According to the Center for Rural Pennsylvania, most rural counties in Pennsylvania experienced a population decline from 2010 to 2019. Quantitative and qualitative data also show that many non-rural Pennsylvania residents would prefer to live in a rural area if they could live anywhere they wished. With the rise in telework opportunities, rural living is more accessible than ever before. That said, the housing stock in these communities does not always meet the needs of current residents looking to stay in and non-rural residents looking to relocate to rural counties. To attract new residents to and reverse the population shrinkage in rural Pennsylvania, we must incentivize new and modern housing development in these locations.
 
Housing that meets the needs of today’s families will allow both businesses to attract needed talent and the communities to attract a next-generation tax base. By offering financial incentives for the development of such housing, my legislation would support rural communities in meeting these housing needs. The legislation would establish the Housing in Our Sites Program to provide grants and loans for the acquisition and development of higher-density housing in municipalities with populations of less than 200,000 that do not border municipalities with a population greater than 200,000. With more modern housing stock, rural communities will have the infrastructure needed to further their economic growth.
 
If given the choice, many Pennsylvania workers would prefer the relaxed pace of life and natural wonder that rural counties have to offer. Please consider joining me in making this option more accessible to workers while investing in the future of our rural communities by signing on to this proposal.