Assembly BillVetoedHealth and Safety
AB 255: The Supportive-Recovery Residence Program.
What AB 255 does, verified March 9, 2026
The bill aims to provide supportive-recovery residences that emphasize abstinence as a long-term solution to homelessness. To qualify, at least 90% of program funds must be used for housing or housing-based services using a harm-reduction model. Applicants seeking funds must meet specific criteria, and the state will monitor select programs to ensure they meet requirements emphasizing long-term housing stability and minimizing returns to homelessness. Tenants in supportive-recovery residences are protected from eviction based on relapse, and they must reside in the program until a permanent housing placement option is secured. The residences must provide access to medications for behavioral and physical health conditions, overdose prevention training, and overdose reversal medication for staff and residents. The Department of Housing and Community Development will adopt national standar…
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Last action: Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file. (2026-01-22)Alert me
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| Jan. 22, 2026 | Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file. |
| Jan. 22, 2026 | Stricken from file. |
| Oct. 01, 2025 | Consideration of Governor's veto pending. |
| Oct. 01, 2025 | Vetoed by Governor. |
| Sep. 16, 2025 | Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m. |
Latest bill textEnrolled version, September 11, 2025 · 2,712 words
| Enrolled September 11, 2025 |
| Passed IN Senate September 08, 2025 |
| Passed IN Assembly September 09, 2025 |
| Amended IN Senate August 29, 2025 |
| Amended IN Senate June 26, 2025 |
| Amended IN Assembly April 21, 2025 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 255
| Introduced by Assembly Member Haney (Principal coauthor: Assembly Member Stefani) (Coauthor: Senator Allen) |
January 16, 2025 |
An act to add Division 10.95 (commencing with Section 11999.45) to the Health and Safety Code, and to amend Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to public health.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 255, Haney. The Supportive-Recovery Residence Program.
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 authorize state programs to fund supportive-recovery residences, as defined, that emphasize abstinence under these provisions as long as the state program meets specified criteria, including that at least 90% of program funds awarded to each jurisdiction is used for housing or housing-based services using a harm-reduction model.
This bill would specify requirements for applicants seeking funds under these programs and would require the state to perform periodic monitoring of select supportive-recovery residence programs to ensure that the supportive-recovery residences meet certain requirements, including that core outcomes of the supportive-recovery housing emphasize long-term housing stability and minimize returns to homelessness. The bill would also prohibit eviction on the basis of relapse, as specified. The bill would require, if a tenant is no longer interested in living in a supportive-recovery residence with an abstinence focus, is at risk of eviction, or is discharged from the program, the tenant to reside in the supportive recovery residence until the operator secures the tenant a new permanent housing placement option operated with harm-reduction principles that is also permanent housing. The bill would require supportive housing and services to support residents’ access to and use of medications to treat behavioral and physical health conditions, as specified, and to provide overdose prevention training and overdose reversal medication to staff and residents, as specified.
Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development and requires it to administer various programs that provide services to homeless individuals.
This bill would require the department to adopt the most recent standards approved by the National Alliance for Recovery Residences or other national standards as the minimum standard for supportive-recovery residences that receive public funds under these provisions. The bill would require the department to establish a separate process for determining if the supportive-recovery residence complies with the core components of Housing First. The bill would require the department to verify compliance with the core components of Housing First for residences seeking Housing First certification, as specified. The bill would authorize the department to charge an annual fee to verify that supportive-recovery residences comply with the core components of Housing First in an amount not to exceed the reasonable cost of administering the program, not to exceed $100, and would establish the Supportive-Recovery Residence Program Fund for collection of the fee, to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature.
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 Californians from drugs and alcohol surged 488 percent between 2010 and 2020.
(d) Approximately 46 percent of homeless Californians report substance use as currently leading to health, legal, social, or financial problems.
(e) The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Recovery Housing Policy Brief was developed to provide clear guidance regarding the expected and effective operation of recovery housing programs, defined as housing in an abstinence-focused and peer-supported community for people recovering from substance use issues.
(f) Recovery housing programs that operated in a manner consistent with the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Recovery Housing Policy Brief 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.
SEC. 2.
Division 10.95 (commencing with Section 11999.45) is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:DIVISION 10.95. The Supportive-Recovery Residence Program
11999.45.
For the purposes of this division, the following definitions shall apply:(a) “Department” means the Department of Housing and Community Development.
