California Housing Ballot Initiatives Continue Shifting Prior to November Election

As campaigns gear up for the November 3 elections, ballot measures have shifted. Most notably, the Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) board voted in mid-August to remove the Bay Area Affordable Housing Bond Measure from the ballot, a blow for many housers in that area. This bond measure could have potentially generated $20B for the production of new affordable housing and preservation efforts, creating a sustainable revenue stream of funding for housing production and preservation for years to come. However, recent polling found that only 54% of voters were likely to vote in favor of the measure. The measure would have needed approval from at least 2/3rds of voters unless voters also approved Proposition 5 on the statewide ballot, which would have reduced that threshold to 55%.

This news further reduces affordable housing funding in the Bay Area, particularly given that AB 1657 (Wicks, D-Oakland), which would have authorized the $10B Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2024 to replenish and expand the state’s affordable housing programs, lost out to climate and school funding priorities. On the other hand, Los Angeles County’s Measure A, the Affordable Housing, Homelessness Solutions and Prevention Now measure, remains on the ballot and would double the county’s homelessness sales tax to a half-cent to fund housing and homelessness services. If approved by voters, it would replace Measure H, a quarter-cent sales tax approved in 2017 that was set to sunset in 2027. The tax is forecast to generate $1.25B annually and would go towards affordable housing, mental health care, and substance abuse treatment.