SACRAMENTO, Calif., – Governor Jerry Brown recently signed Assembly Bill 1765 authored by Assembly member Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer Sr. which seeks to increase the availability of affordable housing for low income individuals across California.
AB 1765 allows an individual to designate on his or her tax return a specified amount to be donated to the Habitat for Humanity Fund. The revenue raised through this tax check off can only be used for the sole purpose of building affordable housing throughout California.
Acquiring affordable housing in California continues to remain an elusive goal for thousands of low to moderate income households across the state. According to the Public Policy Institute of California the average home in California is 1.8 times more expensive than the national average. Nearly 1 million extremely low income California households lack affordable homes.
Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating substandard housing and building affordable homes for families with limited incomes. They approach the challenge of providing affordable home ownership by using a large amount of volunteer labor, donated funds and materials. The homes are then sold at affordable prices to qualified limited-income families at extremely low interest rates.
“This bill will help increase access to affordable housing for low income Californians. The next step is to make sure tax payers are aware of this option and their ability to directly impact affordable housing in California. Louisiana’s affordable housing fund raises an average of $5 million annually, said Assembly member Jones-Sawyer.”
With the far majority of bond funding exhausted and redevelopment funds eliminated, California is facing virtually no state investment in affordable housing. Despite a long waiting list of customers Habitat affiliates across the state have experienced significant revenue declines since redevelopment was dissolved in 2011. Allowing individuals to donate via their income tax check return can raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for Habitat for Humanity.
“Habitat for Humanity is helping thousands of Californians every year,” said Sharon Ellis, Chair, Habitat for Humanity California. “I strongly believe the additional funds generated by AB 1765 will assist Habitat for Humanity’s efforts to finance additional homeownership and home repair opportunities in California for working families living on fixed incomes and modest budgets.”
Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones- Sawyer Sr. is a Democrat representing areas of Los Angeles and the communities of Huntington Park, Walnut Park and Florence- Firestone.
For more information contact: Joey Hill (916) 319-2059