So says the Obama administration, which released a paper Monday calling on cities to loosen restrictions on new development. When families can’t find affordable housing in a city with good jobs, that slows labor mobility, exacerbates income inequality and stifles economic growth, the White House report said. Despite the housing crisis, voters in Santa Monica and Los Angeles will soon consider ballot measures that could dramatically cut the amount of housing development in the region. They’ve adopted higher minimum wages and other policies designed to reduce income inequality. Still, the Obama administration is increasingly using the bully pulpit to tell urban progressives that if they care about income inequality, they ought to care about building more housing.

Source: Los Angeles Times September 26, 2016 22:37 UTC