California lawmaker pushes bypassing permits to tackle homelessness

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Leaders across the state of California are showing support for a bill meant to enhance building interim housing. 

On Thursday morning, they stood in front of examples of tiny homes on the west steps of the state Capitol building in Sacramento. 

The homes are a little more than 100 square feet in size. Lawmakers, some representing parts of the Bay Area, say they're cheap and quick to build, and are meant to take the homeless off the street temporarily until individuals can find permanent housing. State Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) says it's a problem, most evidently in California.

"67% of our homeless population is unsheltered," Becker said. "Nationally, that's 20%. In New York, that's 5%. So this is a California problem."

He authored Senate Bill 1395, the Interim Supportive Housing Act. 

If passed, it would allow local governments to bypass re-zoning or permitting processes, as well as anything else that would make building shelter or housing on unused land more difficult.

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan attended Becker's conference, as his city has six communities of interim housing with a total of 500 temporary homes and another 800 on the way. There are 2,000 statewide. 

"It makes it easier for cities to say we have some unutilized land over here, we don't need to go through a lengthy re-zoning process, we don't have to take a year to get permits issued," Mahan said.  "We can move quickly to get these units stood up and offer an immediate, dignified process to keep people off the streets." 

In a typical model, the homes would take someone off the streets for about a year until they move into permanent housing. Mayor Mahan says so far, the plan alone has helped more than 1,500 people in the city, and that's on top of other city services offered.

According to the mayor, about 70% of those people end up finding permanent housing.

"They may be paying the rent because now they have a job, they may be moving in with family with the intention to move-in with family longer term," he said, adding that San Jose still has about 4,000 people living outdoors.

San Jose was able to invest in the interim housing units during the COVID-19 pandemic, when emergency orders were in effect. Those emergency declarations allowed local governments to skip red tape when it came to housing, similar to what SB1395 is proposing.

"Today, it can take a long time, and it varies by jurisdiction," Mahan said. "Which is part of the problem. In some jurisdictions, it can take a year or over a year for approval, then another year to build. We need to deliver these units in under 12 months."

Lawmakers put two examples of the units on display, constructed by BossCubez and Azure Printed Homes. 

One was a two-bedroom unit with air-conditioning, Wi-Fi, and electricity. A second unit was entirely built by a 3-D printer. Both were on wheels, which lawmakers argued made for easy transport.

 Becker introduced Alanaya Wiley, a Sacramento resident who benefited from using an interim housing unit. She said it helped her focus on getting a job and find permanent housing. 

"The first thing we need to do, is to pass this bill so that people can get in," she said. "They can become productive members of this society based on this program, but the first step is to get indoors."

The bill has already cleared most hurdles in the legislature. 

It's waiting for a vote on the Assembly floor and, after some amendments, will head to the state Senate for approval. 

It's expected to go to the governor's desk for signature.