Bloomberg News

California lawmakers said they have agreed to place an $11.3 billion housing bond on the ballot this November, aiming to expand affordable housing and homeownership.

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The proposal, Senate Bill 417, includes $10 billion of general obligation bonds for affordable housing programs and $1.25 billion of self-supporting revenue bonds for the state’s home loan program for veterans. 

The measure comes as housing costs continue to rank as a top concern for residents of California, where the median price for a single-family home is more than $900,000.

“California’s future depends on whether people can afford to put down roots, raise a family, and build a life here,” Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, said in a statement announcing the deal.

State officials said the housing package is expected to help more than 40,000 Californians buy homes through down-payment assistance, affordable mortgage financing and other support, while also helping finance or preserve tens of thousands of affordable homes for lower-income residents.

The measure includes $1.25 billion of revenue bonds for the CalVet Home Loan Program, which state leaders said would be repaid entirely through mortgage payments rather than taxpayer funds.

The Democratic Party-dominated legislature faces a deadline this week to finalize ballot measures for the November election and are weighing a separate proposal to issue $12 billion in bonds for science and health research, as well as a measure to update the state’s reserve policies.

The housing proposal follows several years of debate over how much borrowing California voters are willing to accept.

Voters in 2020 rejected a $15 billion school facilities bond. 

In March 2024, they approved $6.4 billion of bonds for behavioral health treatment facilities and housing. That November, they approved $10 billion of bonds for school and community college facilities and another $10 billion for safe drinking water, wildfire prevention and protection from climate risks.

California had about $72 billion of general obligation bonds outstanding as of June 1 and another $40 billion already approved by voters but not yet sold, according to the State Treasurer’s Office. The debt is rated AA by Fitch Ratings, Aa2 by Moody’s Ratings and AA-minus by S&P Global Ratings, according to the treasurer’s office.

When California sold $2.4 billion of bonds in March, a portion of debt due in 2056 priced at a yield that was 23 basis points higher than AAA securities.