BILL NUMBER: AB 1537	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Levine

                        JANUARY 22, 2014

   An act to amend Section 65583.2 of the Government Code, relating
to land use.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1537, as introduced, Levine. General plan housing element:
regional housing need.
   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. That law requires the housing element to, among other
things, include an inventory of land suitable for residential
development and make adequate provision for the existing and
projected needs of all economic segments of the community. That law
prescribes the densities appropriate to accomodate housing for lower
income households and varies those densities depending upon how an
area is classified, whether as metropolitan, suburban, or in another
category. A city, county, or city and county is required to submit a
draft housing element or draft amendment to its housing element to
the Department of Housing and Community Development for a
determination of whether the draft substantially complies with state
law governing housing elements.
   This bill would require a county in a Metropolitan Statistical
Area of 2,000,000 or more and that has a population of less than
400,000 to be considered suburban for purposes of determining the
densities appropriate to accomodate housing for lower income
households. The bill would, for that same purpose, also require a
city that has a population of less than 100,000 and is incorporated
within that county to be considered suburban.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 65583.2 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
   65583.2.  (a) A city's or county's inventory of land suitable for
residential development pursuant to paragraph (3) of subdivision (a)
of Section 65583 shall be used to identify sites that can be
developed for housing within the planning period and that are
sufficient to provide for the jurisdiction's share of the regional
housing need for all income levels pursuant to Section 65584. As used
in this section, "land suitable for residential development"
includes all of the following:
   (1) Vacant sites zoned for residential use.
   (2) Vacant sites zoned for nonresidential use that allows
residential development.
   (3) Residentially zoned sites that are capable of being developed
at a higher density.
   (4) Sites zoned for nonresidential use that can be redeveloped
for, and as necessary, rezoned for, residential use.
   (b) The inventory of land shall include all of the following:
   (1) A listing of properties by parcel number or other unique
reference.
   (2) The size of each property listed pursuant to paragraph (1),
and the general plan designation and zoning of each property.
   (3) For nonvacant sites, a description of the existing use of each
property.
   (4) A general description of any environmental constraints to the
development of housing within the jurisdiction, the documentation for
which has been made available to the jurisdiction. This information
need not be identified on a site-specific basis.
   (5) A general description of existing or planned water, sewer, and
other dry utilities supply, including the availability and access to
distribution facilities. This information need not be identified on
a site-specific basis.
   (6) Sites identified as available for housing for above
moderate-income households in areas not served by public sewer
systems. This information need not be identified on a site-specific
basis.
   (7) A map that shows the location of the sites included in the
inventory, such as the land use map from the jurisdiction's general
plan for reference purposes only.
   (c) Based on the information provided in subdivision (b), a city
or county shall determine whether each site in the inventory can
accommodate some portion of its share of the regional housing need by
income level during the planning period, as determined pursuant to
Section 65584. The analysis shall determine whether the inventory can
provide for a variety of types of housing, including multifamily
rental housing, factory-built housing, mobilehomes, housing for
agricultural employees, emergency shelters, and transitional housing.
The city or county shall determine the number of housing units that
can be accommodated on each site as follows:
   (1) If local law or regulations require the development of a site
at a minimum density, the department shall accept the planning agency'
s calculation of the total housing unit capacity on that site based
on the established minimum density. If the city or county does not
adopt a law or regulations requiring the development of a site at a
minimum density, then it shall demonstrate how the number of units
determined for that site pursuant to this subdivision will be
accommodated.
   (2) The number of units calculated pursuant to paragraph (1) shall
be adjusted as necessary, based on the land use controls and site
improvements requirement identified in paragraph (5) of subdivision
(a) of Section 65583.
   (3) For the number of units calculated to accommodate its share of
the regional housing need for lower income households pursuant to
paragraph (2), a city or county shall do either of the following:
   (A) Provide an analysis demonstrating how the adopted densities
accommodate this need. The analysis shall include, but is not limited
to, factors such as market demand, financial feasibility, or
information based on development project experience within a zone or
zones that provide housing for lower income households.
