TO: HONORABLE MAYOR
AND CITY COUNCIL
FROM: Councilmember Bien Doan
SUBJECT: See Below DATE: January 14, 2025
Approved Date:
01/14/2025
SUBJECT: 3.4 - 2025 Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities
RECOMMENDATION
1. Accept the staff report with the following changes:
a. Changes to Legislative Priorities:
i. REDUCE UNSHELTERED HOMELESSNESS, SUPPORT (DELETE)
UNHO
USED (ADD) UNSHELTERED RESIDENTS, AND INCREASE
OPPORTUNITIES FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING
1. Support ongoing flexible homelessness funding and pursue oppor
tunities to fund the interim housing system and
enc
ampment services including sanitary services and
env
ironmental restoration. Support increased supply and
f
unding for permanent affordable housing, land trusts, (ADD) s
helter, and associated operational, safety net, and services funding. Support legislation that furthers affordable housing w
hile maintaining local control of land use. Execute this work with an equity lens aiming to remedy past actions that
historically destabilized San José’s communities of color and l
ow-income communities and excluded these residents from accessing safe and stable housing.
ii. ENHANCE COMMUNITY SAFETY INITIATIVES AND REALIZE
VISION ZERO
1. Support funding and policy change that helps reduce crime and t
heft, and makes residents and businesses feel safe in their neighborhoods and downtown. (ADD) Seek legislative
opportunities and funding to increase firefighters and police personnel. Seek and support legislation to perform all fire prevention maintenance needed in our city, such as controlled burns, creating fire breaks, and more to mitigate horrific fires COUNCIL AGENDA : 01/14/2025
FILE : 25-011
ITEM: 3.4
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
January 14, 2025
Subject: 3.4 - 2025 Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities
such as those experienced in Los Angeles in 2025. Seek to further initiatives and funding to reduce violence and harm from firearms. Pursue this work with an equity lens to ensure that all residents, especially immigrants, communities of color, LGBTQIA+, people with disabilities, and San José’s other diverse communities are protected against hate
crimes/incidents and have their rights and well-being protected.
Advocate for legislation and local authority for cities to implement traffic safety measures and pilot initiatives to advance the City’s Vision Zero goals. Support expanded
funding for pedestrian and bicyclist safety infrastructure projects and to keep the public right of way accessible and clear. Prioritize the City’s most vulnerable residents and in areas that disproportionately suffer from fatal and severe traffic injury collisions.
b. Changes to Legislative Programs
1. Safer San Jose
a. Disaster Response and Preparedness
i. (Add) “Preventing Wildfires: performing all
necessary maintenance, including controlled
burns, fire breaks, enforcing laws pertaining to
illegal campfires, and more to destroy all
potentially dangerous vegetation in our hills and
communities to protect residents’ homes and
businesses from devastating wildfires as seen in
Los Angeles.”
2. Homelessness
a. Housing for people Experiencing Homelessness
i. Support ongoing, reliable funding and legislation
for both construction and long-term operations for
a variety of housing options for people
experiencing homelessness. These include
emergency housing, interim/bridge housing units,
new permanent supportive housing apartments,
(ADD) shelter, and supportive sleeping and
parking programs. (ADD) Support working with
the county of Santa Clara to build shelters.
b. Homelessness Prevention and Services
i. Support homelessness prevention services
(ADD) at the county and state level that reduce
residents’ likelihood of losing their homes in the
short-term. Support and advocate for initiatives
and sufficient resources to provide services both
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
January 14, 2025
Subject: 3.4 - 2025 Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities
social and sanitary needs) to people
experiencing homelessness that improve their
quality of life and health outcomes. And funding
to expand existing Homelessness Prevention
System through public-private-partnerships.
3. Housing
a. Housing Stabilization and Eviction Prevention
i. Support eviction prevention and foreclosure
prevention legislation, including additional
funding for homelessness prevention, to protect
both tenants and property owners. Support
significant additional funding to provide legal
assistance to tenants facing eviction court
without legal representation, in alignment with
current city positions, and to support jurisdiction
and court costs for eviction diversion programs,
mandatory settlement conferences, and Housing
Collaborative Courts to avoid evictions and
improve renters’ access to resources and
services. Advance state legislation that requires
more information related to evictions be
accessible same day to jurisdictional and court
cases, including filings of unlawful detainers and
notices to pay or quit, to help jurisdictions and
nonprofits intervene immediately to avoid
evictions. Support financial assistance to (ADD)
PROPERTY OWNERS AND TENANTS TO
stabilize restricted-affordable and regulated
apartments that are most impacted by lower-
income residents’ inability to pay rent to avoid the
negative effects of evictions.
