California Migrant Loan Update as State Senate Pushes Bill Forward

The California State Senate has approved a bill that would allow undocumented migrants to apply to the state’s first-time homebuying loan program.
Lawmakers passed the measure, Assembly Bill 1840, in a 23-11 vote Tuesday. If the bill makes it through a final vote in the state’s Assembly, it would expand eligibility requirements for the California Dream for All Shared Appreciation program, which provides residents up to 20 percent in down payment help when purchasing a home for the first time.
The issue of immigration is at the forefront of voters’ minds heading into the presidential election in November, and Newsom has been a vocal supporter of Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign. Harris has said that her administration would support providing first-time homebuyers and other eligible Americans $25,000 in assistance on down payments. The program, however, would not be offered to undocumented immigrants.
California Democratic Assemblyman Joaquin Arambula, who proposed the measure, has argued that expanding the program to allow undocumented migrants to apply “strengthens local economies” and can benefit “all people who call California homes.”
The loan program was created in 2023 and is extremely competitive, with only 1,700 Californians receiving grants so far this year out of the 18,000 who have applied. Proponents of the bill have emphasized that applicants must provide taxpayer identification or a Social Security number up front, including undocumented immigrants.
The state Senate voted to pass the measure along party lines Tuesday. Republican lawmakers have adamantly pushed back on the bill, including GOP Assemblyman Bill Essayli, who said in a statement that progressing the measure was “outrageous.”
“Democrat politicians care more about handouts for illegal immigrants rather than improving the quality of life for legal California citizens,” Essayli said, per a report from KTLA. “I will strongly oppose this measure when it comes to the Assembly Floor this week.”
Republican Assemblyman Joe Patterson also said at a committee hearing earlier this summer that he “just can’t get behind using our limited dollars for people who are in this country undocumented,” according to Politico.
Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has yet to say whether he supports the measure. Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor for the University of Tennessee at Martin, previously told Newsweek that even if the measure passes California’s state legislature, “it’s difficult to know….if the governor will want to sign this right away and have a swarm of media attention circle what the bill provides.”
California’s legislative session ends on August 31, and Newsom would have until September 30 to sign any bills passed by lawmakers. Brandon Richards, the deputy rapid response director for Newsom’s office, told Newsweek over email Wednesday that the governor’s office doesn’t typically comment on pending legislation.
Update 08/28/24, 6:15 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional comment from the office of California Governor Gavin Newsom.