Housing Planning and Data Manager
WA State Department of Commerce
Puyallup, Washington
Laura Hodgson is the Housing Planning and Data Manager in the Growth Management Services unit at the Washington State Department of Commerce. Laura supports local governments updating their housing elements as communities take a more active role to plan for and accommodate housing needs of all incomes and address racially disparate impacts, exclusion and displacement. She also oversees development of resources to help local governments plan for housing for their most vulnerable residents and oversees a new grant program to coordinate low-income housing and emergency housing planning. She recently oversaw the development of guidance for communities updating their housing elements and the foundational changes that were made by the Legislature with HB 1220 (laws of 2021). She has been with the Department of Commerce since January 2020. Laura has been working in urban planning for 17 years. Prior to working at Commerce, she worked for Montgomery County Planning Department in Maryland and worked for consulting firms in the fields of transportation planning and urban planning. Laura has a Bachelor’s of Architecture and a Master’s in Urban and Regional Planning from Virginia Tech.
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The Homeownership Covenant Act: Addressing Racial Barriers
Monday, March 31, 2025
1:00 PM – 1:45 PM MT