INDIANAPOLIS, IN – On June 10, Prosperity Indiana and the Hoosier Housing Needs Coalition delivered a letter signed by nearly 500 Hoosier organizations and individuals urging Governor Eric Holcomb to create and convene a Commission on Housing Safety, Stability, and Affordability to address Indiana’s worsening housing crisis.
485 unique Indiana organizations and individuals, ranging from housing providers, developers, and investors; to homelessness prevention specialists, community service organizations, and churches and faith-based groups; to ordinary Hoosiers from rural, urban, and suburban communities spanning 41 Indiana counties, joined together to sign the letter urging Governor Holcomb to issue an executive order creating a Commission to act on the state’s shortage of safe, stable, and affordable homes.
The letter acknowledges key steps taken by the Holcomb Administration, including the creation of the READI program and the state’s first Emergency Rental Assistance program, as having had a positive impact on the state’s housing supply. But the letter notes declining rates of homeownership and worsening rates of affordable and available housing for the most vulnerable Hoosiers as damaging to the state’s public health and economic outcomes.
The letter cites a “patchwork” of codes for health and safety standards related to rental housing and the failure to adequately enforce these codes as jeopardizing the health and even lives of Hoosiers. For example, in January of 2024, six children died in a deadly fire in a South Bend rental home that was reported to have failed a safety code inspection for dangerous wiring but was nonetheless allowed to be rented again before proper repairs were confirmed to have been made.
The proposed Commission, whose structure is inspired by the successful Indiana Commission on Improving the Status of Children, would address the state’s unresolved housing issues and promote solutions in several concrete ways:
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Bring together representatives of state administrative agencies, courts, local governments, and legislators, along with stakeholders and residents who ate tackling the housing health and safety crisis on the ground, so they can work together instead of in silos;
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Align existing housing resources and initiatives at the state and local levels, potentially saving taxpayers millions of dollars;
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Clarify the jurisdiction of code enforcement regarding health and safety;
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Coordinate administrative and court-based rules that can protect Hoosiers and expand the housing supply for communities with the greatest need for healthy housing without the need for legislation; and
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Provide a united voice to recommend new legislation when necessary.
The letter to the Governor concludes “We urge you to appoint and convene a Commission on Housing Safety, Stability, and Affordability, which will serve as a legacy of your administration’s efforts to elevate the public health, safety, and economic well-being of Hoosiers, their communities, and Indiana.”
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About Prosperity Indiana
The Indiana Association for Community Economic Development d/b/a Prosperity Indiana builds a better future for our communities by providing advocacy, leveraging resources, and engaging an empowered network of members to create inclusive opportunities that build assets and improve lives. Since its founding in 1986, Prosperity Indiana’s network has grown to nearly 200 organizations, representing thousands of practitioners statewide from the public, private, and nonprofit sectors.
About the Hoosier Housing Needs Coalition
Hoosier Housing Needs Coalition (HHNC) was formed by members of Indiana’s housing security advocacy community in April 2020 to support advocacy and education related to housing and homelessness prevention. HHNC convenes partners from across Indiana to advocate for immediate, medium- and long-term housing stability policy solutions and conduct education and research to achieve federal, state, and local policies.
