Background

In 2020, voters passed Prop I with the intention of dedicating the money to affordable housing and rental assistance. While it was not possible to do that explicitly in 2020, both the Board of Supervisors and the Mayor acknowledged this intention by dedicating a majority of funds to that purpose. But for the last 2 years zero dollars were dedicated to that purpose. At the same time, the legal framework has changed, and it is now possible to do what voters originally intended in an explicit way that leaves no loopholes for city politicians to back out of. What is clear is that voters overwhelmingly want the money dedicated.

If we don’t pass the Affordable Housing Guaranteed Act, it’s at serious risk of being repealed altogether. Voters don’t want to give a tax break to large property owners and real estate corporations, and this measure will prevent the board and mayor from passing such a tax break, which they want to do.

One big difference between the original Prop I and today’s Affordable Housing Guaranteed Act is the exemption for new housing, which means it doesn’t stop new construction. As well as the ability to use these funds for both low-income and middle-income affordable housing in the form of innovative social housing.

The Affordable Housing Guaranteed Act is real evolution and progress in San Francisco’s efforts to create affordable housing.