(b) “Housing first model” means housing that satisfies the core components of Housing First pursuant to Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(c) “Supportive-recovery residence” means housing in a residence that serves individuals experiencing, or who are at risk of experiencing, homelessness and who have substance use disorders and that does all of the following:
(1) Satisfies the core components of Housing First pursuant to Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(2) Uses substance-use-specific, peer support, and physical design features supporting individuals and families on a path to recovery from substance use disorders.
(3) Emphasizes abstinence.
(4) Offers tenants permanent housing only.
11999.50.
(a) The department shall adopt the most recent standards approved by the National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR) or other broadly recognized national standards as the minimum standard for supportive-recovery residences (SRR) that receive public funding under this division.(b) An SRR that is certified by an organization currently recognized as an affiliate of NARR and has adopted the standards approved by NARR, including a requirement that a federally approved opioid overdose reversal medication be readily available in case of an onsite opioid overdose emergency, may be presumed to have met the minimum best practices operating requirement adopted by the department.
(c) The department shall establish a separate process for determining if the SRR complies with the core components of Housing First pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(d) The department shall verify that the NARR affiliate ensures compliance with subdivision (c) for residences seeking Housing First certification by the NARR affiliate for the purposes of this section.
(e) The department may charge the NARR affiliate an annual fee for verifying the SRRs meet the requirements of subdivision (c) in an amount not to exceed the reasonable cost of administering the program, not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100) per unit approved as Housing First-certified.
(f) The Supportive-Recovery Residence Program Fund is hereby established in the State Treasury. All fees collected in accordance with this division shall be deposited in the fund. The moneys in the fund shall be available upon appropriation by the Legislature for the purposes of supporting the certification activities of the department.
(g) This division shall not prohibit a county contracting authority from requiring quality and performance standards that are similar to, or that exceed, the standards described in this division, when contracting for recovery residence services.
(h) A certifying organization that provides recognition, registration, or certification for supportive-recovery residences may enter into a memorandum of understanding with a county for the purpose of determining if the county’s requirements meet or exceed its minimum requirements. A memorandum of understanding may include the granting of reciprocity based upon the requirements of the county contract.
SEC. 3.
Section 8255 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is amended to read:8255.
For purposes of this chapter:(a) “Council” means the California Interagency Council on Homelessness, formerly known as the Homeless Coordinating and Financing Council established pursuant to Section 8257.
(b) “Core components of Housing First” means all of the following:
(1) Tenant screening and selection practices that promote accepting applicants regardless of their sobriety or use of substances, completion of treatment, or participation in services.
(2) Applicants are not rejected on the basis of poor credit or financial history, poor or lack of rental history, criminal convictions unrelated to tenancy, or behaviors that indicate a lack of “housing readiness.”
(3) Acceptance of referrals directly from shelters, street outreach, drop-in centers, and other parts of crisis response systems frequented by vulnerable people experiencing homelessness.
(4) Supportive services that emphasize engagement and problem solving over therapeutic goals and service plans that are highly tenant-driven without predetermined goals.
(5) Participation in services or program compliance is not a condition of permanent housing tenancy.
(6) Tenants have a lease and all the rights and responsibilities of tenancy, as outlined in the Civil, Health and Safety, and Government Codes.
(7) The use of alcohol or drugs in and of itself, without other lease violations, is not a reason for eviction.
(8) In communities with coordinated assessment and entry systems, incentives for funding promote tenant selection plans for supportive housing that prioritize eligible tenants based on criteria other than “first-come-first-serve,” including, but not limited to, the duration or chronicity of homelessness, vulnerability to early mortality, or high utilization of crisis services. Prioritization may include triage tools, developed through local data, to identify high-cost, high-need homeless residents.
(9) Case managers and service coordinators who are trained in and actively employ evidence-based practices for client engagement, including, but not limited to, motivational interviewing and client-centered counseling.
(10) (A) Services are informed by a harm-reduction philosophy that recognizes drug and alcohol use and addiction as a part of tenants’ lives, where tenants are engaged in nonjudgmental communication regarding drug and alcohol use, and where tenants are offered education regarding how to avoid risky behaviors and engage in safer practices, as well as connected to evidence-based treatment if the tenant so chooses.
(B) State departments or agencies may allow programs to fund supportive-recovery residences, as defined in Section 11999.45 of the Health and Safety Code, that have been certified pursuant to Section 11999.50 of the Health and Safety Code, and use substance-use-specific, peer support, and physical design features supporting individuals and families on a path to recovery from addiction that emphasizes abstinence and promotes self-determination in the recovery process, so long as the state program meets all of the following requirements:
(i) At least 90 percent of program funds awarded to each jurisdiction from a notice of funding availability is used for housing or housing-based services using a harm-reduction model.
