Council Supports Legislation to Accelerate Housing for the Homeless

The Bay Area Council is proud to support four bills to help accelerate and streamline the production of affordable housing, emergency shelters, and the conversion of hotels and motels for homeless populations. With guidance from the new Homelessness Committee, the Council has endorsed AB 1907 (Santiago), AB 1851 (Wicks), AB 3107 (Bloom), and AB 25800 (Eggman). Collectively, these bills have the potential to increase the state’s stock of shelters and affordable housing units. There is a new sense of urgency surrounding these bills because of the connections between homelessness, racial injustice, negative health outcomes, and now the global Covid-19 pandemic.

Work also continues on an update to the seminal 2018 Bay Area Homelessness Report. The 2018 report was heralded as the first ever regional analysis of the Bay Area’s homeless population. The new report, which is expected to be released next month, examines the feasibility of a right to shelter law in California, innovative housing solutions, and potential policy solutions. The Homeless Committee is led by Co-Chairs Clint Reilly, Chairman & President, Clint Reilly Holdings; Gary Cohen, Vice President, Public Affairs, Blue Shield; Robert Schiff, Partner, McKinsey and Company; Sarah Krevans, President & CEO, Sutter Health; Tomiquia Moss, Founder & CEO, All Home. For more information on the Homelessness Committee’s work, please contact Policy Associate Anna Sciaruto.