Kentucky Housing Task Force studying solutions to state's lack of affordable housing

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A new legislative task force will study Kentucky's lack of affordable housing.

The Kentucky Housing Task Force in Frankfort is studying and reviewing policies to address accessibility and availability of housing in the state.

Rep. Susan Whitten, R-Louisville, co-chairs the task force committee and said they will also look at housing costs, population, employment opportunities, state and local laws, and more, to get to the root of the problem.

It will also look at what other states have done to increase affordable housing options.

Members of the task force heard from state leaders on Monday about efforts to address housing shortages. That includes members of the Kentucky Housing Corporation, Kentucky Center for Statistics and the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction.

Officials with the Frankfort-based Kentucky Housing Corporation said it's "vital for the housing supply in Kentucky to be a main focus instead of niche or secondary housing issues."

The group on Monday gave an update on the Housing Supply Gap Analysis, which the task force commissioned.

In a news release, Wendy K. Smith, deputy executive director of Housing Programs for the Kentucky Housing Corp., said that the housing supply shortage is the state's most urgent issue.

"What we're seeing is while Kentucky housing for 50-plus years has been investing in affordable housing, because there's not enough supply in the overall marketplace, we're losing ground in serving the folks we try to serve," Smith said in a news release.

If there were enough supply, she added that the state would have lower average housing costs.

The next phase of the task force includes projecting which areas of the state are likely to see the housing gap increase over the next five years.

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