BILL ANALYSIS
AB 398
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 14, 1999
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Alan Lowenthal, Chair
AB 398 (Migden) - As Amended: April 8, 1999
SUBJECT : Housing Bond Act of 2000
SUMMARY : Enacts the Housing Bond Act of 2000, which will
authorize the issuance of an $750 million in general obligation
bonds for state housing programs. Specifically, this bill:
1)Renames the Housing Rehabilitation Loan Fund the Housing
Rehabilitation Loan Account.
2)Renames the Rental Housing Construction Fund the Rental
Housing Construction Account.
3)Requires the Housing Bond Act to be submitted to the voters at
the next statewide election.
4)Allows federally recognized California Indian tribes to apply
for funding in the same manner as local governments.
5)Creates the Housing and Homeless Finance Committee to govern
the issuance and sale of bonds. The committee will be
composed of the Controller, Treasurer, Director of the
Department of Finance, Director of the Department of Housing
and Community Development, and the Executive Director of the
California Housing Finance Agency.
6)Creates the Home Building and Rehabilitation Fund into which
the bonds proceeds will be deposited and allocated as follows:
$550 million - Rental Housing Program Fund
$150 million - Home Purchase Assistance Fund
$ 50 million - Farmworker Housing Grant Program
7) Creates a Rental Housing Program Fund that merges the
Housing Rehabilitation Loan Account and the
Rental Housing Construction Account. The funds are to be
continuously appropriated to the
Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for
the purposes of new construction,
rehabilitation, preservation, and code enforcement.
AB 398
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EXISTING LAW establishes the following affordable housing
programs:
1)Rental Housing Construction Program to assist the development
of new affordable rental housing through below-market-rate
loans to developers.
2)Housing Rehabilitation Loan Fund to make deferred-payment
loans for the acquisition and rehabilitation of existing
affordable rental housing.
3)Farmworker Housing Grant Program to award grants to local
entities and nonprofits for the construction and
rehabilitation of farmworker housing.
4)Migrant farm labor centers to provide housing, education, and
child care for migrant farm workers.
5)Emergency Housing and Assistance Program to provide funding
for emergency shelters and transitional housing for homeless
people.
6)Rural Predevelopment Loan Fund to provide loans to developers
of affordable housing in rural areas to assist them in the
process of securing long-term financing.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : In 1988 voters approved Propositions 77 and 84, and
in 1990 voters approve Proposition 107. These Propositions
authorized the issuance of $600 million in general obligation
bonds for state housing programs. The bonds served as the
primary funding source for the state's affordable housing
programs, but all funds have been committed.
Arguments in Support . Supporters point out that the state needs
to build 300,000 housing units per year to keep pace with
population growth in California, but only 100,000 units are
constructed annually. Both homeowners and renters feel the
growing impact of this disparity: 41% of California households
could afford the median-priced home in 1998, compared to 56%
nationwide, and the number of apartments built annually in
California has dropped from 100,000 in the mid-1980s to 12,000
in the mid-1990s. To meet the current needs of low-income
families in California, we would have to build nearly five
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million apartments.
The lack of decent, safe housing has serious repercussions for
all Californians, supporters argue. I addition, Bay Area
companies are unable to recruit new employees because housing
simply is not available. Two-income families cannot find
housing near their work sites, resulting in long commutes and
latchkey children. Children live in third world conditions,
with open sewer lines running through their play areas. This
bond is a key component in addressing California's affordable
housing crisis.
