By: Lenny Mirra – 5/25
Democrats in deep blue states are desperately trying to build more housing, and for good reason. The lack of new supply has led to housing crises that, along with high taxes and cost of living expenses, have led people and businesses into leaving them for red states.
It’s happening in such large numbers that blue states are projected to lose about a dozen seats in Congress after the next census. This not only results in a loss of votes in the House, but also the loss of electoral votes for president, which is to say nothing about the federal funding that goes with it.
We’re seeing this played out here as Democrats on Beacon Hill are going out of their way to force the very unpopular MBTA Communities Act or “3A” mandates on cities and towns in eastern Massachusetts, which is already one of the most densely populated areas in the country.
The sad part is while this is producing an awful lot of fighting and consternation among friends and neighbors, the law will end up not producing much new housing as many towns are complying with the law by putting the required multifamily zoning in areas where it will most likely never get built.
Democrats should abandon this ham-handed, one size fits all boondoggle and take an honest look at how we and other deep blue states got to a point where we can’t build more housing or much of anything else for that matter.
Fortunately there’s a brilliant new book written by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, two very progressive Democrats, that explains how and why it’s so difficult to build anything in deep blue states.
They point out how in 1950 the median home price was 2.2 times the average annual income, and by 2020 it was 6 times the average income. This runaway unaffordability is most pronounced in cities and states long run by Democrats because of rules, regulations, and bylaws which, though well intentioned, have slowed construction while adding greatly to costs.
This has led to a “paralysis by analysis” where lawsuits can hinder, delay, and even prevent the permitting of new housing.
This is why Realtor.com has given a failing grade to Massachusetts and other blue states on homebuilding and affordability. California, Connecticut, and Hawaii join Massachusetts in getting an F grade, with Rhode Island being the only state with a lower score.
And it’s not just with housing, blue cities and states are also seeing roadblocks to the construction of transportation projects like high-speed rail, despite the many years of Democrats advocating for it.
It costs an astounding $609 million to build a kilometer of rail here. Germany builds it for $384 million, Canada gets it done for less than half our cost at $295 million, Japan just $267 million. I didn’t research their regulatory environments but I’m guessing it’s safe to say that these countries found a way to build big things without destroying the environment or trampling the rights of citizens.
Speaking of the environment, despite decades of talk by Democrats here about the importance of renewable energy, states like Texas are running circles around us in the production of wind and solar. They didn’t do it with overbearing government mandates like we see here, they did it with a competitive, deregulated energy market.
Sometimes the best government is that which governs least. ◊