ATLANTA – State Representative Spencer Frye (D-Athens) will hold a press conference to discuss policies to expand Georgia’s housing supply and reduce the costs of homeownership on Wednesday, February 15, 2023, at 12 p.m. (or upon adjournment if later) in room 610 of the Coverdell Legislative Office Building (18 Capitol. Sq. SW) in Atlanta. Rep. Frye also issued the following statement ahead of the press conference:
“Right now, thousands of Georgians are without homes. Thousands more are living in overcrowded environments. Hundreds of thousands are paying 50 percent or more of their income on rent, forcing them to go without adequate food, medicine and clothing and leaving them nothing for retirement. There is no county in Georgia where a person working full-time at minimum wage can afford even a one-bedroom apartment with enough left over to live on.
“There is only one way to solve this problem, and that is to create more cost-manageable homes. Standing in the way of us creating solutions are outdated and counterproductive laws and regulations, many of them intentionally designed to keep home prices artificially high, which prevents lower-income families from moving into neighborhoods, cities or counties. These regulations press the government’s thumb on the scale in favor of investors over families.
“The current situation is not only unjust, but it is also unsustainable and harmful to the economic and social fabric of our state. It puts all our children’s futures at risk and does grave harm to individuals and families all across Georgia every day.
“It is in our power to reverse the problem. We can immediately enact policies focused on the American Dream, rather than on hedge fund investors. We can create policies that put more doors in the housing market, leave more doors open in the job market and encourage sustainable construction. By adding more supply, we can provide housing stability for hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens. When housing is stable, we create community, productivity and socioeconomic opportunity for all.”
Representative Spencer Frye represents the citizens of District 122, which includes portions of Clarke County. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2012 and currently serves as Vice Chairman of the Budget & Fiscal Affairs Oversight Committee. He also serves on the Creative Arts & Entertainment, Game, Fish & Parks, Human Relations & Aging, Public Health, Transportation, Urban Affairs and Ways & Means committees.
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