California Governor kills bill allowing housing loans to undocumented immigrants

California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed a bill on Friday that would have allowed undocumented immigrants access to state funds in helping buy a home, citing “finite funding.”

“Given the finite funding available for (California Housing Finance Agency) programs, expanding program eligibility must be carefully considered within the broader context of the annual state budget to ensure we manage our resources effectively,” Newsom said in a statement. “For this reason, I am unable to sign this bill.”

The state legislature approved the bill and sent it to the governor’s desk last week.

The bill was authored by California lawmaker Joaquin Arambula, a Democrat representing Fresno.

“AB 1840 is about providing an opportunity to hard-working, responsible people who dream of owning a home and passing that legacy to their children,” Arambula has said about the bill. “And, that includes undocumented immigrants who have lived here for decades and pay their taxes.”

Republicans who opposed the legislation said housing assistance for families who came legally to the US should be prioritised and not for undocumented immigrants.

Immigration has emerged as an important issue for the upcoming Nov 5 US elections in which Democratic Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris faces Republican former President Donald Trump.

Trump has labelled Democrats as soft on immigration and has advocated for deporting immigrants who have come to the U.S. illegally. He said on Thursday he would ban mortgages for migrants living illegally in California, after claiming without evidence they were driving up housing costs.

He did not provide specifics on how he would enact such a ban and did not say whether the ban would apply beyond California.

Banks can legally provide mortgages to undocumented migrants, but do so infrequently.