The Democrat-controlled California State Legislature has passed a polarizing bill that would make the Golden State the first in the nation to offer down payment assistance to illegal immigrant home buyers.
Assembly Bill 1840, which was approved Wednesday, would grant undocumented immigrants access to the state’s taxpayer-funded home loan program, which provides up to $150,000 in down payment assistance for eligible first-time home buyers.
The legislation easily cleared the state Senate on Tuesday by a 25-14 margin and it was subsequently approved by the Assembly in a 45-15 vote. Democrats enjoy supermajorites in both chambers.
It now heads to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk for final approval.
California Republicans are urging Newsom to veto the measure, arguing that the bill is a “handout” and a “betrayal” to citizens of the state that will incentivize illegal immigration.
“I didn’t know it was possible to make the border crisis and the housing crisis worse with just one vote, but Democrats found a way,” California Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher (R-Yuba City) said in a statement.
“Giving taxpayer-funded housing subsidies to illegal immigrants will drive costs even higher and encourage more chaos at the border,” he added. “This is crazy and it needs to stop.”
Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez (R-Rancho Santa Margarita), who is the granddaughter of legal immigrants, expressed similarly strong opposition to the measure on the Assembly floor Wednesday.
Sanchez argued that migrants crossing the border illegally “look to California’s current policies like a giant welcome sign.”
“Welcome to California, where illegal immigrants get free healthcare, free food, and now a free home with 0% down,” she said. “This is not rocket science. If you’re giving out free stuff, more people are going to come.”
Sanchez also pointed out on X that the Assembly approved the home loan bill at a point in time when “1 million Californians live in deep poverty, and 180,000 are homeless.”
“This is an unbelievable betrayal to the citizens of this state,” she added.
California Senate Minority Leader Brian W. Jones (R-San Diego) questioned the “giveaway” to undocumented migrants when the state is suffering from an affordability crisis.
“Many Californians, some who have been here for generations, can’t afford to buy a house in their home state thanks to Democrats’ unsustainable economic policies,” Jones said in a statement. “So many legal residents not able to afford a home, should we really be giving scarce cash assistance to immigrants here illegal?”
“Every dollar that goes to an illegal immigrant is one less dollar available to legal residents including veterans, teachers and families.”
California currently faces a $68 billion budget deficit.
California Sen. Brian Dahle (R-Bieber) called the bill a “slap in the face” to citizens of the state, including military veterans struggling to buy homes.
“It is wrong to prioritize illegal immigrants over the men and women who have made great sacrifices to serve our country,” Dahle said in a statement. “California is already struggling with a massive deficit, this policy priority by Democrat politicians is yet the latest slap in the face to the citizens who are working to make ends meet and forced to foot the bill of ever-expanding government programs in the state under one-party rule.”
San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond characterized AB 1840 as more than just “another handout.”
“Expanding state-funded home loans to include illegal immigrants is not just another handout — it’s a massive overreach that shifts the financial burden onto law-abiding taxpayers,” Desmond wrote on X.
To be eligible for the loan program, an undocumented immigrant must have a taxpayer ID number or a Social Security number, according to the text of the bill.
The legislation could dramatically increase the number of applicants for the home loans which reached 18,000 people this year with just 1,700 chosen through the randomized lottery system, according to the California Globe.
Newsom, who has until Sept. 30 to make a decision on AB 1840, has not indicated whether he will sign the bill into law.
The California governor is a top surrogate for Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, who earlier this month unveiled her plan to offer up to $25,000 in federal down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers, if elected.
