Report: California needs 1 million more affordable homes

I’m CalMatters reporter Marisa Kendall, and I’m filling in for Lynn today.

It’s common knowledge that California has a massive shortage of affordable homes, which contributes to high rates of housing instability and homelessness. But just how many more low-income homes do we need?

Close to 1 million, according to a new report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition. California has just 25 available and affordable rental homes for every 100 households that are deemed “extremely low income” (meaning they make 30% or less of the area’s median income).

No state in the country has enough affordable homes, but California is one of the worst off: Only Oregon and Nevada have fewer available homes per household. 

At the same time, most of California’s extremely-low income households are spending more than half their income on rent, putting them at greater risk of falling into homelessness. 

• Renee Willis, NLIHC president and CEO, in a news release: “When renters are housing cost-burdened, they cannot afford to cover other basic necessities such as food, healthcare, transportation, or childcare.”

The findings haven’t budged much from last year’s report, showing that despite ongoing efforts in the legislature to get more housing built, California hasn’t made noticeable progress for its lowest-earning renters. 

Part of the problem could be a lack of funding. As my colleague Ben Christopher recently reported, nearly 40,000 affordable units throughout the state are just waiting to be built – if only they had the money. 

A new bill would allow all income-qualifying Californians to access Medi-Cal, no matter their citizenship status.

Gov. Gavin Newsom had gradually expanded access to Medi-Cal (California’s system of Medicaid) to undocumented immigrants, but, as costs grew, he partially reversed course with last year’s budget. If passed, Senate Bill 1422 would walk back many of those cuts and ensure that all immigrant adults age 19 and older can enroll. 

• Democratic Senator María Elena Durazo of Los Angeles: “We are no healthier as a community than the person least able to access care.”

Durazo argues that immigrants without legal status contribute billions in taxes each year and many of them now cannot benefit from programs those dollars support. 

Whether Newsom would sign her legislation is unclear but seemingly unlikely, as the state grapples with a deficit for the fourth straight year.

Read the full story.

Some Californians who faced recent insurance hikes would get refunds under a new proposed settlement with State Farm. Others would be protected from additional increases to their premiums. 

State Farm, the largest insurer in the state, raised rates after wildfires in Los Angeles County last year forced it to pay out billions of dollars in claims. Consumer advocacy group Consumer Watchdog questioned those increases, and after months of public hearings, a proposed deal was struck between Consumer Watchdog, State Farm and the state Insurance Department.

All in all, the settlement would save California policyholders $530 million, according to Consumer Watchdog.

In addition to the cost savings, State Farm agreed not to cancel any new policies this year.

Read more here.