Housing for All Pennsylvanians
Pennsylvanians deserve access to supports that help them live independently and thrive in their communities. But, Pennsylvania needs approximately 38,000 more units of supportive housing to serve communities across the commonwealth. To meet this need, the Pennsylvania Supportive Housing Coalition is working to advance policy priorities focused on funding and collaboration across the state.
The Coalition’s priorities are shaped by the contributions of more than 300 individuals, representing over 150 organizations from 52 PA Counties. We are calling on you to join an incredible powerhouse of advocates, community developers, providers, and persons with lived expertise ready to take action. Help advocate for policy change and make Pennsylvania a place where supportive housing tenants can thrive!
How to Get Involved with the PA Supportive Housing Coalition
There are many ways to get involved as members of the PA Supportive Housing Coalition. The Coalition has structured opportunities for involvement that range from hands-on policy advocacy work to less time-intensive possibilities. These include:
Coalition Membership
Members are included in the mailing list for coalition updates. Coalition members will be invited to participate in, or opt out of, collective action opportunities. On a bi-annual basis, the broader Coalition convenes virtually to discuss progress made from each of the workgroups, opportunities for advancement and partnership building, and presentations from national leaders.
Coalition members commit to using their voice, sharing their experience and expertise, and leveraging their connections to advance the four main Coalition goals. For more information on member roles and responsibilities, please see our participation tiers document.
Workgroup Membership
Workgroup Membership – Participation in any meeting of the four (4) quarterly workgroups, which are each focused on advancing the policy priorities of the Coalition. Opportunities will be presented to provide additional contributions to each workgroup.
To join the next workgroup meeting of your preference, please visit the Calendar of Events below and register on Zoom.
Workgroup Co-Chairing
Opportunity to provide leadership on one of the four policy priorities and organize the quarterly workgroup meetings.
Please fill out this form if you are interested in Co-Chairing one of the workgroups.
Person with Lived Expertise Council
Persons with Lived Expertise will aim to join all workgroup activities. PWLE Council and Liaison positions will offer additional opportunities for incorporating lived expertise.
Please fill out this form if you are interested in joining the PWLE Council, as capacity is limited.
Join the PA Supportive Housing Coalition today to help advocate for policy change and make Pennsylvania a place where supportive housing tenants can thrive! For more information on the Coalition’s recommended policy areas, please check out the PA Supportive Housing Policy Platform.
Calendar of Events
Advancing Housing Equity in Pennsylvania
In Pennsylvania, individuals who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) experience homelessness and institutionalization at a disproportionate rate. The Coalition believes the path to racial equity is grounded in the voices and experiences of those disparately impacted by structural racism and will only be attained through deliberate practices, policies, and programming that produce and sustain racially equitable outcomes. The Coalition envisions a more just and equitable world where every Pennsylvanian has the housing and services they need to thrive in the communities they call home. The Coalition’s commitment is to center race equity and to address the impacts of systemic racism. We will utilize the progress we make in achieving racial equity as a criteria on how the Coalition evaluates our overall efforts.
PA Supportive Housing Coalition Workgroups
Updates to the resources below are made quarterly and may not reflect the most recent documents.
Supportive housing is targeted to individuals engaged with, and impacted by, different crises system(s), including but not limited to, those with homelessness history, behavioral health diagnoses, complex medical care needs, substance use disorders, incarceration history, survivors of domestic violence, older adults, transition age youth, etc. Supportive services funds to meet the needs of these individuals have been described as inadequate, stagnant, limited, or even, absent by participants in this platform process. If the supportive housing need in PA is to be met, the state will need to create and enhance supportive service revenues to allow for the implementation of flexible, person-centered services unique to communities across the commonwealth. This working group is dedicated to advancing policy solutions to address the need for this supportive services funding.
Goals:
- Goal 1: Establish a baseline for what supportive services should entail including an analysis of current costs and the costs of a better funded supportive services system.
- Goal 2: Advocate with DHS and State Legislature for the expansion of HCBS through an 1115 Waiver to expand the state’s Medicaid plan and to fund housing related supportive services.
- Goal 3: Define the need and advocate for a statewide supportive services funding mechanism that would be coordinated with affordable housing resources and programs.
Please refer to Calendar of Events for the next workgroup meeting.
Supportive housing typically serves individuals and families with incomes between 0-30% of the Area Median Income (AMI). Participants in this process consistently stated a need for more affordable housing throughout the commonwealth, even for those with housing choice subsidies and vouchers. This affordable housing deficiency has created a backlog of people waiting years to be housed. It has also kept some families and individuals in supportive housing programs even after their need for services diminishes, creating a bottleneck in a system meant to be a vehicle for those people to move on and thrive. To address those needs.
Goals:
- Goal 1: Establish Supportive Housing Development Target for PA.
- Goal 2: Address policies like the Municipal Planning Code and zoning provisions that make creating affordable housing more onerous
- Goal 3: Coordinate with efforts to increase affordable housing resources in PA and ensure that supportive housing resources are aligned to maximize impact
Please refer to Calendar of Events for the next workgroup meeting.
Participants named resistance to new affordable and supportive housing as a significant barrier in meeting supportive housing needs. This manifests as neighborhood resistance commonly referred to as NIMBYism, or “Not in My Back Yard,” and reluctance from landlords to work with supportive housing tenants.
Goals:
- Goal 1: Coordinate an education campaign that can help combat stigma and address misconceptions of supportive housing and its tenants.
- Goal 2: Creation of a toolkit with educational resources, strategies, research, and other material that can help partners at a local level working to develop and preserve projects across Pennsylvania.
Please refer to Calendar of Events for the next workgroup meeting.
Project participants consistently expressed a desire for more leadership and coordination from state agencies to provide guidance and support to local efforts addressing homelessness. Participants also voiced frustration and confusion related to resources administered by various agencies that do not appear to be coordinating or leveraging opportunities to create more supportive housing.
Goals:
- Goal 1: Establishment of an Interagency Council to Prevent and End Homelessness
- Goal 2: Creation of a State Plan to End and Prevent Homelessness
- Goal 3: Foster statewide data coordination
Please refer to Calendar of Events for the next workgroup meeting.
As we work with our coalition members to advance our policy priorities, we recognize the need for our work to be shaped by the insights of those with lived expertise of having experienced homelessness and or having lived in supportive housing programs. In partnership with our lived expertise co-chair, we have developed a PWLE Council and Liaison roles to meaningfully incorporate lived expertise into this work.
The Council will meet 2-3 times a year and Liaisons will volunteer to attend working groups to ensure representation across all initiatives. PWLE in these roles will be compensated for their time.
