California Rent Relief Program.

Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development within the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency and sets forth its powers and duties, including the administration of various housing programs, including the State Rental Assistance Program, which allocates federally provided funds as block grants to provide rental assistance to eligible households, as provided. This bill would establish the California Rent Relief Program, which would be administered by the department. The bill would require the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to make block grant allocations to grantees to provide rental assistance to eligible households. This bill would require grantees, as defined, to contract with nonprofit corporations to distribute block grant funds. The bill would require a grantee to agree to use its block grant funds consistent with the bill's provisions. The bill would authorize the department to require the grantee to pay back the block grant funds that are spent in a manner inconsistent with the bill's provisions, and would authorize the department to reallocate those funds for these purposes. This bill would, for the duration of the program, require the department to report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee every 6 months on the programmatic performance metrics for block grant funds. The bill would require grantees to provide information necessary for the department to comply with these reporting requirements.