While a new year often brings new office decor to some workplaces, the Rhode Island Department of Housing is instituting a more external change — the department hopes to rebrand as the Executive Office of Housing.
The proposed rename comes from the 2025 Housing Organizational Plan, which outlines various other structural changes the department hopes to implement this year. The plan aims to address the state’s ongoing housing crisis by providing an optimized structure that maximizes resources.
The recommended changes will not be implemented until the plan passes via formal state legislation — a process the department is beginning now.
The rename aims to reflect a “more focused and effective approach to addressing Rhode Island’s housing challenges,” Emily Marshall, the spokesperson for the department, wrote in an email to The Herald.
Rhode Island has the second-highest rate of chronic homelessness in the country and experienced an almost 35% increase in homelessness compared to 2023, according to a report released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in December 2024.
“We have a supply crisis,” said the State Rep. June Speakman (D-Bristol, Warren), who chairs the House Commission on Housing Affordability. “There is just not enough supply to keep prices down, or even to get people housing that they need at any price.”
Secretary of the Department of Housing Deborah Goddard was optimistic about how the new structure would better serve the needs of Rhode Islanders.
The plan “ensures efficiency, clarity and accountability,” Goddard said, adding that by strengthening leadership relationships across the department, officials can fuse policymaking and funding for their housing initiatives.
When creating the new organizational plan, the department incorporated feedback from housing advocates, private stakeholders and government officials. The department circulated the drafts at several meetings open to the public, allowing Rhode Islanders to provide input, according to Marshall.
Additionally, the Housing Affordability Commission connected the department with prominent housing officials and community members.
Rhode Island House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi (D-Warwick) said that housing has been his “number one priority” since becoming speaker. Shekarchi has introduced many housing initiatives during his time in the General Assembly, including a 15-bill housing package last March and a 14-bill housing package that was passed in May 2023.
“We have passed the largest single bond in the history of Rhode Island for housing,” Shekarchi said, citing the state’s newly approved $120 million housing bond. He explained that the General Assembly’s main role will be to fund the department’s initiatives and provide policy recommendations.
Marshall added that the housing bond will help fund and execute the revamped department's upcoming housing initiatives. $80 million has been allocated specifically for the maintenance and development of affordable housing.
The bond will also fund the department’s initiatives “supporting homeownership, revitalizing communities and ensuring that the necessary infrastructure is in place to sustain long-term housing development in Rhode Island,” Marshall said.
The new organizational plan will clarify roles, expand transparency, streamline finances and focus on “proactive rather than reactive policy development,” said Marshall.
But Melina Lodge, the executive director of Housing Network of Rhode Island, is apprehensive about the department’s ability to take on more responsibility and questions the plan’s “heavy centralization of resources and decision-making under executive-level state agencies,” she said.
Lodge emphasized the need to include community-based developers in future planning decisions. “True collaboration must be designed intentionally and ensures not only representation but participation in decision-making by all vested stakeholders,” she added.
“We want accountability, and we want results,” Shekarchi said.
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the housing bond would be used to fund departmental restructuring. The housing bond will be used to fund and execute upcoming housing initiatives, not departmental restructuring. The Herald regrets the error.
Pavani Durbhakula is a senior staff writer and photographer. She is a first-year from DC and plans to study IAPA and Public Health. In her free time, she enjoys baking, reading, and searching for new coffee shops.
