Shapiro unveils housing action plan

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Governor Josh Shapiro on Thursday announced Pennsylvania’s first-ever comprehensive Housing Action Plan to address critical housing needs across the state. 

He also outlined the current state of housing, providing projections on housing needs, and offering nearly thirty strategic initiatives to ensure every Pennsylvanian has access to safe, stable, and affordable housing. 

The plan is the result of the governor’s Executive Order 2024-03 directing his Administration to develop a comprehensive plan for building and preserving more homes, breaking down barriers preventing people from finding stable housing, and expanding housing opportunities to ultimately position the Commonwealth as a national leader on housing access and affordability by 2035. 

“For too many families in Pennsylvania, housing prices are rising faster than their paychecks and the American dream of owning a home no longer feels possible, but it doesn’t have to be this way,” said Shapiro. “This plan meets Pennsylvania’s housing needs head-on — building more homes, cutting red tape, protecting renters and homeowners, and ensuring our Commonwealth    remains the place for people to put down roots, live with the dignity they deserve, and build a future of real opportunity.” 

Access to safe, stable, and affordable housing helps families thrive, attracts new residents, grows the economy and workforce, and provides stability in our communities, Shapiro said. 

According to the governor, over one million households in Pennsylvania are spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing. 

Under current projections, Pennsylvania will fall short by roughly 185,000 homes by 2035 without further action. 

Among the goals of the plan are to build and preserve Pennsylvania’s housing stock.  

While the plan said it is important to protect the ones that have long anchored our neighborhood, it is also important to start building new houses at a pace that keeps up with the state’s economy. 

The plan also calls for the expansion of housing opportunities for all of the state’s residents by expanding homeownership opportunities and strengthening tenant protections.   

It also seeks to provide pathways to housing stabilization and stability by connecting Pennsylvanians to resources that prevent displacement and by supporting households during times of crisis.     

There are also plans to modernize the state’s housing development regulation by getting rid of outdated rules and unnecessary delays that Shapiro said drive up costs and slow down progress. 

Shapiro said the state also seeks to improve coordination and accountability by aligning local and state efforts, sharing data, and coordinating across agencies. 

According to Shapiro, his 2026-27 proposed budget takes the first steps to implement this plan, calling for investments and reforms to expand housing access, protect renters and homeowners, and strengthen coordination across state agencies and creates a new $1 billion initiative supported through the issuance of general obligation bonds, with proceeds deposited into the Capital Facilities Fund. This initiative would provide flexible funding for major infrastructure projects across the state, including building and preserving more housing, bringing new energy generation onto the grid, and upgrading school and municipal facilities.