Newsom signs recovery housing bills

By Brian Hendershot, Cal Cities Advocate managing editor

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two major recovery housing bills sponsored by Cal Cities last weekend. The two measures, AB 2081 (Davies) and AB 2574 (Valencia), are the results of nearly a decade of advocacy. Both bills will provide much-needed transparency and hold providers accountable for high-quality treatment and care.

Residential recovery housing provides a wide range of benefits to some of California’s most vulnerable residents. However, some operators have put profits over people, endangering patients.

Many of the state’s licensed facilities are concentrated in Southern California, with 331 in Orange County alone. Assembly Members Avelino Valencia and Laurie Davies both represent the region.

“Too many facilities in one area can undercut one of the chief appeals of residential treatment programs: rehabilitation and support services in a therapeutic environment that is part of a community,” wrote Davies, along with Cal Cities OC Division Immediate Past President and La Palma Mayor Marshall Goodman for the Voice of OC.

What will these new bills do?

AB 2081 will require licensed treatment facilities to share resources about their licensure status with potential patients. The legislation would enable patients to make informed decisions about their care and connect them with other available licensing and certification resources.

“It’s good for the community, good for the neighbors, and most importantly, good for those who are receiving care,” Caroline Grinder, Cal Cities legislative affairs lobbyist, told The Orange County Register earlier this year.

The other measure, AB 2574, will improve oversight of sober living homes operating as an integral part of a licensed treatment facility located elsewhere in the community. This much-needed transparency will help ensure that if a recovery residence is operated as a business with a licensed treatment facility, it is regulated like a business, not a residential home.

“The disclosure of this information will allow [the California Department of Health Care Services] to provide effective oversight and to take actions against bad actors,” Valencia said in a statement.

The two bills were part of a larger Cal Cities legislative package that included SB 913 (Umberg) and AB 2121 (Dixon). Unfortunately, lawmakers held both bills earlier this year.

What’s next?

These two measures are a step in the right direction. However, there are still accountability issues that lawmakers need to address. Asm. Diane Dixon requested an audit of facilities licensed and regulated by the Department of Health Care Services last year.

Cal Cities anticipates the state will release the audit's results in the coming months. This data should provide critical information on the state’s efforts to regulate these facilities and drive future attempts at reform.