The California Housing Consortium and our members have supported the passage of groundbreaking legislation over the last several years that has unlocked new sites for affordable housing, streamlined approvals, and drawn the support of a diverse, growing coalition committed to tackling California’s housing and homelessness challenges.
In spite of our progress, this crisis isn’t solved yet. California continues to face a gap of more than one million homes affordable to lower-income households — and the state’s homeless population is only rising, with 170,000 people now living on the streets. CHC remains committed to working this session with affordable housing champions in the Legislature and Administration to ensure every Californian — from seniors and veterans to teachers, firefighters, and many other hard-working families — has access to a safe, affordable place to call home.
CHC focuses on three areas to achieve our goals:
- Legislation
- Budget
- Regulatory Work
2026 Priority Legislation
CHC is working on a legislative package focused on increasing funding for affordable housing, removing lingering barriers to affordable housing development, preserving the existing stock of affordable housing across the state, and helping lower-income Californians access safe and affordable housing in communities across the state.
Our early 2026 legislation priorities include:
Preserving the Existing Stock of Affordable Housing: Expanding the universe of projects that can qualify for funding under HCD’s Portfolio Reinvestment Program to make it possible for more housing developments with significant rehabilitation needs to access this critical program.
Reducing the Cost of Housing Construction: Exploring opportunities to reduce the cost of building affordable housing by promoting innovative construction methods, such as modular housing, and reducing barriers that drive up the cost of housing, including building code requirements.
Budget Proposals
CHC’s 2026 budget priorities:
$1 billion for the State Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) Program: The State LIHTC program provides critical gap funding so that California can fully utilize federal LIHTC. Over the first five years, the annual commitment of “enhanced” state credits has allowed developers to create an additional 30,000 affordable homes and allowed California to draw down billions of dollars in federal LIHTC resources.
$500 million for the Multifamily Housing Program (MHP): MHP is the state’s primary affordable housing funding program for new construction of affordable housing and the preservation of existing affordable housing. The last three rounds of MHP funded over 4,000 new affordable homes.
$200 million for the Portfolio Reinvestment Program (PRP): The Portfolio Reinvestment Program prevents the conversion of HCD-funded affordable housing to market-rate housing by extending affordability periods and investing in deep rehabilitation. PRP was created and awarded one-time funding in the 2021-2022 budget, and it supported 1,352 homes in its first funding round.
$1 billion for the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention Program (HHAP): HHAP provides funding for homelessness prevention, shelter, and services, and rental assistance for permanent housing. It has served over 300,000 Californians and enabled 80,000 people to exit homelessness since 2023.
500 million for the CalHome Program: CalHome is the only state homeownership program with funding dedicated to the construction of new owner-occupied homes for low-income families. CalHome supports programs prioritizing homeownership in various forms for low-income families so they can build equity, increase community stability, and gain the multi-generational benefits of owning a home.
$100 million for the Joe Serna, Jr. Farmworker Housing Grant Program: This grant program helps fund new construction, rehabilitation, and acquisition of owner-occupied and rental multifamily and single-family housing for agricultural workers.
Regulatory Work
CHC’s mission is critical for advancing affordable housing in California. Our broad, diverse membership has the expertise and knowledge on how to make the affordable housing system work for all stakeholders. We are on the frontlines of the policy debate producing real transformational change to advance the production and preservation of affordable housing"