BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND HOUSING
Senator Jim Beall, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 2685 Hearing Date: 6/21/2016
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|Author: |Lopez |
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|Version: |5/11/2016 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant|Alison Dinmore |
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SUBJECT: Housing elements: adoption
DIGEST: This bill requires a local planning agency staff to
collect and compile public comments and provide them to each
member of the legislative body prior to the adoption of the
housing element.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1)Requires cities and counties, under existing planning and
zoning law, to prepare and adopt a general plan, including a
housing element, to guide the future growth of a community.
The housing element shall consist of an identification and
analysis of existing and projected housing needs and a
statement of goals, policies objectives, financial resources,
and scheduled programs for the preservation, improvement, and
development of housing.
2)Requires the housing element to identify adequate sites for
housing, including rental housing, factory-built housing,
mobile homes, and emergency shelters and shall make adequate
provision for the existing and projected needs of all economic
segments of the community.
3)Requires cities and counties within the territory of a
metropolitan planning organization (MPO) to revise their
housing elements every eight years following the adoption of
AB 2685 (Lopez) Page 2 of ?
every other regional transportation plan. Cities and counties
in rural non-MPO regions must revise their housing elements
every five years.
4)Requires the housing element to contain a program which sets
forth a schedule of actions during the planning period, each
with a timeline for implementation. In order to make
adequate provision for the housing needs of all economic
segments of the community, the program must include a diligent
effort by the local government to achieve public participation
of all economic segments of the community in the development
of the housing element.
5)Requires the jurisdiction to submit a draft housing element to
HCD at least 90 days prior to adopting the housing element or
60 days prior to amending the housing element.
6)Requires HCD to review the draft and report its written
findings to the local jurisdiction within 90 days of its
receipt of the draft in the case of an adoption or within 60
days of its receipt in the case of a draft amendment.
7)Requires HCD to consider written comments from any public
agency, group, or person regarding the draft or adopted
element or amendment under review.
This bill requires local planning agency staff to collect and
compile the public comments regarding the housing element
received by the city, county, or city and county, and provide
these comments to each member of the legislative body before it
adopts the housing element.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. According to the author, existing law requires local
planning agencies to involve the public during the development
of the housing element and allows the public to provide
comments. Additionally, local governments must "make a
diligent effort to achieve public participation in the
development of the housing element?" Local community
advocates in the 39th Assembly District have experienced being
left out of the planning process, specifically as it pertains
to housing issues. The community feels strongly about
engagement in the housing element planning development process
and would like more opportunities to voice their views,
AB 2685 (Lopez) Page 3 of ?
comments, suggestions, or opposition. More importantly,
advocates want to ensure that the local legislative body
receives their feedback. Advocates feel that when they do
make comments about housing issues, the City does not fully
take those comments into account. This bill would codify that
the community has one more opportunity to comment and that the
City has to review public comments before taking a vote to
adopt the plan.
2)Housing Elements. Existing planning and zoning law requires
cities and counties to prepare and adopt a general plan,
including a housing element, to guide the future growth of a
community. The general plan must contain seven elements, one
of which is a housing element. Before each housing element
revision, each city and county receives its fair share of
housing through the regional housing needs assessment (RHNA)
process. First, the Department of Housing and Community
Development (HCD) works with a council of governments to
determine the region's housing need. A council of governments
then allocates the region's need to each city and county
within the region. The RHNA allocation includes both an
overall housing need number and a breakdown of this overall
need into four income categories: above moderate-, moderate-,
low-, and very low-income households. The RHNA serves as
goals for the development of all income groups that the
jurisdictions are expected to meet. A housing element must
identify adequate sites with appropriate zoning to meet the
city's or county's share of the RHNA by income category and
ensure that regulatory systems provide opportunities for, and
do not unduly constrain, housing development. HCD reviews
both draft and adopted housing elements to determine whether
or not they are in substantial compliance with the law.
During the planning process, local governments are required to
make a "diligent effort" to achieve public participation.
Jurisdictions use different approaches to engage the public,
including workshops, surveys, and targeted outreach with
community representatives; however, these standards are not
consistent. Before a local government can adopt or amend its
housing element, it must submit a draft to HCD for review.
This is another opportunity for public participation, as HCD
must consider any written comments it receives form a public
agency, group, or person during the review process. HCD's
findings must be considered by the local government prior to
its adoption of the housing element or amendment to the
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housing element.
Assembly Votes:
Floor: 67-0
Appr: 20-0
L.Gov: 9-0
H&CD: 6-0
Related Legislation:
AB 2208 (Santiago) - add to the list of types of sites that a
local government can identify as suitable for residential
development in the housing element. This bill is also being
heard in the Senate Transportation and Housing committee.
AB 2684 (Daly) - authorizes a "housing organization" to enforce
the Housing Accountability Act (HAA). This bill is also being
heard in the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
POSITIONS: (Communicated to the committee before noon on
Wednesday,
June 15, 2016.)
SUPPORT:
None received
OPPOSITION:
None received
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