BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
SB 550 (Jackson) - Accessible housing.
Amended: May 8, 2013 Policy Vote: T&H 11-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: January 23, 2013
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
SUSPENSE FILE.
Bill Summary: SB 550 would require the adoption of building
standards for inclusion in the next triennial cycle of the
California Building Standards Code (CBC) that double the
required amount of units in residential public housing
facilities that provide specified mobility and communications
accessibility features.
Fiscal Impact:
One-time costs to the Department of Housing and Community
Development (HCD) of $81,000 to adopt regulations ensuring
that priority is given to persons with disabilities for
accessible units in HCD-assisted multifamily projects
(Proposition 1C bond funds).
Minor costs to the Division of the State Architect (DSA),
HCD, and the Building Standards Commission (BSC) to adopt
specified building standards in the next triennial adoption
cycle (various special funds).
Cost pressures on state housing funds that support
multifamily housing projects (primarily bond funds and
low-income housing tax credit allocations). To the extent
that the larger number of accessible units required in a
project increases costs, and a developer is constrained from
passing those costs onto tenants due to affordability
standards, there could be an increase in demand on various
public funds and programs that support multifamily housing
projects.
Background: Developers of multifamily housing projects are
subject to compliance with the federal Fair Housing Act (1988),
which applies design and construction requirements to structures
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built after March 13, 1991. All housing providers must make
reasonable modifications for those people with disabilities.
Existing law requires the BSC to adopt revised building codes
every three years through a public administrative process of
proposal, review, and adoption. Once adopted, the BSC is
required to publish and make the building standards available to
the public at least 180 days before their effective date. These
procedures give the designers, contractors, local government
planners, building officials, and inspectors in construction
time to become familiar and ensure compliance with the code.
These codes are then published as the California Building Code
(CBC) in the California Code of Regulations.
Since 1993, the CBC has required that new multifamily apartments
with three or more units and condominiums with four or more
units that are constructed after March 1991 must comply with
HCD's accessibility standards. These standards state that all
ground-floor units in buildings without elevators and all units
in buildings with elevators shall be adaptable and on an
accessible route.
The BSC adopted the latest revision to the CBC in January of
this year. The 2013 CBC goes into effect January 1, 2014, and
includes the largest overhaul of the state accessibility
regulations over the past 20 years. Among other things, the
updated CBC places new accessibility requirements on newly
constructed "public housing" facilities. These regulations
require that a minimum of 5 percent of the total units, or at
least one unit in an assisted multifamily housing project,
provide mobility features. They also require that 2 percent, or
at least one of the units, provide communications features.
The 2013 CBC defines "public housing" as housing facilities that
are owned or operated or both, by or on behalf of a public
entity as well as privately owned housing made available for
public use as housing.
Proposed Law: SB 550 would require the DSA, in consultation with
HCD to propose, and the Building Standards Commission to adopt,
building standards in the next code adoption cycle of the BSC
that would:
Require at least 10 percent of the total residential dwelling
units, but no less than one unit, in public housing
facilities provide mobility features that comply with
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specified accessibility standards.
Require at least 4 percent of the total residential dwelling
units, but no less than one unit, in public housing facilities
provide communications features that comply with specified
accessibility standards.
Define "public housing" to include multifamily housing that
receives financial assistance from state or local governments,
or a public agency, as specified.
Define "financial assistance" as provision of land at less
than fair market value or direct financial assistance,
including loans, grants, guarantees, project-based rental
assistance, or state or federal low-income housing tax
credits.
The bill would also require HCD to adopt regulations that give
priority for accessible units to persons with disabilities in
multifamily housing projects with accessible units, if that
project received an HCD grant or loan, as specified. The
regulations would prescribe duties for an owner or manager to
follow to ensure an accessible unit is available for persons
requiring those features.
Staff Comments: Federal Department of Housing and Urban
Development (HUD) regulations require an owner or manager of a
federally-funded housing project to offer an accessible unit
that becomes vacant to a current occupant of the same project
who has a disability that requires the accessibility features of
the unit before offering it to a non-disabled applicant; and
second, to an eligible qualified applicant on the waiting list
having a disability requiring the accessibility features of the
vacant unit. Additionally, when offering a unit to an applicant
who does not have a disability, the owner may require the
applicant to agree to move to a non-accessible unit when
available. SB 550 would require HCD to adopt a regulation that
is consistent with existing federal regulations. HCD would
incur costs of $81,000 to implement this provision.
The provision of specified accessibility features in a
multifamily housing unit is likely to increase the cost of that
unit over the cost to produce a non-accessible unit. Average
costs per unit comparisons were not available at the time of
this analysis. To the extent that the larger number of
accessible units required in a project increases costs, a given
level of state housing dollars would fund fewer projects and
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thus support a lower overall number of housing units than would
otherwise be funded under current law.