Earlier this month, we published a piece titled “Affordability Is Not a Pricing Problem. It’s a Supply Problem, and Policy Keeps Missing the Root Cause.” The core argument was straightforward: New York’s affordability challenge is driven not only by a shortage of housing, but by a shortage of homes at the price points where demand is greatest.
This week, New York State appears to be acknowledging that reality.
In her State of the State address, Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled “Let Them Build,” a proposal to modernize the state’s environmental review and permitting process to accelerate housing and infrastructure development. While details will continue to evolve, the direction is clear: the State is now openly recognizing that process-driven delays have become a major constraint on housing supply.
That recognition matters.
What’s actually being proposed
At its core, Let Them Build seeks to modernize SEQRA, New York’s environmental review framework, by refocusing it on genuine environmental risk rather than procedural redundancy.
Key elements include:
- Allowing certain housing projects to proceed without additional SEQRA review if they meet clear criteria and are outside high-risk environmental areas.
- In New York City, the state will set building-size caps for eligibility based on neighborhood density.
- Outside the city, projects on previously disturbed land with access to existing infrastructure could be eligible.
- Imposing a two-year maximum timeline for the review of Environmental Impact Statements.
- Expanding the use of Generic Environmental Impact Statements for common project types.
- Introducing a new digital permitting platform to improve transparency, coordination, and accountability for environmental reviews.
Importantly, these changes are not a rollback of environmental protections. Projects would still be required to comply with core environmental, water, air, and environmental justice standards. What’s being reconsidered is how reviews are conducted and how long they take.
Why this is a meaningful shift
The Governor’s proposal acknowledges what the data has long shown: demand has far outpaced housing production, particularly in New York City, and process constraints have materially limited supply. When approvals can take years, carrying costs rise, feasibility erodes, and projects often fail to move forward at all.
Why this aligns with the broader affordability framework
In our earlier commentary, we argued that affordability is, at its core, a math problem. Demand remains strong. Supply remains constrained. And when supply is limited, costs rise, regardless of how they are allocated.
Let Them Build does not solve the housing crisis on its own. But it does signal a shift toward addressing the structural conditions that determine whether more housing can be delivered more quickly and more efficiently. Streamlining approvals will not eliminate the need for thoughtful planning, community input, or environmental stewardship. It can, however, reduce unnecessary delays, and delays can be expensive and destabilizing elements of development.
What this means going forward
Whether Let Them Build ultimately delivers on its promise will depend on implementation, coordination with local zoning, and follow-through. But the acknowledgment itself is significant.
For the first time in years, state leadership is openly framing the housing challenge as a supply-and-process problem, not merely a cost or cost-allocation issue. That reframing creates space for more productive conversations about incentives, timelines, environmental review, and how to build responsibly and efficiently.
Affordability will not be solved overnight. But progress begins when policy aligns with math. And this week, it appears that alignment may finally be taking shape.
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