Bill Text: CA SB912 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: California Housing Finance Agency: management compensation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)

Status: (Passed) 2018-09-21 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 661, Statutes of 2018. [SB912 Detail]

Download: California-2017-SB912-Amended.html

Amended  IN  Senate  May 25, 2018
Amended  IN  Senate  April 12, 2018
Amended  IN  Senate  March 08, 2018
Amended  IN  Senate  February 20, 2018

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill No. 912


Introduced by Senators Beall and Skinner
(Coauthors: Senators Hill, Lara, Portantino, and Wiener)

January 18, 2018


An act to add Chapter 2.7 (commencing with Section 50480) to Part 2 of Part 14.3 (commencing with Section 53605) to Division 31 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to housing.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 912, as amended, Beall. Housing: homelessness programs and affordable housing.
Existing law establishes various housing and home loan programs throughout the state to help low-income families and other specified groups.
This bill would authorize the Budget Act of 2018 to include funding to address the issues of affordable housing, long-term homelessness solutions, and emergency homelessness interventions, as specified. The bill would also include legislative findings as to the necessity to provide additional funding for housing.

Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and makes the department responsible for administering various housing programs throughout the state, including, among others, the Multifamily Housing Program.

This bill, upon appropriation in the annual Budget Act, would require that the sum of $2,000,000,000 be allocated from the General Fund to the Department of Housing and Community Development. The bill would require that $1,000,000,000 of that money be transferred to the Housing Rehabilitation Loan Fund and expended to assist in the new construction, rehabilitation, and preservation of permanent and transitional rental housing for persons with incomes of up to 60% of the area median income. The bill would require that the remaining $1,000,000,000 be used to address homelessness, particularly homelessness among members of vulnerable populations, and provide for the allocation of that money for grants to cities and counties for specified related purposes, grants under the Housing for a Healthy California Program, grants under the California Emergency Solutions Grants Program for the purpose of addressing the specific needs of homeless youth, as provided, and assistance for housing and services for survivors of domestic violence, as provided. The bill would also include legislative findings as to the necessity to provide additional funding for housing.

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YESNO   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares the following:
(a) Despite recent legislative efforts, California has not been able to fill the funding gap from the loss of redevelopment funds and statewide housing bonds passed in the 2000s. The state housing crisis is the leading driver of the rise in homelessness.
(b) The recent 2017 federal tax law, Public Law 115-97, reduces the value of the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC). The LIHTC program is the most successful state and national housing program and critical for all affordable housing built in California. As a result, California will lose $540 million, or about 4,000 to 5,000 units, per year.
(c) According to the Department of Finance, over the last 10 years, California has experienced a 34 percent reduction in federal housing funds.
(d) According to the Department of Housing and Community Development, from 2016 to 2017, California experienced the largest increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness, about 14 percent. Its homeless population accounts for 25 percent of the national homeless population.
(e) Housing the homeless saves taxpayer money. According to the most comprehensive homelessness cost study in the United States, the average prehousing public cost was $62,000, and the average posthousing cost was $20,000, equal to an annual reduction of nearly $43,000, or 68 percent.
(f) It is the intent of the Legislature to offset federal funding cuts and the reduced value of the LIHTC by investing in existing and successful state housing programs.
(g) It is further the intent of the Legislature to emphasize the financing of housing for vulnerable populations, including: chronically homeless persons who frequently use hospitals or are incarcerated, homeless transitional age youth, homeless college students, families with repeated instances of homelessness, domestic violence survivors, veterans, and persons with a physical or mental disability.
SEC. 2.Chapter 2.7 (commencing with Section 50480) is added to Part 2 of Division 31 of the Health and Safety Code, to read:
2.7.Funding for Homelessness Programs and Affordable Housing
50480.

Upon appropriation in the annual Budget Act for purposes of this section, the sum of two billion dollars ($2,000,000,000) shall be allocated from the General Fund to the Department of Housing and Community Development for the following purposes:

(a)One billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) shall be transferred to the Housing Rehabilitation Loan Fund established pursuant to Section 50661. The moneys in the fund transferred pursuant to this subdivision shall be used for the Multifamily Housing Program authorized by Chapter 6.7 (commencing with Section 50675), to be expended to assist in the new construction, rehabilitation, and preservation of permanent and transitional rental housing for persons with incomes of up to 60 percent of the area median income.

