Controversial bill to expand Dream for All eligibility to undocumented immigrants passes California Senate

A controversial bill that would expand the eligibility of California’s Dream for All, a first-time homebuyer down payment assistance program, to undocumented immigrants has passed the California Senate and is facing increased scrutiny.

AB 1840, now up for a vote in the California Senate, would expand the program’s eligibility from permanent residents and citizens to undocumented immigrants with a social security number (SSN) or individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN).

“Dream for All, as the program is called, should provide equal benefits to everyone,” said Representative Joaquin Arambula, the bill’s sponsor.

Dream for All is a highly competitive program. Last year’s first-come, first-served round exhausted its $300 million budget in less than two weeks. More than 20,000 applications were received, resulting in a competition ratio of nearly 10 to 1.

This year’s second round of the program introduced a lottery system based on geography, race, and income, with more than 18,000 people applying for the 1,700 spots, creating a competition ratio of more than 10 to 1.

Critics argue that expanding the program to undocumented immigrants will only increase competition and make it harder to see the intended benefits.

There are also concerns that the program could add to the state’s current $38 billion budget deficit and lead to benefit cuts. In fact, the California Senate Appropriations Committee found that “expanding eligibility would cost millions of additional dollars to operate the program.”

El Cajon Mayor Bill Wells emphasized that “legal residents should be receiving benefits first,” and that “it would be unfair to provide equal benefits to those who are not fulfilling their civic duty.”

Dream for All is a program that provides down payment and closing cost assistance to eligible first-time homebuyers who apply to the program and get selected by lottery. The assistance is 20% of the home’s price or appraised value, up to $150,000, whichever is less. Once you receive the assistance, the homebuyer doesn’t have to pay back the principal for up to 30 years, making it a popular program.

The first Dream for All program was launched in 2023 and helped 2,300 people with $300 million in grants. The second round of Dream for All, which launched in April of this year, was $50 million less than the first. More than 1,700 lottery winners received benefits.

This year, eligible applicants must be first-generation homebuyers whose parents do not own homes, first-time homebuyers who have not owned a home in the past seven years, earning annual income that does not exceed 120% of the Area Median Income, and purchasing a home for primary residence.

BY WONHEE CHO, HOONSIK WOO [cho.wonhee@koreadaily.com]