AB 870, as amended, Cooley. Homelessness: rapid rehousing.
Existing federal law, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, allocated, until September 30, 2011, $1.5 billion to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development for the Homelessness Prevention Fund, to be used for homelessness prevention and rapid rehousing. Existing federal law, known as the Emergency Solutions Grants Program, provides grants to states, local governments, and private nonprofit organizations, as specified, for specified housing assistance activities. Existing law, the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids Act, provides housing supports to individuals if the administering county determines that the individual or his or her family is experiencing homelessness or housing instability that would be a barrier to self-sufficiency or child well-being and declares that it is the intent of the Legislature that housing supports utilize evidence-based models, including those established in the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program.
This bill wouldbegin delete establish a 2-year enhancement program withinend deletebegin insert requireend insert the Department of Housing and Community Developmentbegin insert to establish, upon appropriation of funds in the annual Budget Act, an enhancement programend insert for awarding grants to counties and private nonprofit organizations that operate a rapid rehousing program. The bill would require the department to develop guidelines to select 4 counties and private nonprofit organizations to receive these grant funds and require that eligible counties and private
nonprofit organizations include those that are eligible to receive funds from the state pursuant to the Emergency Solutions Grants Program with a demonstrated high funding need. The bill would require the department to give priority to counties with existing programs that have demonstrated effectiveness in providing rapid rehousing for homeless individuals and veterans. This bill wouldbegin delete appropriate $2 million for 2 years from the General Fund to the department andend delete require the department to distribute this money equally to each of the selected counties and private nonprofit organizations, less an amount of up to 5% deducted for administrative purposes. The bill would repeal these provisions as ofbegin delete Januaryend deletebegin insert Julyend insert 1, 2018.
Vote: begin delete2⁄3 end deletebegin insertmajorityend insert.
Appropriation: begin deleteyes end deletebegin insertnoend insert.
Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
The Legislature finds and declares the following:
2(a) In 2013, the United States Department of Housing and Urban
3Development (HUD) reported that California has nearly 40,000
4chronically homeless persons, which is 36 percent of the total
5chronically homeless population of the United States. This is due
6in large part to an insufficient amount of affordable housing in
7California.
8(b) HUD also reported that there are over 15,000 homeless
9veterans in California.
10(c) Several studies, including one by the Journal of the American
11Medical
Association, have demonstrated that it is far more cost
12effective and efficient to provide the homeless with permanent,
P3 1supportive housing through “rapid rehousing” and “housing first”
2initiatives. These measures also reduce the cost to governments
3of funding shelters and emergency services.
Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 15290) is added
5to Part 6.6 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, to
6
read:
7
For the purposes of this chapter, the following
11definitions shall apply:
12(a) “Department” means the Department of Housing and
13Community Development.
14(b) “Homeless” has the same meaning as defined in Section
15576.2 of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
16(c) “Enhancement program” means the program established
17pursuant to this chapter for distributing funds to counties and
18private nonprofit organizations.
19(d) “Private nonprofit organization” has the same meaning as
20defined in Section 11371 of
Title 42 of the United States Code.
(a) begin deleteThere is hereby established a two-year end deletebegin insertUpon
22appropriation of funds in the annual Budget Act, the department
23shall establish an end insertenhancement programbegin delete in the departmentend delete for
24awarding grants to counties and private nonprofit organizations
25that operate a rapid rehousing program. The department shall
26administer the enhancement program.
27(b) The department shall develop guidelines to select four
28counties or private nonprofit
organizations to participate in the
29
enhancement program. Eligible counties and private nonprofit
30organizations shall include counties and private nonprofit
31organizations eligible to receive funds from the state pursuant to
32the federal Emergency Solutions Grants Program (42 U.S.C. Sec.
3311371 et seq.) with a demonstrated high funding need. The
34department shall select counties and private nonprofit organizations
35by giving priority to those counties or private nonprofit
36organizations with existing rapid rehousing programs that have
37demonstrated effectiveness in providing rapid rehousing for
38individuals and veterans of the United States military experiencing
39homelessness.
P4 1(c) Counties and private nonprofit organizations selected to
2receive funds pursuant to this section shall comply with the
3reporting requirements as required by the department under
state
4and federal regulations implementing the Emergency Solutions
5Grants Program (42 U.S.C. Sec. 11371 et seq.).
6(d) The department shall distribute an equal amount of the
7money received pursuant to this section each year, less any amount
8deducted for administrative purposes, to each of the selected
9counties and private nonprofit organizations.
10(e) The department may use up to 5 percent of the money
11received pursuant to this section for the purpose of administering
12this chapter.
(a) (1) The sum of two million dollars ($2,000,000)
14is hereby
appropriated from the General Fund to the department,
15exclusively to be distributed to the counties and private nonprofit
16organizations selected pursuant to Section 15290.5 and for the
17administration of this chapter.
18(2) The department shall use not more than one million dollars
19($1,000,000) of the amount appropriated in paragraph (1) in each
20year of the enhancement program for the purposes authorized by
21this section.
22(b) (1) The department shall distribute an equal
amount of the
23money received pursuant to this section each year, less any amount
24deducted for administrative purposes, to each of the selected
25counties and private nonprofit organizations.
26(2) The department may use up to 5 percent of the money
27received pursuant to this section for the purpose of administering
28this chapter.
This chapter shall remain in effect only untilbegin delete Januaryend delete
31begin insert Julyend insert 1, 2018, and as of that date is repealed.
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