Governor Newsom Signs AB 2094, a Critical Tool in California’s Mission to House our Most Vulnerable Residents, as Part of Landmark Housing Package

(Sacramento, CA) Today, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 2094, authored by Assemblymembers Robert Rivas (D-Salinas) and Sharon Quirk-Silva (D-Fullerton). AB 2094 improves data collection on housing production for our most housing-insecure Californians.

The signed legislation requires local jurisdictions, as a part of the existing California Department of Housing Community Development (HCD) process, to report their progress towards building Extremely Low-Income housing units as a separate data point from Very Low-Income (VLI) housing units. Previously, these data points were reported as a single data point, making it impossible to delineate how many ELI units for which a jurisdiction allocated. In addition, the lack of specificity undermined the state’s ability to make informed policy and funding decisions.

Assemblymember Robert Rivas:

“As millions of vulnerable Californians face housing insecurity and homelessness every year, it is so important we implement every tool possible to ensure we are building housing effectively. Our housing crisis requires more than a ‘one size fits all’ solution because individuals and households vary significantly. AB 2094 provides the data local jurisdictions and HCD need to properly house our most vulnerable residents across the state.”

Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva:

“Transparency is essential to tackle the pressing issues that face many extremely low income families effectively. We should come together with cities across the state to address the very real concerns that people face in their unique communities. This law will make for strategic investments for all Californians and bring us closer to helping the underserved.”

Tomiquia Moss, CEO and Founder of All Home:

"The unanimous support for this bill gives me hope, because it means leaders across the political spectrum want to focus on building housing affordable to people with extremely low incomes. We all know we’re not building enough deeply affordable homes and that is a major driver of homelessness across the state. AB 2094 will help us better understand the problem and track our progress towards solutions, so that we can deliver on our housing promises and make sure everyone has a place to call home."

Christopher Martin, Policy Director of Housing California:

“Housing California is grateful to the Governor for signing this legislation, which will provide a more accurate data picture of deeply affordable housing to better illustrate what service providers and advocates refer to as our state’s urgent upstream needs. The average Californian experiencing homelessness earns 14% of the area median income (AMI). If we are going to solve our housing and homelessness crises, then we are going to need ensure the protection, preservation, and production of units for our state’s extremely low-income (ELI) residents. If we are going to build a California for All, not just a California for some, then we must keep the most basic promise of the California Dream — that California belongs to those who call the Golden State home, and all those who call the Golden State home can have a home in California.”