Overview
- The administration released the plan on Feb. 12 in Philadelphia, framing it as a long-term blueprint to expand supply, cut costs, and strengthen tenant and homeowner safeguards.
- The proposal centers on a $1 billion critical infrastructure fund in the 2026 budget to unlock housing construction statewide, with officials citing a $10 million pilot that drew more than $470 million in requests as evidence of demand.
- State analyses highlight the need to add roughly 450,000 homes by 2035 to avoid an estimated 185,000-home shortfall, with 1 million households cost-burdened and Pennsylvania ranking 44th in new housing approvals since 2017.
- The plan recommends stronger renter protections such as added eviction safeguards, caps on security deposits and application fees, and a ban on income-source discrimination, plus limits on manufactured-home lot rent increases, easier financing, and a resident right of first refusal.
- Shapiro calls for regulatory changes that include by-right accessory units and small multifamily homes, incentives for small developers, and a state housing one‑stop shop and deputy secretary, drawing mixed industry reactions that back zoning reform but question proposed rent limits.