On April 18, the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) Executive Board voted to endorse putting a historic housing bond measure on the November 2024 ballot. The measure would raise up to $20 billion for affordable housing in the Bay Area.
This measure is one of the largest commitments to affordable housing ever made by California municipalities. It’s a step in the right direction on climate and housing that TransForm strongly supports.
Housing as a climate solution
The primary goal of the regional housing bond measure is to provide the affordable housing units the Bay Area urgently needs. But the measure will also move us closer to meeting our climate goals. TransForm analyzed data from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and found that the measure could provide greenhouse gas emission reductions equivalent to taking 27,000 cars off the road each year.
As housing in the Bay Area has grown more expensive, many people have moved farther from their jobs in search of affordable homes. That leads to increased transportation expenses, more time on the road, more traffic, and more gridlock. The housing bond will be an important step toward reversing this trend. Our analysis found that 72% of the 72,000 new affordable units that could be built with this funding would be located near transit. This will save residents $154 million in transportation costs as well as prevent 3.8 million metric tons of GHGs from going into the atmosphere.
Next steps for affordable housing bond measure
The resolution adopted by the ABAG Executive Board now goes to the Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) for its approval, with a vote to place the measure on the November ballot in June. We’ll continue to advocate for this critical measure.
Another measure on the November 2024 ballot could affect passage of the regional housing measure and future public financing ballot measures. ACA 1, a constitutional amendment passed by the legislature in 2023, goes to voters in November. If it passes, it lowers the threshold to pass financing measures from two-thirds to 55%. We’ll be campaigning for ACA 1 as well.
Read our full analysis:
