Assembly BillChaptered/SignedHealth and Safety
AB 1556: Recovery housing: funding.
What AB 1556 does, verified October 1, 2026
This bill aims to improve the funding and eligibility criteria for recovery residences in California. Recovery residences are required to meet specific standards to be eligible for state funding. These standards include: the resident initiating residency and being offered at least one harm-reduction housing placement option. relapse is not a cause for eviction and residents receive relapse support. emergency preparedness and overdose prevention and response training must be provided to staff and residents. overdose reversal medication must be made readily accessible to staff and residents. consent and confidentiality protections must be in place for residents, consistent with state and federal law. a written return to use policy must be adopted and maintained.
Bill journey
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6ChapteredCurrent
Last action: Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 779, Statutes of 2026. (2026-09-29)Alert me
Author and sponsors
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| Sep. 29, 2026 | Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 779, Statutes of 2026. |
| Sep. 29, 2026 | Approved by the Governor. |
| Sep. 08, 2026 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m. |
| Aug. 28, 2026 | Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 6788.). |
| Aug. 27, 2026 | In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending. |
Latest bill textChaptered version, September 29, 2026 · 1,630 words
Assembly Bill No. 1556
CHAPTER 779
An act to add Division 10.95 (commencing with Section 11999.45) to the Health and Safety Code, relating to public health.
[ Approved by Governor September 29, 2026. Filed with Secretary of State September 29, 2026. ]
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1556, Haney. Recovery housing: funding.
Existing law establishes the California Interagency Council on Homelessness to oversee the implementation of Housing First guidelines and regulations, and, among other things, identify resources, benefits, and services that can be accessed to prevent and end homelessness in California. Existing law requires a state agency or department that funds, implements, or administers a state program that provides housing or housing-related services to people experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of homelessness to revise or adopt guidelines and regulations to include enumerated Housing First policies. Existing law specifies the core components of Housing First, including services that are informed by a harm-reduction philosophy that recognizes drug and alcohol use and addiction as a part of tenants’ lives and where tenants are engaged in nonjudgmental communication regarding drug and alcohol use.
This bill would require applicants for state homelessness funding for recovery housing, as defined, to demonstrate the availability of a range of interventions, as specified. The bill would require a program that provides recovery housing to meet specified requirements in order to be eligible for state funding, including that the program satisfies the core components of Housing First, relapse is not, unless there is another lease violation, grounds for eviction and residents receive relapse support, the program provides emergency preparedness and overdose prevention and response training to staff and residents and makes overdose reversal medication available and readily accessible to staff and residents onsite, and the program adopts and maintains a written return-to-use policy, as specified. The bill would make related findings and declarations.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Substance use can precipitate homelessness and homelessness worsens substance use.
(b) California has the largest homeless population in the United States at 187,084 individuals as of 2024.
(c) Overdose deaths among homeless Americans from drugs and alcohol surged 488 percent between 2010 and 2020.
(d) Recovery housing programs that operate in a manner consistent with the Interagency Council on Homelessness guidance document “Implementing Recovery Housing in Alignment with California Housing First Requirements” published in July 2025 can provide a high degree of quality and positive outcomes for program participants, fulfill a unique and specific role within a community’s homelessness services and behavioral health care systems, help provide meaningful choice in housing settings for people with substance use disorders, and should be a component of any continuum of care that needs this type of resource to prevent and end homelessness in its community.
(e) According to guidance in October 2025 from the California Interagency Council on Homelessness, “the homelessness response system must be equipped to support people in their recovery journey.”
(f) Recovery housing programs have a responsibility to protect and maintain the drug-free environments that are sought and expected by residents and their families.
SEC. 2.
Division 10.95 (commencing with Section 11999.45) is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:DIVISION 10.95. Recovery Housing
11999.45.
(a) For the purposes of this division, “recovery housing” has the same meaning as in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) of Section 8256 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, but is limited to housing provided through state programs as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.(b) Applicants for state homelessness funding for recovery housing shall demonstrate the availability of a range of interventions within the jurisdiction, including harm-reduction-focused permanent housing.
11999.50.
(a) To be eligible for state funding, a recovery housing program shall meet all of the following requirements:(1) Satisfy the core components of Housing First pursuant to Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(2) Use substance use-specific, peer support, and physical design features that support individuals and families on a path to recovery from substance use disorders.
(3) Emphasize abstinence.
