Join Our New Campaign for Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities California takes equity seriously when it comes to investment in reducing greenhouse gases (GHGs) for our state's future. When all residents of California have better quality air, public and active transit, outdoor spaces, and affordable homes, we all have better outcomes. We know that providing these crucial elements to a better quality of life also significantly reduce GHG emissions, a top priority for our state, which leads the nation in climate investment. California continues to prioritize affordable homes as a key investment in its state budget, and a key climate investment, but that doesn't mean we remain passive. We must continue to advocate for this important funding source. As the governor gets ready to release his May Revise of the California budget this week, Housing California and our partners are excited to announce the launch of the investAHSC campaign to help all communities advocate for Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program continuous funding. For over a decade, Housing California and key partners have been at the forefront of ensuring that the state recognizes planning for housing near jobs is an integral part of its GHG reduction strategy. That's why we championed AHSC, which launched in 2014. With its first three funding rounds, AHSC has invested more than $701 million statewide to create 6,443 new affordable homes, reduce 1.6 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, and fund critical transportation infrastructure, as detailed in this AHSC outcomes report. We share AHSC success stories each year with the legislature and administration to ensure the program does not shift away from its focus on publicly funded affordable homes as an effective GHG reduction strategy. The new campaign website has AHSC Stories from residents now living in AHSC developments as well as Advocacy Tools your organization can download and use. Why now and why all of us? When California was debating how to invest cap-and-trade auction proceeds so that they result in real, quantifiable and verifiable GHG reductions, Housing California and fellow investAHSC Advisory Committee members brought forth a study by the Center for Neighborhood Technology that made two important findings: • Lower Income households drive 25-30% fewer miles when living within 1/2 mile of transit than those living in non-transit-oriented areas. When living within 1/4 mile of frequent transit they drove nearly 50% less. • Higher Income households drive more than twice as many miles and own more than twice as many vehicles as Extremely Low-Income households living within 1/4 mile of frequent transit. This underscores why it is critical to ensure that low-income families can afford to live in these areas. With land use, housing affordability, and displacement being top issues for lawmakers and California residents alike, now is the time to make sure we shed more light on a successful tool that will help us all for years to come. Now is our moment to engage, educate, and advocate for solutions to affordable housing, ending homelessness, and better health outcomes for our people and our environment. Will you join our list of supporters and endorse this important campaign to build more affordable homes and sustainable communities in California? We need all hands on deck to maintain this vital program. Sincerely, The Housing California Team On behalf of the investAHSC Advisory Committee The investAHSC Advisory Committee is led by Enterprise Community Partners, California Housing Partnership, Housing California, California Coalition for Rural Housing and TransForm. | 
