Message from C.A.R. President, Jared Martin

The year is starting off to be a busy one on the legislative front. C.A.R. recently announced its sponsorship or support of legislation to address California’s housing shortage. Among the measures intended to increase housing construction that C.A.R. is championing are:

• SB 50 (Sen. Scott Wiener) Housing Development Around Transit: Boosts housing and apartment development in and around major transit hubs and employers and provides developers with a “density bonus” — authority to build additional units in exchange for building below-market units — and other incentives or concessions.
• AB 1568 (Asm. Kevin McCarty) Housing Accountability: Holds local governments accountable by withholding gas tax revenue if counties do not meet home building benchmarks verified by the California Department of Housing and Community Development.
• AB 1074 (Asm. Tyler Diep) Accessory Dwelling Units: Increases housing supply by selling bonds to provide loans to homeowners to construct accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
• AB 1020 (Asm. Jacqui Irwin) State Housing Agency: Establishes a state Housing Agency with a cabinet-level Secretary of Housing to oversee all housing-related initiatives and activities throughout the State of California.
• SB 509 (Sen. Anthony Portantino) Affordable Housing License Plate Program:Establishes a housing crisis awareness program through the issuance of a specialty license plate by the California Department of Motor Vehicles. The license plate would generate revenues for affordable housing programs throughout the state.

C.A.R. is also backing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s $1.75 billion housing crisis package to address the housing shortage. His proposals call for higher short-term statewide housing goals established by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, $250 million to help cities and counties with planning, $500 million in housing production incentive grants for local governments, $500 million for expanding the State Housing Tax Credit Program to spur middle-class housing production and modernizing long-term Regional Housing Need Allocation (RHNA) goals by 2022. The plan would also provide necessary accountability by withholding SB 1 gas tax funds from jurisdictions that are not compliant with the updated RHNA goals.

Speaking of Gov. Newsom, we have invited him to speak at C.A.R.’s Legislative Day, May 1, in Sacramento. For the past 47 years, Legislative Day has remained C.A.R.’s preeminent legislative event, giving California REALTORS® the opportunity to meet and discuss real estate issues directly with your state legislators and staff.

Attending Legislative Day is not only a great investment in your business, it also provides you with an opportunity to hear from the state’s most dynamic political leaders and C.A.R. leadership. While attendance at Legislative Day is free for all California REALTORS®, if you’re a first-time attendee, you may be eligible for a Legislative Day scholarship to cover travel expenses. To apply, inquire with your local association. Learn more about C.A.R. Legislative Day. To attend, sign up with your local association of REALTORS^®.

While you’re in Sacramento, don’t miss out on the highly anticipated Mid-Year Lunch, featuring C.A.R. CEO, Joel Singer, as the keynote speaker on Thursday, May 2. Register today and get your tickets here before they sell out.

I hope to see you there.

Sincerely,

Jared Martin
C.A.R. President