Gov. Tina Kotek signed a $200 million bipartisan housing and homelessness package at a bill signing ceremony in Salem on Wednesday.
Her signature will enable $30 million to be immediately pushed out to local communities to fund eviction prevention, rent assistance and some state staffing costs. The remainder of the funding will become available July 1, the start of the next fiscal year.
The $200 million outlay, encapsulated in House Bills 2001 and 5019, will bolster rent assistance, expand shelters, protect homeless youth and catalyze housing development, among other initiatives. The package also makes several policy changes intended to defray the affordable housing crisis, including giving tenants more time to pay overdue rent and holding local jurisdictions accountable for producing more housing.
“These bills, paired with my homelessness state of emergency, will move us forward to real, measurable improvements on the ground in all regions of the state,” Kotek said in her prepared remarks. “The resources in this package will help prevent homelessness for more Oregonians, supply more transitional shelter capacity, rehouse individuals experiencing homelessness, innovate in housing construction so we can support more production, and better serve specific populations with their shelter needs.”
The bills cleared the state Legislature last week with bipartisan support. Their rapid and lopsided passage represented a major victory for Kotek, a Portland Democrat who made housing her signature issue during her record-setting nine years as speaker of the House. The fact the money measure passed the Legislature in March is highly unusual and shows the sense of urgency in both parties to address the state’s pressing housing shortage.
The money will be on top of any funding that makes its way into the general housing and homelessness budget for the coming two years. Service providers view the emergency funding as a down payment that will allow them to quickly scale up their work while they wait on typical state funding.
“I want to say firmly: This is just the beginning,” Kotek said. “My recommended budget expands on the investments in this early session package – and I will continue to urge legislative action to deliver the ongoing support our communities need to make real progress.”
— Jamie Goldberg; jgoldberg@oregonian.com; 503-221-8228; @jamiebgoldberg
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