b. Tenant Protections and Anti-Displacement
i. Support the allocation of sufficient state and
federal resources to tenant protections and anti-
displacement initiatives, including funding for fair
housing enforcement, education, and robust
community engagement activities. Support and
sponsor legislation that affirms the use of tenant
preferences for anti-displacement. Support
legislation that allows and reimburses local
government to help educate on and enforce state
laws that stabilize rents, provide just cause
eviction protections, and prevent discrimination
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
January 14, 2025
Subject: 3.4 - 2025 Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities
against housing voucher holders. Support
legislation to advance laws and resources for
tenant protections (ADD) that the city of San
Jose currently has adopted, the preservation of
affordable housing including mobile homes, and
other residential anti-displacement programs and
policies. Support legislation that will address rent
increases in Low Income Housing Tax Credit and
deed-restricted affordable housing
developments.
c. Housing Production and Increased Housing Supply
i. Support, monitor and shape legislation intended
to facilitate both affordable and market rate
housing production, (ADD) OF ALL TYPES, by
cities, particularly legislation directed at cities that are not producing housing, to ensure it does not
have unintended consequences for San José.
Support efforts that would provide financial
incentives for cities that meet or exceed their
residential housing goals. Support resources and
policies that help housing production and
preservation, along with supportive service
provision that helps residents remain housed.
Programs and policies should prioritize and
allocate funding to cities like San José in ways
that fit the City’s dense development patterns,
high costs, need for deeply affordable homes,
and unusual housing/jobs balance. Funding
should be commensurate with Regional Housing
Needs Allocation goals.
d. Affordable Housing Funding
i. Support and increase funding sources in addition
to protecting existing funding for affordable
housing including homeless housing. This
includes expansion of the Low-Income Housing
Tax Credit (ADD) and reducing the 50% Test for
Private Activity Bonds for multifamily production
(DELETE) and the lowering of bond thresholds.
Support legislation and programs to fund the
preservation of existing unrestricted affordable
homes, including life and safety rehabilitation,
energy efficiency and electrification upgrades,
accessibility, and seismic safety improvements.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
January 14, 2025
Subject: 3.4 - 2025 Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities
e. Operational Costs for Homekey and Homekey+
i. Support efforts through the state budget process
or through legislation that provides (ADD)
ONGOING operational subsidy or funding source
for Project Homekey and Homekey+ to ensure
that these permanent supportive housing projects
are financially sustainable.
4. Local Control and Fiscal Stability
a. (DELETE) Decreased Voter Thresholds
i. (DELETE) Support efforts to reduce the approval
threshold of taxes and bonds for transportation
and infrastructure funding measures, including
those for affordable housing, to less than a two-
thirds majority vote. Support efforts to protect the
approval of general-purpose funding measures
by a simple majority vote.
5. Sustainability/Resiliency: Air
a. Air Quality and Climate Incentives
i. Support policies and preserve programs that
provide financial incentives for Distributed
Energy Resources and electrification projects in
private and public sector development, including
those that reduce criteria air contaminants and
high global warming potential pollutants.
Support and preserve incentive programs that
address decarbonization such as electric heat
pump hot water heaters and zero-emission
vehicle and charging infrastructure
development. Support policies that monitor and
reduce emissions and mitigate climate impacts
from consumption of goods and the disposal of
solid waste. Support policies that increase our
tree canopy as a measure to improve air quality.
(ADD) Support initiatives above that do not
impose significant undue financial burdens on
existing homeowners and their tenants.
6. 2025 Federal Priorities
a. Support Tenant Protections
i. Ensure this priority closely aligns with the local
program above.
HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL
January 14, 2025
Subject: 3.4 - 2025 Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities
2. Direct the City Manager to post all future annual reports establishing the Legislative Priorities and Legislative Program for the following legislative session to post at least 14 days prior to the City Council meeting at which the item will be discussed.
3. Direct the City Manager, as part of the next annual report establishing Legislative Priorities and the Legislative Program, to explore the possibility of a new policy position category for the Legislative Program in addition to “support” or “oppose.”
BACKGROUND
Council Priorities
The proposed changes to the legislative priorities and programs aim to enhance clarity and alignment with San José’s needs. By refining the language, the proposed amendments provide a clearer roadmap for achieving the City’s goals, particularly in homelessness reduction, community safety, and housing affordability.
The proposed amendments to the homelessness and housing priorities reflect an expansion of the range of interventions needed. For example, adding shelters and supportive sleeping and parking programs acknowledges the diversity of housing solutions required to meet the needs of all residents. Similarly, emphasizing ongoing operational funding for projects like Homekey ensures sustainable, long-term support for the City’s most vulnerable populations.
For community safety, the inclusion of fire prevention measures such as controlled burns and firebreaks addresses the increasing threat of wildfires. This addition complements existing commitments to crime reduction, traffic safety, and equity-based community protection.
Amendments to Legislative Programs
Some of the language in the policy program section of this memo is highly controversial and the community is divided. By amending the positions from the Legislative Program and Legislative Priorities, we would allow the Inter-Governmental Relations team to continue to monitor bills tied to these topics, but would to a reasonable extent, withhold the team's ability to respond to new legislation without first coming to Rules and Open Government Committee or Council. The City should remain neutral in these areas of focus and allow council to deliberate prior to taking a stance.