Florida is second in the nation in population growth, with net migration driving economic activity and generating state budget surpluses. While demand to live here is the envy of our peers, it has a negative impact on the availability and cost of housing, which is particularly difficult to manage at our current rate of growth.

Studies have shown that the availability of workforce housing has real effects on business productivity, profits, and competitiveness and, as a result, regional economic growth. However, Florida workers are increasingly being forced by high housing costs to live farther from their employers, leading to longer commute times and increased costs of doing business, such as higher hiring and training expenses, greater employee turnover (especially of teachers and healthcare workers), and necessary payment of compensatory wages. Furthermore, housing availability and costs are two critical considerations affecting quality of life that businesses account for when deciding to move into a state or region.

As a result, the State Legislature rightly focused on this challenge in 2023, passing into law the Live Local Act, which appropriated $711 million for housing projects, the largest investment in housing ever in state history, created a tax credit incentive program for corporations to invest in affordable housing, provided regulatory flexibility regarding zoning, density, and height to incentivize and allow for streamlined development of affordable housing in commercial, industrial, and mixed-use zoned areas, and refocused Florida’s housing strategy in ways that make housing more attainable.