(ii) The state program shall require a grantee under the program, prior to awarding subgrants, to confirm that the subgrantee has achieved successful outcomes in promoting housing retention, similar to rates of housing retention as harm-reduction programs.
(iii) The state program shall require a grantee under the program, prior to awarding subgrants, to confirm that the subgrantee’s services support, and do not prevent or restrict, access to prescribed medications, including for mental health and substance use disorders.
(iv) The state performs periodic monitoring of select recovery housing programs to ensure that the supportive-recovery residence complies with the following:
(I) The supportive-recovery residence otherwise complies with all other components of Housing First in this section, including low barrier to entry.
(II) Participation in a program is self-initiated.
(III) Core outcomes emphasize long-term housing stability and minimize returns to homelessness.
(IV) Policies and operations ensure individual rights of privacy, dignity and respect, and freedom from coercion and restraint, as well as continuous, uninterrupted access to the housing.
(V) Holistic services and peer-based recovery supports are available and directly communicated to all program participants along with services that align with participants’ choice and prioritization of personal goals of sustained recovery and abstinence from substance use.
(VI) The housing abides by local and state landlord-tenant laws governing grounds for eviction.
(VII) Relapse is not cause for eviction from housing and tenants receive relapse support.
(VIII) Eviction from a supportive-recovery residence shall only occur when a tenant’s behavior substantially disrupts or impacts the welfare of the recovery community in which the tenant resides. A tenant may apply to reenter the housing program if expressing a renewed commitment to living in a housing setting targeted to people in recovery with an abstinence focus. Presence of a roommate or roommates shall not be a valid basis for eviction.
(IX) If a tenant is no longer interested in living in a supportive-recovery residence with an abstinence focus, is at risk of eviction, or is discharged from the program, the tenant shall reside in the supportive recovery residence until the operator secures the tenant a new permanent housing placement option operated with harm-reduction principles that is also permanent housing. If an eviction proceeding is initiated for an alleged violation of a lease provision agreement as described in subclause (VIII), the subgrantee shall submit documentation of the alleged lease violation to the local continuum of care and any other grantor.
(X) The individual or family is also offered at least one harm-reduction housing placement option and the individual or family chooses a supportive recovery residence over housing offering a harm-reduction approach. The harm-reduction housing placement option and the supportive recovery residence do not have to be available for move in at the same time.
(XI) Supportive housing and services shall support, and shall not prevent or restrict, a resident’s access to and use of medications prescribed for behavioral or physical health conditions. This includes, but is not limited to, medications prescribed for the treatment of mental health conditions and substance use disorders, including alcohol use disorder and opioid use disorder. Medications may include, but are not limited to, buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone.
(XII) Supportive housing and services shall provide overdose prevention and response training to staff and residents and shall make overdose reversal medication available and readily accessible to staff and residents on site.
(11) The project and specific apartment may include special physical features that accommodate disabilities, reduce harm, and promote health and community and independence among tenants.
(c) “Homeless” has the same definition as that term is defined in Section 91.5 of Title 24 of the Code of Federal Regulations.
(d) (1) “Housing First” means the evidence-based model that uses housing as a tool, rather than a reward, for recovery and that centers on providing or connecting homeless people to permanent housing as quickly as possible. Housing First providers offer services as needed and requested on a voluntary basis and do not make housing contingent on participation in services.
(2) (A) “Housing First” includes time-limited rental or services assistance, so long as the housing and service provider assists the recipient in accessing permanent housing and in securing longer term rental assistance, income assistance, or employment, and the housing otherwise meets the core components identified in this section.
(B) For time-limited, supportive services programs serving homeless youth, programs should use a positive youth development model and be culturally competent to serve unaccompanied youth under 25 years of age. Providers should work with the youth to engage in family reunification efforts, where appropriate and when in the best interest of the youth. In the event of an eviction, programs shall make every effort, which shall be documented, to link tenants to other stable, safe, and decent housing options. Exit to homelessness should be extremely rare, and only after a tenant refuses assistance with housing search, location, and move-in assistance.
(e) “State programs” means any programs a California state agency or department funds, implements, or administers for the purpose of providing emergency shelter, interim housing, housing, or housing-based services to people experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness, with the exception of federally funded programs with requirements inconsistent with this chapter.
(f) “Supportive-recovery residence” has the same definition as in Section 11999.45 of the Health and Safety Code.
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