Winter Advocacy Recap
Brilliant Corners’ External Affairs team participated in a number of advocacy efforts that we are excited to share with the Brilliant Corners community. These efforts include advocacy at the state capitol to expand funding and resources for those experiencing homelessness and impactful policy initiatives that support those efforts. Here are the advocacy efforts that our team has engaged in during the winter of 2025.
State Level Engagement
Housing CA Advocacy Day
Housing California hosted its annual 3-day conference from March 5th-7th, bringing together housing providers, advocates, community-based organizations, and innovators to share knowledge on addressing homelessness and building affordable housing. Teams from across Brilliant Corners participated in the conference, with BC staff playing
an active role during Housing CA Advocacy Day. External Affairs Director, Jose Osuna, Chief Strategic Partnership Officer, Sabrina Gillan, and Deputy Program Development Officer, Tiana Moore participated in Advocacy Day meetings with legislators around important housing-related initiatives.
Advocates pushed for policies supporting housing investments and opposing budget cuts. Additionally, other key legislation covered included SB 417, AB 736, and AB 1229. AB 736 and SB 417 are nearly identical bills that authorize $10 billion in general obligation bond funds to support the construction, rehabilitation, and preservation of affordable housing and permanent supportive housing. AB 1229 seeks to move the adult reentry grant from the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD).
External Affairs Director, Jose Osuna, was also recognized along with 7 other individuals for the Housing Justice Awards. The Housing Justice Awards celebrates and honors individuals who embody the core values and principles underpinning Housing California’s vision: creating a California with homes, health, and prosperity for all in thriving, sustainable communities. Veronica Lewis, Director of Homeless Outreach Program Integrated Care System shared some moving words about Jose, “his life’s work has embodied resilience, transformation, and justice… he has been a formidable force in advocating for formerly homeless and incarcerated individuals focusing on their reintegration and access to housing. His leadership paved the way for transformative programs that address
that address systemic barriers, ensuring that everyone regardless of their past, has the opportunity for a stable home and a fresh start. This drives his commitment to supporting those affected by homelessness.”
Corporation for Supportive Housing Advocacy Day
Twenty-three Brilliant Corners staff from across the state joined Corporation for Supportive Housing during their advocacy day on March 25th at the state capitol. Together with advocates from throughout the state, including Housing California, The People Concern, Long Beach Gray Panthers, and many other organizations, Brilliant Corners advocated to promote long-term solutions to California’s housing and homelessness challenges. BC staff visited several assembly members, including Assemblymember Mike Gipson and Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, and several state senators, including Senator Dr. Akilah Weber Pierson and Senator Maria Durazo. Discussions focused on supporting AB 1229, AB 804, and AB 1165, as well as increasing money for the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) program. In order to establish a Medi-Cal Housing Support program, AB 804 would mandate that the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) obtain federal clearance to create a Medi-Cal Housing Support Services benefit, providing critical housing-related services to people experiencing homelessness. AB 1165 would improve oversight and transparency in homelessness services. Discussions also emphasized the need for reentry services for justice-impacted individuals and ongoing investment in affordable housing.
Brilliant Corners Advocacy Day
While attending CSH Advocacy Day, team members from Brilliant Corners stayed an additional day to continue dedicated advocacy efforts. Organized by Chief Strategic Officer Sabrina Gillan and the External Affairs team—Jose Osuna and Kayana Tyson—this BC Advocacy Day focused on building relationships with key representatives and educating policymakers about the impactful work Brilliant Corners is doing across California.
The team met with the offices of Assemblymembers Chris Ward, Mike Gipson, Buffy Wicks, Isaac Bryan, and Catherine Stefani, as well as Senators Mike McGuire and Dr. Akilah Weber Pierson. These meetings provided a valuable platform to share Brilliant Corners’ mission, advocate for continued funding, and strengthen legislative partnerships essential to advancing housing solutions for those who need them most
Leadership Table
Brilliant Corners’ Director of External Affairs, Jose Osuna, provided a presentation to the Executive Committee on Regional Homeless Alignment on Measure A goals within the broader homeless response strategy. As part of this effort, Jose Osuna provided an update on the Leadership Table’s ongoing work, emphasizing the challenges in setting effective and meaningful targets for prevention, housing, and system response. In an effort to ensure equitable practices are used in all aspects of this effort, the Leadership Table formed an Equity Subcommittee chaired by Dr. D’Artagnan Scorza of LA County’s Anti-Racism, Diversity, and Inclusion (ARDI) initiative, and Jose has been asked to be part of that subcommittee’s work.
On March 14th, Jose, alongside his colleague Jackie Contreras from the Prevention Subcommittee, discussed key priorities, including a significant goal of reducing the number of people experiencing or falling into homelessness by 20%. This ambitious target reflects the urgency of the crisis but also highlights the need for stronger coordination across agencies. The Leadership Table, the Executive Committee, and the L.A. County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA) are committed to working closely to ensure these goals are met. View the recommendations for Measure A Goals here.
Additional Initiatives
LA Fires Recovery Support Letter: Urges state Leadership to direct state agencies to prioritize the needs of older adults and people with disabilities and provide agencies with the funding needed to mitigate the health, housing, and financial risks borne by California’s highest needs populations.
Coordinated Housing & Homelessness Budget Letter: Urges the Newsome Administration and the Legislature to invest a minimum of $2.9 billion in essential affordable housing and homelessness programs – only about 1 percent of the Governor’s proposed $229 billion General Fund spending plan.
Budget Request for Ongoing Funding for a Medi-Cal Housing Support Services Benefit: Budget request to create a Medi-Cal benefit for housing support services for people experiencing and at risk of homelessness. This funding would transform our homelessness response, scale the delivery of services, bring federal dollars to California, and allow Californians to avoid the acute care costs Medi-Cal currently funds.
AB 1229: AB 1229 (Schultz) will restructure the existing Adult Reentry Grant program (ARG), which currently receives ongoing funding to pay for rental assistance and warm hand-off reentry services to individuals who have exited state prison.
AB 804: AB 804 would require DHCS to seek federal approval for a Medi-Cal housing support services benefit in 2026 for the 2027 effective date. Setting a deadline will drive plans to develop their capacity and providers to participate, improve health outcomes among Californians experiencing homelessness, reduce homelessness, standardize eligibility, and draw down millions of federal dollars that we are currently not accessing.
AB 1339: This would require CDI to collect and analyze five years of data on policy availability, premium trends, and claims history and to investigate underwriting factors, including resident populations and source of income. Based on this data, AB 1339 would also require CDI to publish a report with policy and budget recommendations to mitigate cost and access challenges by December 31, 2026.
Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program: Protect, and if possible, expand, current percentages of Cap-and-Trade continuous appropriation for the time-proven Affordable Housing Sustainable Communities Program (AHSC), the Transit and Intercity Rail Capital Program (TIRCP), and the Low Carbon Transit Operations Program (LCTOP).
Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026: If passed, the bond would build and preserve a total of over 135,000 affordable homes, including housing for farm workers and tribal communities. Create over 35,000 new homes affordable to very-low income, extremely low-income families, while preserving or rehabilitating tens of thousands of additional homes.