SANTA CLARA COUNTY, CA—On Monday, November 21, Supervisors Dave Cortese and Cindy Chavez held a press conference together with the Measure A Campaign to thank the voters of Santa Clara County for voting to pass Measure A, the $950 million affordable housing bond measure.
“This campaign has been a true partnership of our non-profit organizations, non-profit housing organizations, foundations, labor, business, homeless advocates, elected officials and hundreds of volunteers from every city in the County,” said Supervisor Dave Cortese. “A unique partnership of organizations came together to place on the ballot and then pass Measure A. We look forward to continuing this partnership with all these organizations moving forward.”
Measure A will fund the development of permanent affordable housing for the County’s most vulnerable populations, including homeless, veterans, disabled, seniors, foster youth and others. The affordable housing units will be built throughout the County, and the funds will be leveraged to attract matching funds from private, state and federal sources.
“The passage of Measure A shows the power and commitment of this County that we can come together and solve the most pressing issue we face as a community – the lack of affordable housing,” said Supervisor Cindy Chavez.
The $950 million General Obligation Bond will not affect the County’s General Fund, but will raise property taxes based on the value of the property for tax purposes. The owner of a home valued at $500,000 by the Tax Assessor’s Office, for example, will pay $12.66 per $100,000 of assessed valuation, or $63.30 a year more in property taxes.
The spending plan of the bond will allocate $700 million for Extremely Low-Income housing (below 30 percent of area median income), including Permanent Supportive Housing and Rapid Rehousing; $100 million for Very Low Income housing (31 to 50 percent of the area median income); up to $100 million for housing assistance for Moderate Income households; and up to $50 million for Moderate Income residents who are first-time homebuyers.
Permanent Supportive Housing targets chronically homeless, or those who have been homeless for more than a year and need such services as mental health, substance abuse or medical care. This type of housing provides those services.
Rapid Rehousing is generally for those who experience homelessness for brief periods, have an income and need transitional housing for up to 18 months in order to get stable and move into permanent housing. Included in this population could be victims of human trafficking and domestic violence as well as those leaving the Foster Care system.
As approved by the County Board of Supervisors, a citizens’ oversight committee will be established that will serve as an advisory body to the Board of Supervisors and to the public. The committee will review an annual report each year to determine fiscal accountability. An independent auditor will report directly to the committee and will review the County’s spending of bond proceeds to ensure accountability.
For other questions or to arrange an interview, contact Supervisor Cortese’s office at 408-299-5030 or Supervisor Chavez’ office at 408-299-5020.