As the state’s housing shortage spreads into rural communities, farmers will have new tools to address the chronic dearth of worker housing under a law signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
The measure, AB 1783, streamlines construction of new worker units on surplus farm land and provides incentives for the apartments. As a safeguard, the new apartments must be managed by a nonprofit third party.
But many farm industry groups have opposed the measure, saying there are better ways to increase the housing stock — even as high prices spread to rural counties.
“The housing crisis has impacted this community incredibly hard,” said the bill’s author, Assemblymember Robert Rivas, D-Hollister. “Homelessness is becoming a significant problem.”
Worker advocates say an estimated statewide shortage of about 3.5 million houses and apartments has made the long-running challenge of finding safe and affordable homes for farmworkers even worse.
A study by a regional think tank found that of 91,000 workers employed by agricultural firms in the Salinas and Pajaro valleys in 2016, roughly nine in 10 rented housing, and many lived in severely crowded spaces, with more than two people sleeping in every bedroom, living room and dining room.
Workers have been living in “third-world country conditions” — in RVs, dilapidated mobile homes and packed apartments — during the housing shortage, Rivas said.
The law streamlines construction of new worker housing by eliminating some fees, as well as local and environmental restrictions. Land zoned for farming can be developed into worker housing as long as it meets basic environmental and safety guidelines. The projects must be inclusive and managed by a separate, nonprofit agency to eliminate potential conflicts of interest between workers and their employers.
A farmer choosing the optional housing program is eligible for financial support from the state.
Growers and agricultural industry groups, including the Western Growers Association, California Chamber of Commerce, and Family Winemakers of California, fought the proposal.
The proposal “would not help mitigate the farmworker housing crisis and in fact would make it worse,” industry groups wrote in a July letter to a senate committee chairman. They argued farmers would be reluctant to hand housing management to a third party.
Rivas said the law is an important first step to address the problem.
Newsom meanwhile vetoed a measure by Sen. Jim Beall, D-San Jose, that would have created an Affordable Housing and Sustainable Community Development program. The proposal would have provided funds for affordable housing through a partnership between the state and local governments.
Newsom said in a signing statement the bill could have cost as much as $2 billion annually and instead should be considered during budget deliberations.
The veto killed a measure that drew support from developers, local governments, labor and housing advocates, Beall said in a statement.
“The only solution to homelessness is a home, and the governor has vetoed the best chance we had to jump-start housing production efforts this year,” Beall said. “While this is a devastating blow to all of these groups and all Californians in desperate need of housing, we are eager to come back next year with a solution that will better address the housing crisis.”