Issue Position: Affordable Housing

Issue Position

This will likely be an ongoing issue, because Utah's population is projected to increase dramatically over the next 50 years. People in my district, and throughout Salt Lake Valley, do not want acres and acres of high density housing. I have a couple of solutions to this problem:

1. Persuade local governments to allow residents to build "mother-in-law" apartments in their homes that can be rented out to tenants. Each household would be limited to one rental, and each rental would have to pass a strict safety inspection, have an external entrance, and provide at least one parking space for the tenant. This would benefit older couples whose children have left home, allowing them to save money for retirement, and it would benefit young people who need to find a place to live.

2. Encourage companies to allow more workers to telecommute, or work from home. If more people could work from home, people could live farther away from their places of employment. This would allow people to live and spend money in rural Utah. It would also benefit urban Utah by alleviating congestion, particularly on our roads and in our schools. Companies would need to find a way to ensure productivity and connectivity/communication (perhaps through Skype-like services), but they would benefit as well by not having to lease as much office space.

Additional Note: 10% of the profits that fall to the State of Utah from the Inland Port will go toward affordable housing.

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