Panel Endorses Expenditure Plan, BAHFA Business Plan
The Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA)'s Advisory Committee today adopted a resolution recommending that the ABAG Executive Board and the BAHFA Board submit for consideration by voters in all nine Bay Area counties this November a general obligation bond measure of as much as $20 billion to produce more affordable housing, preserve existing affordable housing and protect current residents from displacement. Voter approval of a $20 billion bond is projected to spur the creation of some 80,000 additional affordable homes around the Bay Area in the coming years.
"We can't wait any longer," said Advisory Committee member Tomiquia Moss, who recently was appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom to serve as Secretary of the state Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency and also is the founder of the Oakland-based nonprofit All Home. "It's now or never."
To allow local governments to determine how best to produce and preserve affordable housing in their own communities, 80 percent of the money from the proposed bond would go directly to the nine counties as well as to four cities: San Jose, Oakland, Santa Rosa and Napa. BAHFA would invest the remaining 20 percent in affordable housing developments throughout the Bay Area, while also developing new resources to support affordable housing development after the bond money is fully spent.
The Advisory Committee in a separate action today recommended the ABAG Executive Board and the BAHFA Board adopt BAHFA's regional expenditure plan for this 20 percent portion of the bond proceeds. State law requires that at least 52 percent of this portion be used for the production of new affordable housing, at least 15 percent for preservation, and at least 5 percent for protecting current tenants. Another 18 percent could be used for production, preservation or tenant protection. A maximum 10 percent could be used for grants to Bay Area cities and counties to help them accommodate new housing within their boundaries. State law also requires BAHFA to be subject to regular independent audits and annual financial reporting, including an annual report to the Legislature on allocations and expenditures. Bay Area cities and counties receiving direct allocations must submit to BAHFA annual reports on bond expenditures and progress toward housing goals.
The Advisory Committee today also endorsed BAHFA's business plan, which describes the authority's funding programs and the equity framework that guides them; details BAHFA's commitment to engagement with the Bay Area's nine counties and 101 cities; and outlines its strategy for ongoing operations and organizational stability.
BAHFA was established by the state Legislature in 2019 to support the construction of new affordable housing and the preservation of existing housing across the nine-county Bay Area. It is governed by the BAHFA board, which is composed of the same members as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and by the ABAG Executive Board. As required by state law, BAHFA’s nine-member Advisory Committee is comprised of members with expertise in affordable housing finance, production, preservation and/or tenant protections.