Assemblyman Jay Obernolte points out “…the legislative housing package
will do little to nothing
to alleviate the worsening housing crisis. We would have to spend over $250 billion to provide housing
for just the
very lowest income Californians. That is twice our General Fund Budget for this year!”

State Assembly,
Sacramento California
Assemblyman Obernolte
Addressess Housing
Package that will Increase Housing Costs
SACRAMENTO – Assemblyman
Jay Obernolte (R-Hesperia) opposed the affordable housing package that passed
the California State Legislature this week. The legislation increases costs on
Californians without solving the housing crisis.
Among the bills passed
were:
SB 2 (Atkins)
– Imposes a $75 recording fee on real estate related documents, such as deeds.
SB 3 (Beall)
– Increases state debt by borrowing $4 billion in the form of a general
obligation bond to be used for low-income housing. Will be required to go
before voters in the November 2018 election.
SB 35
(Wiener) –Narrowly streamlines low-income housing as long as 18 different
conditions are met. Also requires payment of prevailing wages, increasing the
cost of building homes.
“I am deeply disappointed that the Legislature passed
a package of bills that does little to address the severe housing shortage
facing our state. These bills are based on the misguided premise that we can
simply spend our way out of this problem. Unfortunately, the data shows
unequivocally that this is not the case. In fact, according to the
Legislative Analyst Office, we would have to spend over $250 billion to provide
housing for just the very lowest income Californians. That is twice our General
Fund Budget for this year.
“Unfortunately, this
legislative housing package will do little to nothing to alleviate the
worsening housing crisis. Instead, these bills will make housing more
expensive for all Californians. We currently spend a staggering $332,000 on
average to build a single unit of low-income housing and these bills will make
it even costlier. This problem will not be solved until we increase the supply
of housing by reducing the cost of construction and streamlining the permitting
process. Every Californian deserves the opportunity to be a homeowner.”
Assemblyman
Jay Obernolte represents the 33rd Assembly District, which includes
the San Bernardino County communities of Adelanto, Apple Valley, Baker,
Barstow, Big Bear City, Big Bear Lake, Big River, Crestline, Fort Irwin,
Hesperia, Johnson Valley, Lake Arrowhead, Lenwood, Lucerne Valley, Needles, Oak
Hills, Phelan, Running Springs, Silver Lakes, Trona, Twentynine Palms Base,
Twin Peaks and Victorville.