City of Chino
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS UPDATE (Attachment 1)
As of July 16, 2026 (July 21, 2026 City Council Meeting)
FEDERAL UPDATE
Congressional Calendar
The House and Senate are both back in session. As of July 16, the House has 20 days remaining in session before Election Day.
Federal Housing Legislation
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act (H.R. 6644), which was introduced in December 2025, passed through the House (390–9) in February and the Senate (89–10) in March 2026 before being signed into law by Congress in July, marking the first major federal housing overhaul in decades. The Act combines over 60 bipartisan provisions that aim to boost housing supply, cut red tape, and expand housing affordability. Key initiatives include streamlining environmental reviews and zoning reforms, boosting financing programs—such as raising FHA multifamily loan limits, increasing the HOME program’s income eligibility, reauthorizing HOME and CDBG-Disaster Recovery, and a 100,000-unit expansion of the Rental Assistance Demonstration program. It also restricts large institutional investors from accumulating single-family homes—with carve-outs for build-to-rent projects—while preserving buyer protections for tenants. The law, effective July 11, 2026, includes funding for new pilot initiatives like the Whole‑Home Repairs program and expanded support for manufactured housing.
The ROAD to Housing Act automatically became federal law on July 11, 2026, without President Trump’s signature. After Congress passed the bill in late June and formally transmitted it to the White House on June 29, President Trump neither signed nor vetoed it within the 10-day window stipulated by the U.S. Constitution. He publicly stated that he declined to sign it in protest of Congress’s failure to pass the SAVE America Act, but did not veto the bill.
The bipartisan law is seen as beneficial to local governments as it provides access to expanded federal housing tools. It streamlines environmental reviews, enabling cities to approve and deliver housing projects faster, and introduces incentives for zoning and land‑use reforms that can help local governments modernize outdated codes and increase housing supply. Local agencies will see expanded funding opportunities, including a three‑year authorization of CDBG‑Disaster Recovery, more flexibility within the core CDBG program, and newly updated eligibility and processes under the HOME Investment Partnerships Program. The law also supports local production and rehabilitation efforts through new pilot programs like Whole‑Home Repairs, additional resources for manufactured housing, and higher FHA multifamily loan limits that can improve project feasibility.
Federal FY 2027 Budget
As of June 29, the House Appropriations Committee completed action on all 12 annual Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) appropriations bills, approving the Defense Appropriations Act and sending the final measure to the House floor.
House leadership postponed planned floor consideration of the Energy-Water and State-Foreign Operations appropriations bills. The FY27 Energy-Water bill would provide $62.2 billion for the Department of Energy (DOE), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation, and related agencies.
In the Senate, planned FY27 appropriations markups continue to be delayed due to attendance concerns. As negotiations continue on topline funding amounts, Senate Republican appropriators would need full attendance to approve bills through the process, as Senate Democratic appropriators reportedly do not plan to support funding measures until topline agreements are reached.
TRACKED STATE LEGISLATION REPORTS
The report on tracked state legislation, sorted by subject, is included in Attachment 2. The list is substantially shorter than prior ones as it includes only those bills that have met the legislative deadlines to date. Additionally, this list intentionally focuses on the remaining significant bills being tracked by the City. Bills are also added and removed from tracking based on lists provided by associations, such as the League of California Cities, staff input, and current bill language.
The positions noted on bills are based on the City Council's adopted Legislative Policy. Additional positions may be taken, or existing positions may be modified based on direction from the Legislative Committee or City Council. Bills sponsored by the League of California Cities are noted in the reports.
The City is currently focusing on the following:
PRIORITY BILLS
AB 1383 (McKinnor) - Public employees’ retirement benefits. (Amended - 5/13/2026) OPPOSE AB 1708 (Solache) – Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention (HHAP) program: round 8: smaller jurisdictions. (Amended - 4/6/2026) SUPPORT (Dead) AB 1821 (Pacheco) - California Public Records Act: methods of submission, fees, and agency response time. (Amended - 6/10/2026) SUPPORT SB 922 (Laird) - Vehicles: local agency charges: use of streets or highways. (Amended - 6/17/2026) SUPPORT
LAND USE AND HOUSING
SB 866 (Blakespear) - Planning and zoning: housing element: unhoused population. (Amended - 4/28/2026) OPPOSE AB 2296 (Papan) - Planning and zoning: housing element: regional housing needs allocation. (Amended - 5/18/2026) SUPPORT AB 1751 (Quirk-Silva) - Missing Middle Townhome Ownership Act. (Amended - 6/17/2026) OPPOSE AB 956 (Quirk-Silva) - Accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units. (Amended - 6/15/2026) OPPOSE SB 1117 (Cervantes) - Accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units. (Introduced - 2/17/2026) OPPOSE AB 1567 (Ta) - General plan: annual report: congregate and residential care for the elderly. (Amended - 6/18/2026) SUPPORT SB 417 (Cabaldon) - The Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026. (Amended - 1/22/2026) SUPPORT
POSITION LETTERS & MAJOR ISSUES
No position letters have been submitted by the City since the report provided for the June 23, 2026, Legislative Policy Committee meeting, so there is no Attachment 3 in this report.
STATE LEGISLATIVE CALENDAR – Recent and Upcoming Legislative Deadlines July 2
Summer Recess begins upon adjournment of session, provided Budget Bill has passed.
July 3
Independence Day observed.
Aug. 3
Legislature reconvenes from Summer Recess.
Aug. 14
Last day for fiscal committees to meet and report bills to the Floor.
Aug. 17 – 31
Floor Session only. No committee, other than conference and Rules committees, may meet for any purpose.
Aug. 21
Last day to amend on the Floor.
Aug. 31
Last day for each house to pass bills. Final recess begins upon adjournment.
Sept. 30
Last day for Governor to sign or veto bills passed by the Legislature before Sept. 1 and in the Governor’s possession on or after Sept. 1.
Nov. 3
General Election.
Nov. 30
Session adjourns at midnight.
Dec. 7
Convening of the 2027-28 Regular Session
Jan. 1, 2027
Statutes take effect.
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