Housing: Teacher Housing Assistance Pilot Program.

Existing law establishes the California Housing Finance Agency with a primary purpose of meeting the housing needs of persons and families of low or moderate income. Existing law requires the California Housing Finance Agency to administer various housing finance assistance programs, including, among others, the Roberti-Greene Home Purchase Assistance Program, which provides first-time home buyers with home purchase assistance in the form of interest rate subsidies and downpayment assistance. Existing law authorizes the agency to create its own home purchase assistance programs, home purchase assistance products, or both, on such terms and conditions as the agency deems prudent. Existing law requires the agency to administer the Extra Credit Teacher Home Purchase Program, as specified, and any other school personnel home ownership assistance program that is set forth by the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee. This bill would establish the Teacher Housing Assistance Pilot Program (pilot program) for the purpose of providing downpayment assistance to an eligible applicant who is teaching, or commits to teaching, in a high-cost county. The bill would require the California Housing Finance Agency, upon appropriation of money by the Legislature, to administer the pilot program, and would require the agency to adopt regulations to implement the pilot program. The bill would require downpayment assistance provided pursuant to the pilot program to comply with specified provisions. The bill would authorize an applicant to submit an application, which must contain certain information, to the agency to receive downpayment assistance under the pilot program. The bill would require the agency to review any application submitted to determine whether the applicant is eligible to receive downpayment assistance. The bill would require the agency when awarding downpayment assistance under the pilot program to give priority to certain types of eligible applicants. This bill would create in the State Treasury the Teacher Housing Assistance Fund, and would provide that moneys in that fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be available to the agency for purposes of the pilot program. This bill would provide that the pilot program shall become inoperative on January 1, 2023. The bill would require the agency on or before December 31, 2023, to submit a report to specified committees of the Legislature that must contain specified information relating to the demand and effectiveness of the pilot program, as well as a recommendation on whether the pilot program should be continued. The bill would repeal these provisions as of January 1, 2024.