By: Hailey Pedicano, Esq., Clara Cusanelli, and Maximillian Mahalek, Esq.
Cuddy + Feder is at the forefront of leveraging the pro-development movement in favor of its clients.
The “YIMBY” Movement
In recent years, a growing body of scholarship and national political thought is converging on government overregulation of local land use projects.
Two recent books, Why Nothing Works: Who Killed Progress―and How to Bring It Back by Marc Dunkelman, and the New York Times’ Bestseller Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson, discuss how the layers of procedural friction have made it extraordinarily difficult to build in the United States, constraining needed infrastructure development, and exacerbating the growing housing shortage.
Indeed, there is a growing apolitical and social movement in the United States known as the YIMBY (the “Yes In My Backyard”) movement, primarily focused on building housing and infrastructure. At its core, YIMBY advocates argue that cities and states must build significantly more housing, particularly in high-demand areas, where supply has failed to keep pace with population and job growth. The YIMBY movement calls for political action to reshape the laws that have materially limited building, green infrastructure, and housing progress.
Cuddy & Feder is following this movement closely, and is tracking the regulatory changes taking place at the national, state, and local levels to take advantage of same for its Clients. We work hard to move our clients’ projects through all layers of approval, to ensure that needed homes and infrastructure can be built faster. We are continuously tracking this trend to leverage the growing political sentiments, and most importantly, a growing number of federal, state, and municipal housing and development laws, in favor of achieving our Clients’ goals effectively.
Federal and State Laws Across the U.S. Furthering the YIMBY Agenda
A recent and major federal effort to accelerate housing construction is the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644).[1] Passed by Congress and adopted as law on July 11, 2026, the Act focuses in large part on regulatory simplification. Notably, the Act streamlines the review process under the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) and allows the Department of Housing & Urban Development (“HUD”) to classify special projects that benefit from a streamlined NEPA review. For rural areas, the Act requires HUD and the Department of Agriculture to coordinate their separate review processes to move them along faster. There are also grants from HUD available to state and local governments that update their regulatory processes and increase administrative capacity, and to municipalities that increase their housing supply, streamline zoning, and offer density bonuses. The land use and zoning measures implemented by this Act are discussed in depth in a separate blog post authored by Cuddy & Feder attorneys, available here. These concepts are increasingly reflected in state policy agendas and laws across the country. For example, California’s well-known Senate Bill 9 effectively ended single-family-only zoning statewide by allowing homeowners to split lots and build duplexes, resulting in the potential for up to four units on parcels previously limited to one.[2] More recently, the state enacted major reforms (Assembly Bill 130 and Senate Bill 131) to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”), expanding exemptions and fast-tracking review for certain types of projects.[3]
More state-level efforts can be found in Florida. The Live Local Act, expanded in 2025, requires municipalities to allow affordable multifamily and mixed-use developments on all land zoned for commercial, industrial, and mixed-use, and reduces parking requirements for these residential developments.[4] Municipalities cannot require rezonings, conditional approvals, variances, or comprehensive plan changes when approving these developments. Further, Florida’s affordable housing law includes a provision known as the “YIGBY” (Yes in God’s Backyard) law, which allows municipalities to adopt zoning ordinances that streamline the process to build affordable housing developments on land owned by religious institutions. If municipalities choose to adopt these changes, developers in their purview will benefit from the lack of need for zoning amendments, comprehensive plan changes, or variances required to build on this land. As such, these two laws provide varying approaches for state-led housing initiatives.
A municipal example of “YIMBY at work” comes from Minneapolis, MN, which in 2020 took the historic step of completely eliminating single-family zoning from its Zoning Code, the first city in the United States to do so. The policy updates, found in the City’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan, allowed duplexes and triplexes to be developed in prior single-family zones, and allowed for increased density around transit stops.[5] The policy also eliminated off-street parking minimum requirements. This move is projected to triple housing supply across the City. Minneapolis offers an example of a straightforward, yet far-reaching, effort to increase housing stock through regulatory modifications.
New York State’s YIMBY-Inspired Legislative Reform
New York has followed with its own version of YIMBY-inspired reform. New York City’s “City of Yes” zoning overhaul, adopted in 2024, represents a massive effort to expand housing opportunities through regulatory change. The initiative is projected to enable approximately 80,000 new housing units through increasing permitted floor areas, permitting office conversions, and incentivizing transit-oriented development.
Moreover, as part of the 2026 State of the State, New York’s Governor explicitly acknowledged a concern long raised by developers and practitioners: that the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) is sometimes weaponized to delay or even block housing development. In response, Governor Hochul has advanced a “Let Them Build” agenda, achieving targeted SEQRA reforms designed to streamline approvals and reduce unnecessary delay.[6] The stated goal is to implement common-sense changes that allow housing and other critical infrastructure projects to move forward more efficiently and at lower cost. Cuddy & Feder released a separate blog detailing these important changes.
As New York is a home-rule state, many YIMBY efforts focus on municipal reforms. One municipality in New York also spurring the YIMBY movement forward is the City of New Rochelle.[7] The City adopted a Downtown Overlay Zone, which allows greater density for housing projects. It centers development around its transit hubs, which reduces the need for parking. The City also mandates an up-to 90-day approval process for compliant projects. These decisions have led to 4,500 new homes built in the last 6 years, with rent prices declining as well.
What the YIMBY Movement Means For Cuddy & Feder’s Clients
Taken together, these policies illustrate a potential shift in national land use philosophy. The YIMBY movement and the broader abundance agenda are no longer merely academic concepts, but ideas actively reshaping zoning codes, environmental review processes, and the balance of power between state and local governments.
Cuddy & Feder is actively engaging in this important legal movement in enabling housing and development. We strive to take advantage of these fresh YIMBY attitudes towards regulation, and our Attorneys are skilled in ensuring projects reach their finish lines. If you have any questions about these trends, the recent laws referenced, or how they may impact your development, do not hesitate to contact us.
[1] See text of H.R. 6644 (119th Congress 2025-2026) at: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/6644.
[2] See summary of California Senate Bill 9 at: https://www.hcd.ca.gov/sites/default/files/docs/planning-and-community/sb-9-fact-sheet.pdf
[3] See Summary of California Assembly Bill 130 and Senate Bill 131 at: https://abag.ca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2026-04/AB-130-SB-131-2025-Summary-Updated-04212026.pdf
[4] See Summary of Live Local Act (Florida Housing Bill 943 (2025)/Senate Bill 1730 (2025)) at: https://flhousing.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/FHC-Overview-of-the-Live-Local-Act-2025.pdf; see Text of Florida Senate Bill 1730 (2025) at: https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2025/1730.
[5] See Minneapolis 2040 at: https://minneapolis2040.com/.
[6] See New York State Senate Bill S9008C Part R (2025-2026).
[7] See Summary of New Rochelle’s achievements at: https://www.pew.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2024/11/13/how-more-housing-revitalized-a-suburban-downtown; City of New Rochelle Downtown Overlay Zoning at https://www.newrochelleny.gov/1896/2024-DOZ-Amendments.