(b)One billion dollars ($1,000,000,000) shall be used to address homelessness, particularly homelessness among members of vulnerable populations, to be allocated as follows:

(1)Seven hundred million dollars ($700,000,000) shall be used to provide grants to cities and counties that agree to provide matching funds to alleviate chronic homelessness within their jurisdictions. Cities and counties shall apply to the department for grants pursuant to this paragraph in the form and manner prescribed by the department. Authorized uses of the moneys allocated pursuant to this paragraph include, but are not limited to, the following:

(A)Rental assistance and flexible housing subsidy pool investments.

(B)Operating subsidies, including gap financing to make supportive housing projects that offer lower rents financially viable.

(C)Capital grants.

(D)Interim housing.

(E)Emergency shelters, navigation centers, and rapid rehousing projects.

(F)(i)Construction of affordable housing that includes housing for homeless persons.

(ii)The department shall set aside a portion of the moneys allocated pursuant to this paragraph for purposes of this subparagraph and deposit those moneys in the Housing Rehabilitation Loan Fund established pursuant to Section 50661. The moneys in the fund shall be used for the Multifamily Housing Program authorized by Chapter 6.7 (commencing with Section 50675), to be expended to assist in the new construction, rehabilitation, and preservation of permanent and transitional rental housing for persons with incomes of up to 60 percent of the area median income, that makes at least 20 percent of the units available to persons who are chronically homeless.

(2)Two hundred million dollars ($200,000,000) shall be used to provide grants under the Housing for a Healthy California Program established pursuant to Part 14.2 (commencing with Section 53590).

(3)(A)Fifty million dollars ($50,000,000) shall be used to provide grants under the California Emergency Solutions Grants Program (Chapter 19 (commencing with Section 50899.1)) for the purpose of addressing the specific needs of homeless youth, in accordance with the following:

(i)Activities funded with a grant pursuant to this paragraph shall be those activities identified in Section 50899.4 and, in addition, family finding services to locate and engage relatives of homeless youth with the goal of connecting homeless youth who wish to be reconnected with family.

(ii)Activities funded with a grant pursuant to this paragraph shall incorporate the core components of Housing First, as provided in subdivision (b) of Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.

(iii)Providers offering services funded with a grant pursuant to this paragraph shall demonstrate the ability to provide comprehensive, culturally competent, and trauma-informed services to meet the needs of homeless youth, including the specific needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth, commercially sexually exploited children and young people, youth of color, and survivors of domestic violence.

(B)For purposes of this paragraph, “homeless youth” has the same meaning as defined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (e) of Section 12957 of the Government Code.

(4)Fifty million dollars ($50,000,000) shall be transferred to the Domestic and Sexual Violence Prevention Complementary Services Fund, upon establishment of that fund within the Office of Emergency Services, and used to provide housing and services for survivors of domestic violence.

SEC. 2.

 Part 14.3 (commencing with Section 53605) is added to Division 31 of the Health and Safety Code, to read:

PART 14.3. Funding for Homelessness Programs and Affordable Housing

53605.
 The Budget Act of 2018 may include funding to address the issues of affordable housing, long-term homelessness solutions, and emergency homelessness interventions for all of the following:
(a) The Multifamily Housing Program authorized by Chapter 6.7 (commencing with Section 50675) of Part 2.
(b) The California low-income housing tax credit.
(c) The Housing for a Healthy California Program established pursuant to Part 14.2 (commencing with Section 53590).
(d) The Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council established pursuant to Section 8257 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(e) The Homeless Emergency Aid block grant.
(f) The California Emergency Solutions Grants Program (Chapter 19 (commencing with Section 50899.1) of Part 2).
(g) The Homeless Youth and Exploitation Program (Chapter 6 (commencing with Section 13700) of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code).
(h) Domestic violence shelters and services.
(i) CalWORKS Housing Support (Article 3.3 (commencing with Section 11330) of Chapter 2 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code).
(j) Homeless assistance under the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids program pursuant to Section 11450 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(k) The Home Safe program.
(l) Homeless mental illness outreach.

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