The Housing Action Coalition (HAC), though our 501(c)(3) education and 501(c)(4) advocacy arms, advocates for building more housing at all levels of affordability to help solve the Bay Area and California’s housing shortage, displacement, and affordability crises. 

HAC began 2021 working closely with our partners in the Home Builders Coalition to pinpoint our legislative priorities and enlist support from lawmakers. Now as the Senate and Assembly get ready to begin hearings on housing issues on March 18, below is a (very) short summary of bills we’re actively supporting. 

While 2020 was not at all what we had hoped for in terms of housing progress in Sacramento, we’re both prepared for and optimistic about advancing pro-housing legislation in the year ahead.

This November, voters will head to the ballot  for a variety of candidates and ballot measures. The HAC does not take positions on candidates but will be taking positions on ballot measures across the region. While the HAC has always put together a pro-housing voter guide in San Francisco, we want to make sure we support pro-housing legislation wherever it’s helpful, including regional and statewide efforts, and that’s where you come in.

The Bay Area Housing Advocacy Coalition (BayHAC) has been hard at work in the state capitol (digitally) supporting a number of bills working through the Senate and Assembly. Looking at the calendar, both the Senate and Assembly are in breaks until mid-July. At this point, all bills will have needed to be voted out of its house of origin and moved to the second house.

The mayor demonstrated her leadership on housing issues long before she entered office, but in the face of continued obstruction by a board of supervisors unwilling to work together and do their part to house the San Franciscans they’re obligated to under our shared values, the measure she announced this week amending the city charter to streamline the production of new housing backs her record up with real action.

BayHAC and SFHAC team members and supporters joined neighbors, advocates, and local leaders like San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo  at Second Street Studios in San Jose last week to kick off the campaign to pass Measure E, an affordable housing measure funded by taxing the transfer of any properties assessed at $2 million dollars or more.

The San Francisco Housing Action Coalition has announced formal positions on three ballot measures ahead of the November 2019 San Francisco election.

In one of the most dramatic closes to a legislative session in recent memory, and after countless phone calls, hours waiting to give public comment, nights of policy analysis, and days activating allies on social media, the rollercoaster 2019 California legislative session closed last week. After the summer saw critical housing bills like SB 50 mired in gridlock, the majority of SFHAC’s endorsed bills ended up making it through both the State Senate and Assembly and on to the governor’s desk.

Sign the petition supporting the maximum number of subsidized affordable housing in the Haight-Ashbury!

With less than two weeks left in the legislative session, last week saw a flurry of action on housing legislation in the Capitol. Perhaps the most noteworthy event was from a housing-related bill that SFHAC is currently neutral on;, Assembly Bill 1482 from Assembly member David Chiu

There are less than three weeks for this year’s bills to move through the State Legislature and on to Governor Newsom’s desk. Our recent rundown on all the HAC-endorsed bills still looking to make it into law this year went up in July, and we wanted to follow up on the housing legislation to keep your eyes on as we approach the September 13th deadline for bills to wend their way through the State Senate and State Assembly.

With the creation of the Bay Area Housing Advocacy Coalition, HAC’s regional and Sacramento-focused advocacy arm, 2019 has been the most active year in the capital for our organization. So far, HAC has officially taken support positions on 24 different housing bills; all would lead to the creation of more housing at all levels of affordability. The proposals touch on a number of different areas and have varying levels of impact and controversy.

Local artist Alfred Twu’s latest graphic is a great summary of amendments made to the More HOMES Act (SB 50) in visual form.  Click the graphic above for a full sized image, and please feel free to share.

On Monday, April 15th, the San Mateo City Council will vote on a resolution to oppose Senator Scott Wiener’s More HOMES Act, also known as Senate Bill 50.

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is expected to vote in the near future on a resolution to officially oppose the More HOMES Act, also known as SB50. While the bill is still going through the legislative process, the oppose resolution is filled with multiple inaccurate statements.

2019 will be a busy year for housing in Sacramento, as there are several upcoming bills in the California Assembly and Senate. Written and co-sponsored by our local assemblymen and senators, the bills address the affordability crisis in California. The San Francisco Housing Action Coalition supports our local politicians putting words into action.

On Tuesday, March 12th, the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors will vote on a resolution to support Senator Scott Wiener’s More HOMES Act, also known as Senate Bill 50.

The San Francisco Housing Action Coalition makes the following recommendations for state and local ballot measures in November 2018.

Check out our guide for June 2018 ballot propositions...