BALTIMORE, MARYLAND — Gov. Wes Moore on Oct. 1, 2026, signed two executive orders aimed at Maryland's housing shortage: a "Housing Innovation" order and a Permitting and Licensing Acceleration Team order. The orders set up modular-housing and permitting tools intended to help projects move faster.

The Housing Innovation order establishes a Maryland Housing Innovation Incubator inside the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), backed by a Housing Innovation Advisory Council. It launches a Governor's Initiative to Accelerate Factory-Built Housing Production to modernize regulations, explore State-level pre-approval of standardized modular designs and assist local governments. A Modular Workforce Partnership is tasked with developing training curricula, programs and outreach strategies for modular workforce development and creating opportunities for on-the-job training — including Maryland Corps/Service Year cohorts and high-school registered apprenticeships.

The PLAT order creates the Governor's Permitting and Licensing Acceleration Team, housed in the Maryland Department of Planning, to map barriers, tighten timelines, and coordinate priority projects — including voluntary partnerships with local jurisdictions — with an early focus on multifamily housing. It builds on the Maryland Coordinated Permitting Review Council from the 2024 business-climate executive order. Early PLAT deliverables are due by March 31, 2027.

The Moore-Miller administration ties the new orders to the September 2025 "Housing Starts Here" order, saying implementation has put more than 300 acres of surplus State-owned land under review for housing suitability, sped DHCD multifamily application reviews by 26%, cut average Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) permit processing times by 25%, raised Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) on-time permit processing from 87% to 95%, opened third-party permitting pathways at MDOT SHA and MDE, and supported 50 unique housing projects through the State Housing Ombudsman.

"Maryland's housing crisis demands that we move swiftly, think creatively, and deliver solutions that will ease housing cost burdens for our people," Moore said.

The orders provide for technical assistance to local governments and permitting coordination with jurisdictions that participate voluntarily.