(4) Offer tenants permanent housing or program participants interim housing.
(5) Provide nonclinical services that are participant driven and tailored to participant needs and facilitates voluntary access and linkages to licensed treatment providers and services. This paragraph does not authorize a recovery housing program to provide clinical treatment services.
(6) Unless participation in recovery housing is court ordered, residency is initiated by the tenant or program participant and the tenant or the program participant is offered at least one harm-reduction housing placement option and the resident chooses a recovery housing program instead of housing offering a harm-reduction approach. The harm-reduction housing placement option and the recovery housing program do not have to be available for move in at the same time.
(7) Relapse is not, unless there is another lease violation, grounds for eviction from recovery housing and residents receive relapse support, consistent with the return-to-use policy described in paragraph (11).
(8) Support, and does not prevent or restrict, a resident’s access to, or use of, medications prescribed for behavioral or physical health conditions, including, but not limited to, medications prescribed for the treatment of mental health conditions and substance use disorders, including, but not limited to, alcohol use disorder and opioid use disorder. Medications may include, but are not limited to, buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone. The residence does not directly provide or prescribe medications for the treatment of mental health conditions or substance use disorders.
(9) Provide emergency preparedness and overdose prevention and response training to staff and residents and make overdose reversal medication available and readily accessible to staff and residents onsite.
(10) Adopt and maintain a written return-to-use policy that is approved by an organization currently recognized as an affiliate of the National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR) for consistency with NARR best practices, or a similar entity. The return-to-use policy shall include all of the following:
(A) A clear articulation of the recovery housing’s policy on the possession and use of alcohol, cannabis, and other controlled substances.
(B) Contact information for treatment providers, mutual aid supports, and recovery coaches that can be contacted for additional support.
(C) An explanation that the housing program’s standard response to a resident’s return to substance use will not be punitive in nature.
(D) An explanation of the steps the housing program will take to address a resident’s return to use.
(E) An explanation of actions by the resident that may result in eviction or discharge, including, but not limited to, repeated program violations.
(F) (i) An explanation that if a tenant of permanent recovery housing or permanent supportive housing is no longer interested in living in the housing, or is at risk of eviction for violating the lease, the housing program shall allow the resident to reside in the housing until the operator secures the tenant another permanent housing placement option operated with harm-reduction principles that is also permanent housing and provides a comparable level of supportive services.
(ii) If the tenant rejects the offer of a housing placement option described in clause (i), the operator may evict the tenant.
(iii) (I) If an unlawful detainer proceeding is initiated for an alleged violation of a lease provision agreement or program requirement, the housing program operator shall submit documentation of the alleged lease violation to the local grantor of state funds.
(II) The local grantor shall submit a copy of the documentation and a summary of all alleged violations reported pursuant to this clause to the appropriate state agency that administers the housing funds.
(III) The local grantor shall include the information described in subclause (II) in its annual reporting as required by existing program requirements.
(G) (i) An explanation that if a program participant in an interim recovery housing program is no longer interested in living in the housing, or is at risk of discharge for violating the return-to-use policy, the housing program shall allow the program participant to remain in the housing until the operator secures the program participant placement in interim housing operated with harm-reduction principles that is also interim housing and provides a comparable level of supportive services.
(ii) If the resident rejects the offer of another housing placement option described in clause (i), the operator may discharge the program participant.
(iii) (I) If a program participant is discharged for an alleged violation of any program requirement, the housing program operator shall submit documentation of the alleged violation to the local grantor of state funds.
(II) The local grantor shall submit a copy of the documentation and a summary of all alleged violations reported pursuant to this clause to the appropriate state agency that administers the housing funds.
(III) The local grantor shall include the information described in subclause (II) in its annual reporting as required by existing program requirements.
(11) Disclose applicable rules, behavioral expectations, participation requirements, and program policies to prospective residents or participants through lease agreements, intake materials, resident handbooks, program agreements, or other program documentation, as appropriate.
(12) The residence meets the requirements for recovery housing programs listed in subparagraph (C) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 8256 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(b) For purposes of state and federal housing law, including, but not limited to, the federal Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 3601 et seq.) and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 12101 et seq.), a recovery housing program is a housing provider and not a treatment facility solely on the basis of providing nonclinical services.
(c) Participation in recovery housing programs and eligibility for state or local funding shall not be conditioned on requiring the recovery housing to provide clinical treatment services.
Text of AB 1556 as chaptered, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions