AB 1708

Introduced by Assembly Member Solache
 An act to add Article 4 (commencing with Section 50248) to Chapter 6.5 of Part 1 of Division 31 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to housing.
housing
Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention program: round 8: smaller jurisdictions.
Existing law establishes the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention (HHAP) program for the purpose of providing jurisdictions with grant funds to support regional coordination and expand or develop local capacity to address their immediate homelessness challenges, as specified. Existing law provides for the allocation of funding under the program among continuums of care, cities, counties, and tribes in 6 rounds, with rounds 1 to 5, inclusive, administered by the Interagency Council on Homelessness and round 6 administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development, as provided. Existing law establishes round 7 of the program and states the intent of the Legislature to enact future legislation that specifies the parameters, as specified. To be eligible for round 5 or round 6 base program allocation, existing law requires a jurisdiction that is not a tribe to apply as part of
			 a region and be signatory to a regionally coordinated homelessness action plan that meets specified requirements.
This bill would apply to the allocation of funding available under round 8 of the program and require a round 8 regionally coordinated homelessness action plan to include certain components, including a description of programs and interventions provided by smaller jurisdictions, as defined, that serve the objects and goals of the program, as specified. The bill would authorize a region receiving funding under round 8 to allocate a portion of that funding to smaller jurisdictions to support those programs. The bill would prescribe requirements for a smaller jurisdiction to be
			 eligible to receive funding pursuant to these provisions.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) Rounds 5, 6, and 7 of the Regionally Coordinated Homelessness Housing, Assistance and Prevention Program recognized that smaller jurisdictions that participate in and commit to complying with the regionally coordinated homelessness action plan would benefit from an allocation of resources from program funding.
(b) In round 6, 30 percent of the funding was available to continuums of care, 42 percent was available to each
				city, or a city that is also a county, that has a population of 300,000 or more, and 28 percent was available to each county.
(c) Cities with a population under 300,000 can plan an important role in the development of the regionally coordinated homelessness action plan by identifying local projects and by coordinating the financing of these projects with other sources of local, state, and federal funding.
SEC. 2.
Article 4 (commencing with Section 50248) is added to Chapter 6.5 of Part 1 of Division 31 of the
Health and Safety Code
, to read:
4.
Smaller Jurisdictions in Round 8 of the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention Program
50248.
(a) This section shall apply to the allocation of funding available under round 8 of the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention program.
(b) For purposes of this article, “smaller jurisdiction” means a city with a population under 300,000.
(c) A round 8 regionally coordinated homelessness action plan shall include both of the following components:
(1) A description of programs and interventions provided by smaller jurisdictions that serve the objectives and goals of the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention program, which shall be informed by coordinated outreach to smaller jurisdictions that
						  includes, but is not limited to, all of the following:
(A) An opportunity for those jurisdictions to identify existing programs, gaps, and financial needs.
(B) Ongoing and documented engagement with those jurisdictions.
(C) Opportunities for those jurisdictions to participate in the identification of funding priorities in addition to program identification.
(2) An analysis that contains all of the following:
(A) An analysis of how local, state, and federal funding, and funding available under round 8, can be allocated to support programs identified pursuant to paragraph (1).
(B) An analysis of how funding provided by the
						  region will enable smaller jurisdictions to expand or sustain existing state or locally funded projects, partnerships with nonprofits, or partnerships with other small cities.
(C) An evaluation of the feasibility of allocating a target percentage of funds to support smaller jurisdictions that is consistent with regional needs, priorities, and available resources.
(d) A region receiving funding under round 8 may allocate a portion of that funding to smaller jurisdictions to support the programs identified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c).
(e) A region shall establish a transparent and publicly available process through which smaller jurisdictions may apply for or otherwise access funding that includes, but is not limited to, timelines, evaluation criteria, and decisionmaking formulas.
(f) To be eligible to receive funding pursuant to this section, a smaller jurisdiction shall do all of the following:
(1) Have a compliant housing element.
(2) Have adopted a local encampment policy consistent with administration guidance.
(3) Demonstrate how its past actions, programs, and appropriation of funds have served the objectives and goals of the adopted regionally coordinated homelessness action plan and the intent of the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention program to prevent and expeditiously reduce unsheltered homelessness through homelessness prevention activities.
(4) Adopt a resolution that does both of the following:
(A) Commits to participating in, and complying with, the regionally coordinated homelessness action plan.
(B) Directs the mayor to sign the memorandum of understanding that reflects the regionally coordinated homelessness action plan.