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Strengthening Housing Attainability and Economic Opportunity for all Hoosiers and their Communities
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. January 8, 2024 — Prosperity Indiana, a leading advocate for affordable housing and community development, announced its 2024 Policy Agenda, aimed at addressing the pressing challenges facing Hoosiers in the realms of housing attainability and economic opportunity. The agenda outlines a strategic and comprehensive approach to tackle issues such as the inadequate supply and increased cost of housing, equitable pathways to homeownership, and economic opportunity for vulnerable Hoosiers.
According to Prosperity Indiana members, safe, fair, affordable housing and economic opportunities are becoming increasingly unreachable for many Hoosiers. The 2024 Policy Agenda addresses these concerns at federal, state, and local levels, emphasizing the importance of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in all policy initiatives.
“Prosperity Indiana’s 2024 public policy agenda reflects the urgent needs of our members, Indiana’s community economic development sector, and the millions of Hoosiers it serves daily. It outlines critical policy solutions to address Indiana’s growing housing crisis that simply cannot wait,” said Prosperity Indiana Executive Director Aspen Clemons.
Urgent & Emerging Policy Priorities
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Increase the supply, access, and habitability of affordable housing, including options to afford, preserve, and rehabilitate homes.
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Counter increasing costs for vulnerable Hoosiers through policies that promote wealth-building and mitigate wealth-stripping (e.g., through predatory lending) for individuals and the community as a whole.
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Address attacks on diversity, equity, inclusion, & justice policies impacting community economic development initiatives such as: reducing barriers to homeownership, wealth building, mortgage assistance; as well as providing support to organizations combating barriers to inclusive education, reproductive options, quality health care, and similar efforts.
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State preemption reducing local options on policies such as tenant protections, source of income protections, taxes and revenue, etcetera.
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Prevent efforts to make regressive changes to Indiana's tax code that would increase the burden on the most vulnerable Hoosiers and the CED organizations who serve them.
Community Development Resource Policy Priorities
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Increase the scope and availability of tax credit resources to expand affordable housing for low-income households and make it easier for community economic development organizations, including smaller and non-profit entities, to qualify and participate.
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Enhance opportunities and reduce barriers impacting community land trust programs to permanently preserve affordability and create homeownership opportunities for lower-income families.
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Facilitate the ability of local communities to fund and administer land banking efforts and address the burdens of blight and abandoned property.
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Increase policy opportunities for PI members to participate in and share economic development resources and programs.
Asset-Building & Consumer Protection Policy Priorities
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Establish a maximum 36% rate cap for payday loans at the state and federal levels and support policies that promote alternatives to predatory lending products.
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Protect families from the health and social effects of medical debt, including strengthening consumer protections, expanding enrollment for Medicaid, and/or requiring hospitals to adopt robust Financial Assistance Policies.
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Support policies that increase equitable wealth-building (i.e. Child Tax Credits and Child Savings Accounts).
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Institute policy safeguards against 'wealth-stripping' factors, such as predatory rent-to-own contracts and increased rates and fees for small-dollar loans, while increased rates and fees for small-dollar loans, while increasing 'wealth-building' factors through increased lender data transparency and reporting requirements.
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Safeguard against regressive changes to state, federal, or local tax policies that would result in increased burdens on low-income Hoosiers and the organizations who serve them, or that would reduce local revenue options.
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Promote robust state and federal consumer protection rules and regulations, including through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's consumer education, rules, enforcement, and compliance.
Affordable Housing Policy Priorities
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Increase the supply of affordable housing for the communities and populations most in need, using targeted tax credits.
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Increase the preservation of affordable housing (i.e. through owner-occupied rehab, extending the duration of affordable tax credits, and re-capitalizing affordable housing properties whose affordability periods are expiring).
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Work to end housing discrimination, promote inclusive communities, and create new pathways to achieve and sustain homeownership including through improved fair housing and inclusionary zoning standards.
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Strengthen tenant protections for Hoosiers (i.e. through court-based rent escrow policies and increased enforcement of habitability standards).
"Even during a 'short session' when the Indiana General Assembly typically doesn't consider legislation that would affect the state budget, lawmakers have chances in 2024 to improve long-term housing stability and attainability and consumer protections that are critical to Hoosiers' well-being and economic opportunities," said Prosperity Indiana Policy Director Andrew Bradley. "Prosperity Indiana's 2024 policy agenda provides policymakers at the federal, state, and local levels with a menu of choices to reduce racial and economic disparities and promote thriving, equitable communities for all Hoosiers."
Prosperity Indiana urges policymakers at all levels to consider these critical priorities as they shape legislation and initiatives for the benefit of Hoosier communities. For more information on Prosperity Indiana's 2024 Policy Agenda, visit ProsperityIndiana.org/Advocacy or contact Policy Director Andrew Bradley.
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