Facts on AB 34

AB 34 programs are authorized by California legislation to provide housing and intensive support services to individuals with serious mental illness who are homeless.

Approximately 50,000 Californians are homeless and have serious mental illness.

AB 34 programs currently provide supported housing services to about 4,500 people statewide who have serious mental illness and have been homeless or at risk of homelessness. Approximately 4,100 of these were homeless during the 12 months prior to program enrollment and are now in housing as a result of these programs.

Without continued AB 34 funding almost 5,000 people are in jeopardy of losing their housing and intensive support services that help them sustain housing. With flexible funding, AB 34 programs are unique in their ability to provide housing subsidies, rental assistance and the intensive staff support services necessary to sustain people in housing.

AB 34 programs were identified as a national model for delivering services to homeless people with serious mental illness in the report by the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.

Without flexible grant funding, local mental health programs cannot provide the essential services and supports to sustain people in housing. These services and supports are not eligible for Medi-Cal reimbursement and cannot be provided with diminishing realignment funds, whose primary purpose is the provision of mental health treatment, not housing and housing support services.

Given California's significant budget shortfall no one expects to expand these programs. Instead, the focus must be on sustaining the services and supports currently provided to the almost 5,000 people benefiting from these programs.

Continuation of AB 34 programs is essential to implementing the Mental Health Initiative. The AB 34 programs' delivery of comprehensive integrated services, including housing and employment, is not a current focus in most local mental health programs. Similarly, AB 34 values that promote "whatever it takes" services to meet individuals' needs are not established in the traditional service culture. AB 34 programs are an example of the "cultural shift" that must take place for real system change to occur. Without AB 34's leadership, additional funding will be used simply to continue the "business as usual" approach that has proven so unsuccessful in the current mental health system. Given the potential of the Mental Health Initiative, AB 34 can continue to serve as an effective model as California regains its leadership in providing high quality mental health care.