INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Prosperity Indiana and the Hoosier Housing Needs Coalition delivered a letter signed by nearly 700 Hoosier organizations and individuals urging Governor Mike Braun to create and convene a Commission on Housing Safety, Stability, and Affordability to address Indiana’s worsening housing crisis.  

665 unique Indiana organizations and individuals, ranging from housing providers, developers, and investors; to homelessness prevention specialists, community service organizations, churches and faith-based groups; to Hoosiers from rural, urban, and suburban communities, joined together to sign the letter urging Governor Braun to issue an executive order creating a Commission to act on the state’s shortage of safe, stable, and affordable homes.  

The letter calls on Governor Braun to leverage his unique leadership background to convene the stakeholders necessary to more effectively align available public and private resources to produce better housing outcomes for Hoosiers. The letter acknowledges incremental steps taken by the state to address housing but also notes the declining rates of homeownership, worsening affordability, and lack of housing supply particularly for low-income families and vulnerable Hoosiers. 

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 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:  

• Bring together representatives of state administrative agencies, courts, local governments, and legislators, along with stakeholders and residents who are tackling the housing health and safety crisis on the ground;  

• Align existing housing resources and initiatives at the state and local levels, potentially saving taxpayers millions of dollars;  

• Clarify the jurisdiction of code enforcement regarding health and safety;   

• Coordinate administrative and court-based rules that can protect Hoosiers and expand the housing supply for communities with the greatest need; and  

• 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.”

View the letter to Gov. Braun here.