The ELCA social message on homelessness is clear: “Housing is a fundamental human right.” Yet for hundreds of thousands of Americans, that right remains out of reach, and Pennsylvania is no exception. On Feb. 12, Gov. Josh Shapiro announced Pennsylvania’s first-ever comprehensive Housing Action Plan to address critical housing needs across the Commonwealth.

More than a quarter of Pennsylvanians are considered “housing cost burdened,” spending more than 30 percent of their income on housing. In the last decade, housing prices have soared while wages have failed to keep up. The result is a growing crisis that touches families, seniors, working people, and communities across the state.

Calling his plan a roadmap to address that crisis, Shapiro sai it is grounded in the premise that “housing is not a privilege, but the foundation of opportunity.”

LAMPa housing adocates were among the local leaders who offered input into the plan, which is organized around five core goals aimed at making safe, stable, and affordable housing accessible to all Pennsylvanians. Shapiro has signaled that housing will be a top funding priority, stating that the “lion’s share” of a proposed critical infrastructure investment fund should go toward housing.

The plan is organized around five core goals:

• Building more housing and preserving existing housing stock
• Reducing barriers to homeownership and strengthening tenant protections
• Tackling housing insecurity by increasing access to resources and support
• Modernizing regulations and zoning restrictions to speed up development
• Increasing coordination between state and local governments

“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,” Shapiro said during the plan’s unveiling. “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.”

“Our social teaching reminds us that ‘where God’s love for people who are homeless is heard and lived, hope is engendered that breaks the downward spiral of life.’ ” said LAMPa Director Tracey DePasquale. “Advocating for just housing policy is part of our response to that call.”

Pennsylvania Lutherans, through LAMPa, have a long history of advocating for housing policies to ensure that everyone has a safe place to call home.

“Many of our congregations minister with people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity,” DePasquale said. “Some are active in offering shelter, support with basic necessities, or creating affordable housing in their communities. Most are involved in some sort of hunger ministry and know that the lack of safe, affordable housing exacerbates food insecurity — taking a toll on the health of our neighbors and our communities. We applaud the governor’s determination to make housing a priority as well as the bipartisan support in the General Assembly for tackling this crisis.”

Ahead of the plan’s release, a bipartisan group of legislators pointed to their efforts to address Pennsylvania’s lack of affordable housing with a press conference on Feb. 2. Their approach focuses on incentivizing (not penalizing) local governments to adopt “pro-housing” policies. Several bills are on the table to boost housing supply by cutting local regulations:

House Bill 2186 — Would allow municipalities to enact “reasonable” restrictions on accessory dwelling units (small homes on the same lot as a single-family house), making them easier to build as affordable options for seniors, young adults, and caregivers

House Bill 2185 — Would require certain local governments to permit duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes in areas zoned for single-family residences

House Bill 2155 — Would prohibit parking minimums, which critics say drive up development costs and limit high-density housing

House Bill 2109 — “Golden Girls Law” would strike down local rules banning unrelated people from living together, an arrangement that is currently illegal in parts of Pennsylvania