Legislature works to address housing shortage

chair the Senate Committee on Housing, Rural Issues & Forestry, and I recently convened the committee for an informational hearing on the housing shortage facing Wisconsin. The committee read and heard reports from the Wisconsin Realtors Association, Wisconsin Builders Association, League of Wisconsin Municipalities, Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, a Professor from UW-Madison and a planner with Outagamie County.

We know that in Wisconsin we are not building enough housing to keep up with demand for our growing workforce. Housing costs and rents are rising faster than inflation and incomes and are becoming increasingly out of reach for the needs of those working in jobs that are vital to the success of our communities. Furthermore, businesses will hesitate to locate in areas where there is not adequate housing, and we in rural Wisconsin are well aware of that pressure.
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Nate Notes: The problem is most of what we are building is either rental property or far to expensive for much of our workforce.