   (B) The following densities shall be deemed appropriate to
accommodate housing for lower income households:
   (i) For  an  incorporated  cities  
city  within  a  nonmetropolitan  counties
  county  and for  a  nonmetropolitan
 counties   county  that  have
  has a  micropolitan  areas: 
 area:  sites allowing at least 15 units per acre.
   (ii) For  an  unincorporated  areas 
 area  in  all   a 
nonmetropolitan  counties   county  not
included in clause (i): sites allowing at least 10 units per acre.
   (iii) For  a  suburban  jurisdictions: 
 jurisdiction,  sites allowing at least 20 units per acre.
   (iv) For  jurisdictions   a jurisdiction
 in  a  metropolitan counties:  
county:  sites allowing at least 30 units per acre.
   (d) For purposes of this section,  a  metropolitan
 counties,   county,  nonmetropolitan
 counties,   county,  and nonmetropolitan
 counties   county  with  a
micropolitan  areas are   area shall be
 as determined by the United States Census Bureau. 
Nonmetropolitancounties   A nonmetropolitan county 
with  a  micropolitan  areas include  
area   includes  the following counties: Del Norte,
Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Nevada, Tehama, and Tuolumne and 
such  other counties as may be determined by the United
States Census Bureau to be nonmetropolitan counties with micropolitan
areas in the future.
   (e) A jurisdiction  is   shall be 
considered suburban if the jurisdiction does not meet the
requirements of clauses (i) and (ii) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph
(3) of subdivision (c) and is located in a Metropolitan Statistical
Area (MSA) of less than 2,000,000 in population, unless that
jurisdiction's population is greater than 100,000, in which case it
 is   shall be  considered metropolitan.
 Counties   A county  , not including the
City and County of San Francisco,  will   shall
 be considered suburban unless  they are  
the county is  in a MSA of 2,000,000 or greater in population in
which case  they are   the county shall be
 considered metropolitan.  A county that is included in a
MSA of 2,000,000 or greater in population, and has a population of
less than 400,000 shall be considered suburban. When this county
includes an incorporated city that has a population of less than
100,000, this city shall also be considered suburban. 
   (f) A jurisdiction  is   shall be 
considered metropolitan if the jurisdiction does not meet the
requirements for "suburban area" above and is located in a MSA of
2,000,000 or greater in population, unless that jurisdiction's
population is less than 25,000 in which case it  is 
 shall be  considered suburban.
   (g) For sites described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (b), the
city or county shall specify the additional development potential for
each site within the planning period and shall provide an
explanation of the methodology used to determine the development
potential. The methodology shall consider factors including the
extent to which existing uses may constitute an impediment to
additional residential development, development trends, market
conditions, and regulatory or other incentives or standards to
encourage additional residential development on these sites.
   (h) The program required by subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of
subdivision (c) of Section 65583 shall accommodate 100 percent of the
need for housing for very low and low-income households allocated
pursuant to Section 65584 for which site capacity has not been
identified in the inventory of sites pursuant to paragraph (3) of
subdivision (a) on sites that shall be zoned to permit owner-occupied
and rental multifamily residential use by right during the planning
period. These sites shall be zoned with minimum density and
development standards that permit at least 16 units per site at a
density of at least 16 units per acre in jurisdictions described in
clause (i) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (c)
and at least 20 units per acre in jurisdictions described in clauses
(iii) and (iv) of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3) of subdivision
(c). At least 50 percent of the very low and low-income housing need
shall be accommodated on sites designated for residential use and for
which nonresidential uses or mixed-uses are not permitted.
   (i) For purposes of this section and Section 65583, the phrase
"use by right" shall mean that the local government's review of the
owner-occupied or multifamily residential use may not require a
conditional use permit, planned unit development permit, or other
discretionary local government review or approval that would
constitute a "project" for purposes of Division 13 (commencing with
Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code. Any subdivision of the
sites shall be subject to all laws, including, but not limited to,
the local government ordinance implementing the Subdivision Map Act.
A local ordinance may provide that "use by right" does not exempt the
use from design review. However, that design review shall not
constitute a "project" for purposes of Division 13 (commencing with
Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code. Use by right for all
rental multifamily residential housing shall be provided in
accordance with subdivision (f) of Section 65589.5.