On Monday, January 10, Governor Newsom unveiled his January budget proposal, which includes investments in affordable housing production and addressing homelessness.
Key new housing proposals in the Governor’s January budget include:
- $2 billion to house vulnerable homeless populations with complex behavioral health conditions
- $1 billion in one-time funds to accelerate affordable development in downtown areas, including:
- $500 million for the Infill Infrastructure Grant Program
- $300 million for the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program
- Two new $100 million investments in state excess site development and adaptive reuse incentive grants
- $500 million for the Low Income Housing Tax Credit
The California Housing Consortium released the following statement today from Executive Director Ray Pearl:
“We appreciate Governor Newsom’s ongoing commitment to addressing the state’s homelessness challenges and building more of the affordable housing every community needs. While this January budget proposal is a start, we believe significantly more focus and investment of the state’s budget surplus is needed to ensure every Californian can access a safe, affordable home.”
“More than one million Californians live in housing built by the state’s successful affordable housing programs, and affordable housing providers have been working every day during the pandemic to keep our residents safely housed. But with California still facing a shortage of at least 1.2 million affordable homes, there is much more to do.”
“While the Governor has demonstrated a deep understanding of the scale and urgency of this challenge over the last several years, this year’s proposed investments in homelessness and affordable housing do not yet match the growing housing challenges that have been exposed by the pandemic. We look forward to working with the Governor and Legislature to expand on this initial budget proposal—and ensure state resources produce more of the safe, high-quality housing struggling Californians need.”