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AB 722

Relating to: large energy customer fees; electric utility very large customer class; a renewable resource tariff; building requirements for data centers; water usage by large customers; required pay rate on large-scale data center projects; and granting rule-making authority. (FE)

2025-2026 Regular Session Introduced by Clint Anderson and 27 co-sponsors

Creates a state grant program to fund housing and employment supports for people recently released from incarceration to reduce homelessness and recidivism.

Representative Johnson added as a coauthor
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Bill Summary · AB 722

AB 722 — Reentry Housing and Workforce Development Program

Author: Ávila Farías
Introduced: February 14, 2025
Status: In committee — Held under submission (last action 2025-05-23)

Purpose / Intent

AB 722 would create a state grant program to help people with recent histories of incarceration exit homelessness and obtain stable housing and employment. The bill cites evidence that supportive, housing‑based interventions reduce recidivism and asserts an intent to repurpose savings from planned prison closures toward community reentry solutions.

Key provisions

  • Establishes the “Reentry Housing and Workforce Development Program” in the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD).
  • HCD must, on or before July 1, 2026, take specified actions to implement the program and — upon appropriation by the Legislature — provide competitive grants to eligible applicants.
  • Eligible applicants: counties, community‑based nonprofits (501(c)(3)), or continuums of care.
  • Authorized uses of grant funds include (among other things):
    • Long‑term rental assistance in permanent housing (consistent with HUD fair market rent definitions).
    • Landlord incentives to improve housing access for program participants.
    • Innovative or evidence‑based housing‑based services and employment interventions, including supports to access permanent supportive housing and job training leading to livable‑wage employment.
  • HCD must develop a referral process in collaboration with the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and relevant counties for enrolling participants.
  • Competitive scoring: HCD will score applicants using criteria specified in the program (document indicates competitive evaluation but full criteria are in bill text).
  • Contracting and reporting:
    • Grants would be executed as contracts with awarded entities for a five‑year term, subject to automatic renewal.
    • Recipients must submit annual reports to HCD.
    • HCD must hire an independent evaluator to assess program outcomes and report the analysis to designated legislative committees.

Definitions & operational elements

  • The bill defines terms such as “chronically homeless” (aligned with federal regs as of 1/1/2021, with a carve‑out for those discharged from institutions), “coordinated entry system,” “fair market rent,” and others to guide program operations and eligibility.

Who is affected

  • Primary beneficiaries: people recently incarcerated (including those on parole) who are experiencing homelessness or at high risk of homelessness.
  • Implementing entities: counties, community‑based organizations, continuums of care, landlords.
  • State agencies: HCD (program administrator) and CDCR (partner for referrals).
  • Indirectly: local housing and workforce service systems and communities with higher reentry populations.

Fiscal & procedural notes

  • The program requires an appropriation by the Legislature — the bill does not itself appropriate funds.
  • The Assembly fiscal committee has reviewed the bill (fiscal committee: YES).
  • Legislative actions to date include committee referrals, amendments, and reassignment to Appropriations; currently held under submission as of May 23, 2025.

Potential impact

If funded and implemented, the program aims to reduce recidivism and homelessness among people leaving incarceration by coupling permanent housing support with services and employment interventions, while providing a statewide grant mechanism to scale evidence‑based reentry housing models.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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