BILL NUMBER: AB 2508 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 3, 2010
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 20, 2010
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Caballero
FEBRUARY 19, 2010
An act to add Section 50515 to the Health and Safety
Code, An act to amend Section 53545.13 of the Health
and Safety Code, relating to housing.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2508, as amended, Caballero. Housing: assistance
activities. Infill Incentive Grant Program of 2007.
The Planning and Zoning Law requires each city, county, or city
and county to prepare and adopt a general plan for its jurisdiction
that contains certain mandatory elements, including a housing
element. One part of the housing element is an assessment of housing
needs and an inventory of land suitable for residential development.
Existing law sets forth various classifications and definitions for
purposes of determining a city or county's inventory.
Existing law authorizes the Department of Housing and Community
Development to provide technical assistance to groups and persons
with various housing needs and to administer various housing
programs, including, but not limited to, programs promoting infill
residential development.
Existing law establishes the Infill Incentive Grant Program of
2007, administered by the Department of Housing and Community
Development, a competitive grant program to facilitate the
development of qualifying infill residential projects.
This bill would, upon request by a local agency, allow that agency
to petition the department for a reclassification
an excep tion to the classification of its
jurisdiction under a specified provision of the Planning and Zoning
Law, if that classification jeopardizes its ability
agency believes it is unable to meet threshold
density requirements for infill development programs
administered by the department the Infill Incentive
Grant Program of 2007 . The bill would establish procedures for
a reclassification the exception
request.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 53545.13 of the
Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
53545.13. (a) The Infill Incentive Grant Program of 2007 is
hereby established to be administered by the department.
(b) Upon appropriation of funds by the Legislature for the purpose
of implementing paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 53545,
the department shall establish and administer a competitive grant
program to allocate those funds to selected capital improvement
projects that are an integral part of, or necessary to facilitate the
development of, a qualifying infill project or a qualifying infill
area.
(c) A qualifying infill project or qualifying infill area for
which a capital improvement project grant may be awarded shall meet
all of the following conditions:
(1) Be located in a city, county, or city and county, in which the
general plan of the city, county, or city and county, has an adopted
housing element that has been found by the department, pursuant to
Section 65585 of the Government Code, to be in compliance with the
requirements of Article 10.6 (commencing with Section 65580) of
Chapter 3 of Division 1 of Title 7 of the Government Code.
(2) Include not less than 15 percent of affordable units, as
follows:
(A) For projects that contain both rental and ownership units,
units of either or both product types may be included in the
calculation of the affordability criteria.
(B) (i) To the extent included in a project grant application, for
the purpose of calculating the percentage of affordable units, the
department may consider the entire master development in which the
development seeking grant funding is included.
(ii) Where applicable, an applicant may include a replacement
housing plan to ensure that dwelling units housing persons and
families of low or moderate income are not removed from the low- and
moderate-income housing market. Residential units to be replaced may
not be counted toward meeting the affordability threshold required
for eligibility for funding under this section.
(C) For the purposes of this subdivision, "affordable unit" means
a unit that is made available at an affordable rent, as defined in
Section 50053, to a household earning no more than 60 percent of the
area median income or at an affordable housing cost, as defined in
Section 50052.5, to a household earning no more than 120 percent of
the area median income. Rental units shall be subject to a recorded
covenant that ensures affordability for at least 55 years. Ownership
units shall initially be sold to and occupied by a qualified
household, and subject to a recorded covenant that includes either a
resale restriction for at least 30 years or equity sharing upon
resale.
(D) A qualifying infill project or qualifying infill area for
which a disposition and development agreement or other project- or
area-specific agreement between the developer and the local agency
having jurisdiction over the project has been executed on or before
the effective date of the act adding this section, shall be deemed to
meet the affordability requirement of this paragraph (2) if the
agreement includes affordability covenants that subject the project
or area to the production of affordable units for very low, low-, or
moderate-income households.
(3) Include average residential densities on the parcels to be
developed that are equal to or greater than the densities described
in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (c) of Section
65583.2 of the Government Code, except that a project located in a
rural area as defined in Section 50199.21 shall include average
residential densities on the parcels to be developed of at least 10
units per acre.
