environmental sustainability objectives, the relationship between redevelopment activity and responsible materials management continues to gain importance. Ongoing dialogue between redevelopment stakeholders, environmental agencies, and deconstruction professionals may help establish more standardized frameworks supporting reuse, landfill diversion, and embodied carbon reduction initiatives.
Looking Ahead
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act now proceeds toward reconciliation between House and Senate versions of the legislation. Given the broad bipartisan support demonstrated thus far, many industry observers believe further legislative progress remains likely.
While the legislation alone will not fully resolve the nation’s housing affordability challenges, it may significantly accelerate adaptive reuse, rehabilitation, infill development, and conversion of underutilized commercial and institutional properties into residential housing.
As these projects move forward, decisions surrounding the disposition, preservation, valuation, and reuse of existing building materials will become increasingly important. Material recovery strategies are no longer merely environmental considerations. They are becoming integrated components of redevelopment planning, project financing, ESG reporting, and construction economics.
GM-ESG, The Green Mission Inc., and Probity Appraisal Group continue to focus on the integration of decommissioning, deconstruction appraisal, sustainability reporting, and redevelopment advisory services within this evolving market environment.
Property owners, developers, institutions, and municipalities evaluating redevelopment opportunities should consider material recovery planning early in the project lifecycle, well before demolition or conversion activities begin.
Sources
- Bipartisan Policy Center – “What’s in the House Amendment to the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act?”. May 20, 2026.
- Bipartisan Policy Center – “What’s in the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act?”.
- Congressional Research Service – “ROAD to Housing Act of 2025.” R48732.
- Congressional Research Service – “Housing for the 21st Century Act.” R48849.
- Grounded Solutions Network – “Paving the ROAD to Housing for the 21st Century.”. March 3, 2026.
- National Association of Counties – “Senate Passes 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, Combining Elements of Existing House and Senate Housing Packages.”. March 6, 2026.
- National Association of REALTORS® – “Senate Moves to Advance 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.”. March 5, 2026.
- National Council of State Housing Agencies – “NCSHA Details Key Changes to HOME in the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.”. March 9, 2026.
- National League of Cities – “Senate Moves Historic Housing Legislation Forward with 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.”. March 6, 2026.
- NPR – “House Passes Housing Affordability Bill.”. May 20, 2026.
- The New York Times – “Housing Bill Passes House, Heads Back to Senate.”. May 20, 2026.
- Preservation Maryland – “Could This Be a Preservation Win? A Look at the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act.”. March 27, 2026.
- RISMedia – “The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act: What Is in the Landmark Bill Passed by the Senate?”. March 16, 2026.
- Roosevelt Institute – “The Easy-to-Miss Reform in the ROAD to Housing Act Worth Preserving.”. April 8, 2026.
- United States Congress – H.R. 6644, 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, 119th Congress (2025–2026).
- United States House Committee on Financial Services – “Financial Services Committee’s Bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act Passes House.”. May 20, 2026.
- United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs – “21st Century ROAD to Housing Act: Section-by-Section.”.
- Internal Revenue Code Section 170 (Charitable Contributions and Gifts).
- Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP), The Appraisal Foundation.
- Environmental Protection Agency – “Sustainable Management of Construction and Demolition Materials.”.
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