To Governor Newsom + the California Legislature: It’s time to invest in housing all Californians

All Californians—and everyone, really—deserve a safe and affordable place to call home. Unfortunately, this isn’t the reality we currently live in. 

California has the highest rental prices in the entire country. To pay for a 2-bedroom apartment, you would need to earn about $47.38 an hour. Plus, over half of the people who rent in California are rent-burdened, meaning more than 30% of their incomes go toward rent.

We also, though, have a lot of wealth—wealth we can and should use to fund affordable housing and address homelessness. 

That’s why we, in a statewide coalition of affordable housing, homelessness, and housing justice organizations, are urging the Governor and the Legislature to invest a minimum of $2.9 billion in essential affordable housing and homelessness programs—only about 1 percent of the Governor’s proposed $229 billion General Fund spending plan.

Read the full letter here: