Lawmakers have an opportunity to take a bold step in confronting Oregon’s housing crisis, which is wreaking havoc on the lives of many Oregonians and communities across the state. That opportunity is House Bill 2006, which would enact a common-sense reform of the state’s biggest housing subsidy, the mortgage interest deduction.

No doubt about it, Oregon is in the midst of a housing crisis. Families are being evicted en masse. The number of homeless school children is at a record level. Many families are priced out of being able to buy a home. And this problem is not just in Portland and other hot markets. Rural counties in Oregon are some of the nation’s most unaffordable rural counties.