SUBJECT:PRESERVE FUNDING FOR THE SEISMIC RETROFITTING PROGRAM FOR SOFT STORY MULTIFAMILY HOUSING TO PROTECT AFFORDABLE HOUSING FROM EARTHQUAKES

On behalf of the U.S. Resiliency Council, I urge your support for preserving $250-million in funding for the California Seismic Retrofitting Program for Soft Story Multifamily Housing, which is designed to make many thousands of Californians safer from earthquakes. Co-sponsored by Assemblymember Freddie Rodriguez and Assemblymember Chris Holden this program was placed in the FY 2022 budget by the Legislature via SB 189 with funding approved for FY 2023.  This budget was signed by Governor Newsom on June 20, 2022. More recently, the proposed budget for FY 2023 omitted this funding.

This program is designed to prevent the death and destruction California experienced in the Northridge earthquake 29 years ago this week when 57 people died - 16 people in one apartment building - 9,000 were injured and thousands were displaced from their homes.  The quake inflicted some $93-billion in damage. Your support can help to prevent a repeat of such devastation.

This program will be more beneficial for communities and vulnerable populations across California than any seismic legislation in the past 75 years. Soft-story apartment buildings are considered among the most vulnerable structures in California, and their loss in earthquakes would seriously increase the homeless crisis, disproportionately impacting more disadvantaged communities. These older, vulnerable buildings typically house the elderly, working families, minorities and students – those who have the fewest resources to enable them to bounce back quickly after housing is destroyed in a disaster.

Since this program was included in the State budget, I have spoken about California’s resilience leadership at meetings around the nation.  Every group has been very impressed by California’s positive example, and some are now working to support similar resilience and hazard mitigation actions in their own states.  We should not jeopardize this resilience momentum and at the same time leave thousands of vulnerable California residents facing continued risk from earthquakes.

The legislation was supported by an unprecedentedly diverse coalition of stakeholders in business, government and nonprofit sectors, including groups often on opposite sides.  Prominent supporters included:          

California Building Officials (CALBO)
City of San Jose 
League of California Cities
Culver City Chamber of Commerce
Los Angeles County Business Federation
Earthquake Country Alliance
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
East Bay Rental Housing Association
Natural Resources Defense Council
LA Family Housing
U.S. Green Building Council Los Angeles
Building Industry Association of Southern California
Mar Structural Design
Leading Age California
Fair Housing Council of Orange County
Nor Cal Regional Property Association
Fair Housing Council of Riverside County
North Valley Property Owners Association
California Emergency Services Association
Pasadena Chamber of Commerce
California Fire Chiefs Association
Rancho Southeast Association of Realtors
California Hospital Association
County of Sacramento
California Rental Housing Association
Regional CAL Black Chamber of Commerce SFV
Fire Districts Association of California
Santa Barbara Rental Property Association
Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles
Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce
Apartment Association of Orange County
Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce
Apartment Owners Association of California, Inc.
Small Property Owners of San Francisco Inst.
Arcadia Association of Realtors
Southern California Earthquake Center
California Association of Health Facilities
Structural Engineers Association of California
California Business Properties Association
US Resiliency Council (sponsor)
California Earthquake Authority
Watt Investment Partners
Cerrell 
 

WHAT SEISMIC RETROFIT GRANT FUNDING DOES FOR CALIFORNIA

•  Protects affordable multifamily housing
• Protects our workforce, economy and environment 
• Provides matching grants to help retrofit older, soft-story apartments to prevent collapse. 
• Increases safety in a large portion of California’s approximately 100,000 vulnerable apartment buildings that may house up to 2,500,000 people. 
• Helps “mom and pop” owners with up to 20 units, who lack funds to do seismic retrofits.
• Protects occupants of older, more affordable buildings -- seniors on fixed incomes, poorer working families, students and the disabled. 
• Addresses the social inequity of having occupants in older buildings face higher risk from earthquakes than others living in greater safety in buildings built under modern codes.
• Provides $250-million in matching grants for one year to protect California's existing affordable multifamily housing supply, and safeguard people living in these apartments.

Please support preserving funding for the Seismic Retrofitting Program for Soft Story Multifamily Housing to protect thousands of Californians from earthquakes. 

Sincerely,

Evan Reis                                                      

Executive Director / Founder, U.S. Resiliency Council

(650)804-5737

cc:       All State of California Assemblymembers & Senators