As the housing crisis continues apace, British Columbia’s government is moving ahead with implementation of the Housing Supply Act, passed in November. This is good news because the housing shortage in this province is as severe as ever. Ultra-low vacancy rates have taken hold in the province’s most expensive regions like Vancouver and Victoria, forcing renters to vie for the same scarce apartments at sky-high rents in a competition akin to the Hunger Games.

The legislation — one component of Premier David Eby’s New Democratic Party government’s pivot on housing policy — is designed to address chronic municipal-level roadblocks to new housing, including exclusionary zoning policies and expensive multiyear rezoning and permitting processes. Under the legislation, the province will work with municipalities to assess local housing needs and create binding targets for building homes more rapidly. If cities fail to make clear progress toward meeting the targets, the province has the power to intervene directly including by approving housing projects and amending zoning bylaws.