Related Legislation . SB 510 (Alarcon) is set to be heard in the
Senate Housing and Community Development Committee on April 19,
1999. That legislation would enact the Housing Bond Acts of
2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006 which, if adopted by the voters,
would authorize, for purposes of financing existing housing
programs, the issuance, pursuant to the State General Obligation
Bond Law, of bonds in the aggregate amount of $980,000,000.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
A Community of Friends, Los Angeles
AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust, San Francisco
ASIAN Incorporated, San Francisco
Bonita House, Inc., Oakland
Bowman Grove Community Service Planning, Davis
Building Opportunities for Self Sufficiency, Berkeley
Burbank Housing Development Corporation, Santa Rosa
Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation, Saticoy
Caduceus Outreach Services, San Francisco
California Association of Homes and Services for the Aging
California Church Impact, Sacramento
California Food Policy Advocates, San Francisco
California Immigrant Welfare Collaborative, San Francisco
California Labor Federation, AFL-CIO
California Legislative Council for Older Americans
California Mental Health Directors Association
California Reinvestment Committee, San Francisco
California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Santa Rosa
Central Valley Coalition For Affordable Housing, Merced
Chinatown Community Development Center, San Francisco
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City of East Palo Alto, Rent Stabilization Program
City of Carlsbad Housing and Redevelopment Department
City of Monterey
Civic Center Barrio Housing Corporation, Santa Ana
Coachella Valley Housing Coalition
Community Development Corporation, Oakland
Community Housing Development Corporation of Santa Rosa
Community Economics, Inc., Oakland
Conference of Social Justice Coordinators, Los Angeles
Congress of California Seniors
Contra Costa County Association of Homeless and Housing Service
Providers
Corporation for Supportive Housing, Oakland
Council of Churches of Santa Clara County
East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation, Oakland
East Bay Habitat for Humanity, Oakland
East Oakland Community Development Corporation
East Oakland Recovery Center
Eden Housing, Inc., Hayward
EPA Can Do, East Palo Alto
Episcopal Community Services, San Francisco
Esperanza Community Housing Corporation, Los Angeles
Fair Housing Council, San Bernardino
First Community Housing, San Jose
Friends of the Homeless, Santa Rosa
Home Base, San Francisco
Homeless Prenatal Program, San Francisco
Homes for Life Foundation, Los Angeles
Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara
Housing Consortium of the East Bay, Berkeley
Housing for Independent People, Inc., San Jose
Housing Rights, Inc., Berkeley
Human Assistance Inc., Newport Beach
Jamboree Housing Corporation, Irvine
Justice Office, Sisters of St. Joseph, Los Angeles
League of California Cities
Legal Aid Foundation of Santa Barbara
Marin City Community Development Corporation
Marin Housing Council, San Rafael
Marin Continuum of Housing and Services
Mary Erickson Community Housing, San Juan Capistrano
Mental Health Association of San Francisco
Mercy Charities Housing California, San Francisco
Mid Peninsula Housing Coalition, Redwood City
Napa Valley Community Housing
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National Lawyer Guild, San Francisco
Nevada County Housing and Community Services
Non-Profit Housing Association of Northern California
Oakland Community Housing, Inc.
Oakland Community Housing Management, Inc.
Older Women's League of California
Orange County Homeless Issues Task Force
Pajara Valley Housing Corporation, Watsonville
Peace and Justice Center of Southern California
People's Self-Help Housing Corporation, San Luis Obispo
Plowshares Peace and Justice Center, Ukiah
Public Law Center, Santa Ana
Redwood City Planning and Redevelopment
Religious Witness with Homeless People, San Francisco
Renee Franken and Associates, Inc., Carmichael
Resources for Community Development, Berkeley
Rubicon Programs, Inc., Richmond
Rural California Housing Corporation, Sacramento
Saben Investments, Inc., Sepulveda
Sacramento Mutual Housing Association
Saint Joseph Health System, Orange
San Bernardino Fair Housing Council
San Francisco Department of Public Health, Housing Services
San Joaquin Fair Housing
San Joaquin County Housing Authority
Santa Clara County Collaborative, San Jose
Santa Monica Rent Control
Santa Monicans for Renter's Rights
Self-Help Enterprises, Visalia
Senior Housing Action Collaborative
Sentinel Fair Housing, Oakland
Shelter, Inc., Concord
Shelter Partnership, Inc., Los Angeles
Sisters of the Holy Names, Los Gatos
Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, Los Angeles
Sisters of Norte Dame de Namur of California, Saratoga
Skid Row Housing Trust, Los Angeles
Sober Living Network, Santa Monica
Socialization Thru Empowering Peers, San Francisco
Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Council of Los Angeles
Sonoma County Golden State Mobile Home Owners League
South County Housing, Gilroy
Southern California Association of Non-profit Housing
Southern California Mutual Housing Association
SRO Housing Corporation, Los Angeles
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Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corporation, San Francisco
Tenderloin Housing Clinic, San Francisco
Thai Community Development Center, Los Angeles
The Public Interest Law Project, Oakland
The Agora Group, Goleta
The Jordan Apartments/JSCO, San Francisco
Transitional Living and Community Support, Sacramento
Venice Community Housing Corporation
West Contra Costa Conservation League, El Cerrito
Western Center on Law and Poverty
West Sacramento Housing Development Corporation
West Side Fair Housing Council, Los Angeles
27 individuals
Opposition
None
Analysis Prepared by : Tia Boatman / H. & C.D. / (916)319-2085