(4) Be located in an area designated for mixed-use or residential
development pursuant to one of the following adopted plans:
(A) A general plan adopted pursuant to Section 65300 of the
Government Code.
(B) A project area redevelopment plan approved pursuant to Section
33330.
(C) A regional blueprint plan as defined in the California
Regional Blueprint Planning Program administered by the Business,
Transportation and Housing Agency, or a regional plan as defined in
Section 65060.7 of the Government Code.
(5) For qualifying infill projects or qualifying infill areas
located in a redevelopment project area, meet the requirements
contained in subdivision (a) of Section 33413.
(d) In its review and ranking of applications for the award of
capital improvement project grants, the department shall rank the
affected qualifying infill projects and qualifying infill areas based
on the following priorities:
(1) Project readiness, which shall include all of the following:
(A) A demonstration that the project or area development can
complete environmental review and secure necessary entitlements from
the local jurisdiction within a reasonable period of time following
the submittal of a grant application.
(B) A demonstration that the eligible applicant can secure
sufficient funding commitments derived from sources other than this
part for the timely development of a qualifying infill project or
development of a qualifying infill area.
(C) A demonstration that the project or area development has
sufficient local support to achieve the proposed improvement.
(2) The depth and duration of the affordability of the housing
proposed for a qualifying infill project or qualifying infill area.
(3) The extent to which the average residential densities on the
parcels to be developed exceed the density standards contained in
paragraph (3) of subdivision (c).
(4) The qualifying infill project's or qualifying infill area's
inclusion of, or proximity or accessibility to, a transit station or
major transit stop.
(5) The proximity of housing to parks, employment or retail
centers, schools, or social services.
(6) The qualifying infill project or qualifying infill area
location's consistency with an adopted regional blueprint plan or
other adopted regional growth plan intended to foster efficient land
use.
(e) In allocating funds pursuant to this section, the department,
to the maximum extent feasible, shall ensure a reasonable geographic
distribution of funds.
(f) Funds awarded pursuant to this section shall supplement, not
supplant, other available funding.
(g) (1) The department shall adopt guidelines for the operation of
the grant program, including guidelines to ensure the tax-exempt
status of the bonds issued pursuant to this part, and may administer
the program under those guidelines.
(2) The guidelines shall include provisions for the reversion of
grant awards that are not encumbered within four years of the fiscal
year in which an award was made, and for the recapture of grants
awarded, but for which development of the related housing units has
not progressed in a reasonable period of time from the date of the
grant award, as determined by the department.
(3) The guidelines shall not be subject to the requirements of
Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Division 3 of Title 2
of the Government Code.
(h) For each fiscal year within the duration of the grant program,
the department shall include within the report to the Legislature,
required by Section 50408, information on its activities relating to
the grant program. The report shall include, but is not limited to,
the following information:
(1) A summary of the projects that received grants under the
program for each fiscal year that grants were awarded.
(2) The description, location, and estimated date of completion
for each project that received a grant award under the program.
(3) An update on the status of each project that received a grant
award under the program, and the number of housing units created or
facilitated by the program.
(i) A local agency may petition the department for an exception to
the jurisdiction's classification pursuant to subdivisions (d) to
(f), inclusive, of Section 65583.2 of the Government Code, if the
agency believes it is unable to meet the density requirements
specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c). The local agency shall
submit the petition with its application and shall include the
reasons why the agency believes the exception is warranted. The local
agency shall provide information supporting the need for the
exception, including, but not limited to, any limitations that the
local agency may encounter in meeting the density requirements
specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c). Any exception shall be
for the purposes of this section only.
SECTION 1. Section 50515 is added to the Health
and Safety Code, to read:
50515. A local agency may petition the department for a
jurisdiction reclassification if its classification pursuant to
subdivisions (d) to (f), inclusive, of Section 65583.2 of the
Government Code jeopardizes the agency's ability to meet threshold
requirements for programs promoting infill development, as
administered by the department. The local agency shall submit the
petition with its application for the relevant program and shall
include the reasons why the agency believes the classification to be
in error. The agency shall also provide other information supporting
the need for the classification change, including, but not limited
to, any limitations that the local agency may encounter in meeting
the density requirements specified in subparagraph (B) of paragraph
(3) of subdivision (c) of Section 65583.2 of the Government Code.