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HLS 26RS-584 ENGROSSED
2026 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 3
BY REPRESENTATIVES NEWELL AND KNOX
HOUSING: Requests the Louisiana Housing Corporation to work in conjunction with the
division of administration and the State Civil Service Commission to study the
feasibility of creating a housing and rental assistance program using vacant state-
owned property to support cost-burdened or severely cost-burdened renter
households of state government employees
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To urge and request the Louisiana Housing Corporation to work in conjunction with the
3 division of administration and the State Civil Service Commission to study the
4 feasibility of creating a housing and rental assistance program using vacant
5 state-owned property to support cost-burdened or severely cost-burdened renter
6 households of state government employees.
7 WHEREAS, housing insecurity in Louisiana is a growing issue that impacts citizens
8 from all backgrounds; and
9 WHEREAS, the Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC) actively works with
10 developers to provide affordable housing to the people of Louisiana through funding sources
11 such as the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program, the Nonprofit Open Cycle Affordable
12 Housing Program, Multifamily Revenue Bonds, the Community Housing Development
13 Organization Annual Awards Program, the Rental Housing Development HOME Rental
14 Housing Program, the National Housing Trust Fund, and the Community Development
15 Block Grant program; and
16 WHEREAS, the LHC's Keys for Service program is a housing assistance program
17 designed to support full-time law enforcement officers, firefighters, paramedics, public
18 safety telecommunicators, certified teachers, and employees of hospitals, pharmacies, drug
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HLS 26RS-584 ENGROSSED
HR NO. 3
1 stores, physician's offices, outpatient care centers, nursing care facilities, assisted living
2 centers, and law enforcement or emergency response agencies; and
3 WHEREAS, a growing number of state government employees across Louisiana are
4 cost burdened as a result of the lack of affordable rental housing, especially in the state's
5 metropolitan areas; and
6 WHEREAS, the National Low Income Housing Coalition defines "cost burdened"
7 as a renter household that spends more than thirty percent of its income on housing costs and
8 utilities, "severely cost burdened" as a renter household that spends more than half of its
9 income on housing costs and utilities, "very low income" as households whose income is
10 thirty-one percent to fifty percent of the area median income, and "extremely low income"
11 as those whose income is zero to thirty percent of the area median income; and
12 WHEREAS, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, as of 2023,
13 eighty-six percent of Louisiana's extremely low income renter households are cost burdened,
14 seventy-three percent of the state's extremely low income renter households are severely cost
15 burdened, eighty percent of the state's very low income renter households are cost burdened,
16 and forty-one percent of the state's very low income renter households are severely cost
17 burdened; and
18 WHEREAS, the National Low Income Housing Coalition additionally reported that
19 there is a shortage of affordable rental homes available to extremely low income households
20 in Louisiana, with only forty-two such homes available for every one hundred renter
21 households as of 2023; and
22 WHEREAS, the lack of affordable housing in Louisiana can be directly addressed
23 by the state through efficient utilization of vacant state-owned properties, which have the
24 potential to be converted into affordable rental housing that supports state government
25 employees; and
26 WHEREAS, the division of administration office of facility planning and control's
27 "Office Space Utilization Report" from March 2019 reported an estimated 64,450 square feet
28 of vacant state-owned space across Louisiana; and
29 WHEREAS, Louisiana has taken great strides in its efforts to address the issues of
30 housing insecurity faced by many of its residents, but it is vitally important that the state
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HLS 26RS-584 ENGROSSED
HR NO. 3
1 establish a program to offset the housing-related cost burden faced by a growing number of
2 state government employees.
3 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
4 Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge and request the Louisiana Housing Corporation
5 to work in conjunction with the division of administration and the State Civil Service
6 Commission to study the feasibility of creating a housing and rental assistance program that
7 converts vacant state-owned property to support cost-burdened or severely cost-burdened
8 renter households of state government employees.
9 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the Legislature
10 of Louisiana requests the division of administration to provide the Louisiana Housing
11 Corporation with updated data on the utilization of state-owned property.
12 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the Legislature
13 of Louisiana requests the State Civil Service Commission to provide the Louisiana Housing
14 Corporation with current salary data for employees in classified positions within the
15 Louisiana State Civil Service.
16 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the Legislature
17 of Louisiana requests the Louisiana Housing Corporation to report its findings to the House
18 of Representatives and the House Committee on Appropriations.
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HR 3 Engrossed 2026 Regular Session Newell
Requests the La. Housing Corp. to work in conjunction with the div. of administration and
the State Civil Service Commission to study the feasibility of creating a housing and rental
assistance program that converts vacant state-owned property to support cost-burdened or
severely cost-burdened renter households of state government employees.
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