Basic economics teaches us that in a free market, the cost of goods is largely determined by the law of supply and demand. This concept has become increasingly relevant in Pennsylvania’s housing market, which is projected to fall short of housing needs by approximately 185,000 homes by 2035. This shortage has contributed to the costs of housing for renters and homeowners nearly doubling over the last decade. This places an additional burden on Pennsylvanians who are already struggling to pay the bills with rising utility costs, high health care, child care bills and more.
 
To many, a logical solution to the housing crisis would be to increase the supply of housing and eliminate unnecessary costs to drive prices down for homeowners and renters. While this is easier said than done, one way to do accomplish this is to remove burdensome government red tape that is an obstacle to development.
 
What if there was a state agency that could instantly choose to eliminate one such burdensome and costly obstacle to development, but refuses to?
 
The federal government requires construction operations that will discharge stormwater from a construction site to obtain a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit if more than one acre of land is disturbed. The federal regulation allows for a waiver of this permit for land disturbances between one and five acres if certain requirements are met. However, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), which oversees this program at the state level, does not offer this waiver. This design and permit can take several months and most of the time cost north of $35,000 to obtain before construction can begin. The federal government has deemed this permit unnecessary for certain projects, yet DEP stands firmly as a costly obstacle to development by refusing to offer this waiver.
 
I will soon be introducing legislation that would require DEP to offer the NPDES waiver for residential construction projects that disturb up to three acres of land, allowing for more affordable and quicker construction.
 
Please join me in co-sponsoring this commonsense legislation.