In 1944, President Franklin D. Roosevelt proposed in his State of the Union Address a second Bill of Rights, known more specifically as an “economic bill of rights”:

We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence… In our day, these economic truths have become accepted as self-evident. We have accepted, so to speak, a second Bill of Rights under which a new basis of security and prosperity can be established for all – regardless of station, race, or creed.
– President Roosevelt, January 11, 1944

Among the truths he laid out was “the right of every family to a decent home.” Nearly 70 years after President Roosevelt laid out this dream for our future, we have instead an opposing nightmare scenario. Families across the country are being torn from their homes – in some cases after living there for many years – due to inflated and unsustainable mortgages and the collapse of our financial markets. Nationwide, this situation has led to the deterioration of many communities and neighborhoods.

In the first quarter of this year, California alone accounted for 23 percent of the nation’s total foreclosure activity. Last year banks foreclosed on almost 200,000 homes in California, and that number is expected to rise this year. Behind these statistics are families, including elderly Californians, who are losing their homes after years of ownership. Some of these homeowners could have options to keep their houses through loan modifications, but many have encountered difficulty working with loan servicers. The stories are often similar and occasionally horrific. Servicers lose or misplace a borrower’s loan modification paperwork – sometimes repeatedly. Homeowners are put on hold for hours and then disconnected. Servicers give borrowers conflicting answers regarding the status of their loan modification application. Worst of all is when a servicer forecloses and sells a borrower’s home while the homeowner is being considered for a loan modification or is making payments on a mutually agreed upon trial plan.

This situation cannot continue. While we know there is no quick fix for our nation’s foreclosure crisis, there are important steps we can take to help homeowners avoid foreclosure.

Earlier this year, Senate president pro tem Darrell Steinberg and I introduced Senate Bill 1275, the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights, which aims to prevent unnecessary foreclosures. SB 1275 provides rights and remedies for homeowners working their way through the loan modification process so they can potentially avoid foreclosure. Under this legislation, lenders cannot foreclose on a home while a borrower is being evaluated for a loan modification. If a loan modification is not a viable option for a homeowner, loan servicers must provide borrowers with a detailed explanation.

The foreclosure crisis has also affected residential homes that specialize in caring for the elderly. Across the state, elderly residents have lost their homes – often without any prior notice whatsoever – because the owner of the care facility has lost the property due to foreclosure. In recent incidents, residents had no idea they were losing their homes until sheriffs had them forcibly removed, leaving Adult Protective Services scrambling to find emergency placements. These last-minute notifications have an especially devastating effect on the elderly since they are often frail, highly susceptible to transfer trauma, and rely on assistance for daily living.

To strengthen the rights of California seniors who live in residential care facilities, I have introduced Senate Bill 1329. This bill, sponsored by California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, ensures that vulnerable care facility residents and their loved ones are notified when their home is being threatened. With such notification, they will be better able to carefully plan for a possible move and avoid dangerous last-minute evictions.

SB 1275 and SB 1329 present two ways we can alleviate some of the suffering caused by our nation’s financial collapse. Although President Roosevelt’s vision of a second Bill of Rights was unfortunately never implemented, we can still draw strength and direction from his vision of a better and brighter future – and the dream of home sweet home – for everyone.

For more information about these bills and others, please visit www.sen.ca.gov/Leno.

Senator Leno represents the Third Senate District of California, which includes portions of San Francisco and Sonoma Counties and all of Marin County. He can be reached online at www.sen.ca.gov/Leno, by phone at 415-557-1300, or by e-mail at [email protected].