H.R. 979 would address the problem. Their issuance is restricted by the annual state private-activity bond volume cap. Imposed in 1986, the cap has limited state and local governments from pursuing new capital investment projects with the private sector.
Reform is needed for several reasons.
When the expiration date for MRBs and IDBs approached, however, Congress extended state and local authority, but failed to restore the volume cap. In 1993, MRB and IDB became permanent, with no restoration of the pre-1988 volume caps. Inflation has significantly eroded the value of the volume cap. Current volume caps impose significant restraints on state and local government's ability to address pressing policy issues such as deteriorating infrastructure and a lack of affordable housing. Many states regularly exhaust all of their volume cap allocation.