Legislators Get Busy as Deadlines Approach

The State Capitol has shifted into high gear, and the pace will be frenetic for several weeks as policy committees hold hearings and budget committees review spending plans proposed by Governor Newsom.

This past week, there were 17 Assembly committee hearings and 12 Senate committee hearings. In the Assembly, most bills that affect manufactured housing communities are assigned to the Committee on Housing and Community Development. There are only three hearings scheduled between now and May 2, which is the deadline for policy committees to meet and report fiscal bills to the Appropriations Committee.

There is one more hearing that can be held on May 7 for the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development to hear and report nonfiscal bills to the full Assembly.

The other big news coming this week was the recent $3.44 billion loan from the state’s general fund to make up a budget shortfall in the Medi-Cal program. Earlier this week, Governor Newsom’s administration announced that it needed an additional $2.8 billion, bringing the shortage to $6.2 billion. The shortfall resulted from increased usage of Medi-Cal, which provides healthcare services for nearly half of the people living in the state. 

For more information about the reasons behind the shortfall, please click here.

Insurance Commissioner Approves Rate Increase

With insurance coverage being a topic of many bills introduced in the Legislature this year, homeowners (along with renters and commercial building owners) have been experiencing non-renewals as existing insurance providers have left the state. Many who seek property insurance are forced to become a part of the FAIR(Fair Access to Insurance Requirements) plan (the state’s high-cost insurer of last resort) and have seen premiums increase by triple digits.

To help reduce the number of non-renewals, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has approved a petition from the State Farm Insurance Company (California’s largest home insurer) to increase premiums by an average of 22%. 

The premium increase must be justified in a public hearing to be held on April 8, but indications are that the request to raise rates will be approved to prevent State Farm from exiting California entirely. 

To read more about the proposed rate increase, click here.

Key Bills for WMA Referred to Committees

Key bills of interest to WMA have been referred to committees and the hearings will occur over the next several weeks.

• AB 391 (Rodriguez): This bill has been referred to the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development and would provide a convenient and environmentally friendly option for mobilehome park managers to electronically distribute copies of the Mobilehome Residency Law to residents who opt for digital versions. For those preferring a physical copy, printed versions will remain available. This measure aims to reduce paper waste and streamline communication. Please click here to read more about AB 391.

• AB 760 (Ta): In response to emergencies, this bill allows manufactured housing community owners to rent out park-owned homes for up to one year following the end of a declared state of emergency. It temporarily suspends restrictions established by AB 861 (2021), which capped park-owned rentals at one per 200 spaces. This bill has also been referred to the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development. Please click here to read more about AB 760.

• AB 768 (Avila Farias): This bill has been double-referred to both the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development and the Assembly Judiciary Committee.  This bill would remove rent-control protections from owners of vacation homes who have mobilehomes in rent-controlled jurisdictions. Please click here to read more about AB 768.

• AB 813 (Solache): To ensure the safety of park employees and vendors, AB 813 proposes extending the current eviction provisions that apply to residents threatening violence against fellow residents. The bill was referred to the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development, and would empower park management to swiftly address threats or violent behavior directed at staff or contracted workers. Please click here to read more about AB 813.

• AB 874 (Avila Farias): This bill has been referred to the Assembly Local Government Committee and the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community and Development. Addressing the need for affordable housing, AB 874 eliminates local impact fees on all rental housing developments, including mobilehome parks, for designated affordable units. By reducing development costs, this bill supports the expansion of housing options across the state. Please click here to read more about AB 874.

If you would like to review the legislation being supported, opposed or monitored by WMA, please click here. 

As dates are set for bills of interest to WMA to be heard, WMA will let our members know.  In many cases, you may receive requests to reach out to your legislator to urge a “yes” or “no” vote on a particular bill.

SB 869 Park Manager Training Regulations Issued

The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) has officially released the regulations for its Park Manager Training Program. These newly approved regulations are now filed with the Secretary of State and are accessible in the California Code of Regulations, Title 25, Division 1, Section 2.3. Click here to read the new regulations. 

Under SB 869, park managers have until May 1, 2026, or within one year of their hire date — whichever occurs later, to meet training and exam requirements.

WMA is currently in the process of applying to HCD to be an approved provider of manager training.  If approved, WMA will reach out to members to provide details about the manager training curriculum and how to sign up for this mandatory training, which must be taken by every individual park manager in the state.

To learn more about the curriculum that will be provided, please review SB 869 by clicking here.

Three Park Tours Over Past Seven Days

In the past week, WMA members have hosted three separate mobilehome park tours with sitting legislators. A special thank-you to those WMA members who participated in these tours.

• Assemblywoman Lori Wilson (D, Suisun City) toured Skylark Mobile Estates in Vacaville.  Joining WMA was Scott Evans of Evans Management, current WMA Legislative Committee Chair and PAC Board of Trustees Vice Chair Frank Kalcic, and Cassie Breitbart with Storz Management.

• Assemblyman Jeff Gonzalez (R, Indio) toured Gio’s Mobile Homes Estates in El Centro.  Joining WMA was Giovanni Bertussi, owner of Gio’s Mobile Homes Estates, and Laura Cady, also of Gio’s Mobile Homes Estates.

• Assemblywoman Stephanie Nguyen (D, Elk Grove) toured South Gate Mobile Estates in Sacramento. Joining WMA was Sean Ouye of the Ouye Group that owns South Gate Mobile Estates, Cassie Breitbart of Storz Management, and WMA President Andy Balaguy of HCA Property Management.

General Remarks

It is going to be a busy few weeks, and I greatly appreciate the honor of being able to represent WMA and its members in the State Capitol.  During this busy time, I also wish to thank the WMA Legislative Committee, our contract lobbyist Andrew Govenar, our legal advisors Terry Dowdall and Paul Jensen, and my colleague Ray Perez, who manages the logistics involved in organizing the nearly 20 park tours that have been scheduled. The countless hours this team has spent working on behalf of WMA members are greatly appreciated. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me by email at chris@wma.org, or call my direct line at the office at 916.288.4026.