To fix housing crisis, this program would train more construction workers

U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., introduced legislation Thursday aiming to bolster the housing construction workforce and address the shortage of skilled construction workers.

The Creating Opportunities for New Skills Training at Rural and Underserved Colleges and Trade Schools Act would create a new grant program to fund residential housing construction education and skills training programs at community colleges and career and technical education schools, according to a statement from Rosen’s office.

“Nevada is experiencing a severe housing shortage and affordability crisis, and I’m taking action to lower these costs,” Rosen said in a statement. “By increasing the housing supply, we can help meet demand and lower costs for hardworking Nevada families.”

Housing organizations and chambers of commerce have announced their endorsement of the bill, including the National Association of Home Builders, the Nevada Housing Coalition, the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, the Reno and Sparks Chamber of Commerce, and the Nevada Rural Housing Authority.

“In any given month, our industry faces a shortage of roughly 400,000 construction workers,” said Carl Harris, Chairman of the National Association of Home Builders, in the statement. “By supporting new and existing residential construction education programs, the CONSTRUCTS Act will help ensure we have enough workers to build the homes our nation needs.”

Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on X.