Amended in Senate June 23, 2016

Amended in Assembly April 25, 2016

Amended in Assembly March 28, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2783

Introduced by Assembly Members Eduardo Garcia, Eggman, Cristina Garcia, Gomez, and Steinorth

February 19, 2016

An act to amend Section 75215 of the Public Resources Code, relating to greenhouse gases.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2783, as amended, Eduardo Garcia. Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program.

Existing law requires all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the State Air Resources Board from the auction or sale of allowances as part of a market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and to be available upon appropriation by the Legislature. Existing law continuously appropriates 20% of the annual proceeds of the fund to the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program, administered by the Strategic Growth Council, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through projects that implement land use, housing, transportation, and agricultural land preservation practices to support infill and compact development and that support other related and coordinated public policy objectives. Existing law requires the council to develop guidelines and selection criteria for the program.

This bill would require the Strategic Growth Council to consider revisions to the guidelines and selection criteria with respect to affordable housing projects that qualify under the program’s rural innovation project area, as specified, and to provide a written explanation to the begin delete Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development end delete begin insert Legislature end insert by March 1, 2017, if the council determines that it will not make the revisions.

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 75215 of the Public Resources Code is
amended to read:

75215.  

(a) Prior to awarding funds under the program, the
council, in coordination with the member agencies and departments
of the council, the State Air Resources Board, and other state
entities, as needed, shall develop guidelines and selection criteria
for the implementation of the program.

(b) Prior to adoption of the guidelines and the selection criteria,
the council shall conduct at least two public workshops to receive
and consider public comments. One workshop shall be held at a
location in northern California and one workshop shall be held at
a location in southern California.

(c) The council shall publish the draft guidelines and selection
criteria on its Internet Web site at least 30 days prior to the public
meetings.

(d) In adopting the guidelines and selection criteria, the council
shall consider the comments from local governments, regional
agencies, and other stakeholders. The council shall conduct
outreach to disadvantaged communities to encourage comments
on the draft guidelines from those communities.

(e) (1) Program guidelines may be revised by the council to
reflect changes in program focus or need. Outreach to stakeholders
shall be conducted, pursuant to subdivisions (a), (b), (c), and (d),
before the council adopts changes to guidelines.

(2) The council shall consider all of the following changes to
the guidelines and selection criteria with respect to affordable
housing projects that qualify under the program’s rural innovation
project area:

(A)  begin delete Projects shall be allowed to build end delete begin insert Allow projects to be built end insert
at nonmetropolitan density requirements based on net density. begin delete The end delete

begin insert (B) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Revise the end insert definition of “net density” begin delete shall be revised end delete to
mean the total number of dwelling units per acre of land to be
developed for residential or mixed use, excluding permanent
streets, required drainage facilities, sidewalks, parks, public
rights-of-way, easements, encroachments, and dedicated open
space.

begin delete

(B)

end delete

begin insert (C) end insert  For projects that receive 4 percent low-income housing tax
credits, begin insert require end insert one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) per
restricted unit begin delete shall end delete begin insert to end insert be added to the base amount for loan limit
calculation purposes.

begin delete

(C) Scoring shall

end delete

begin insert (D) end insert begin insert   end insert begin insert Require scoring to end insert be awarded based on the extent to which
an application demonstrates walkable corridors and incorporates
features that encourage bicycling, which will exist upon completion
of the project.

(3) If the council determines that it will not revise the guidelines
and selection criteria consistent with paragraph (2), the council
shall provide a written explanation on or before March 1, 2017,
to the begin delete Assembly Committee on Housing and Community
Development end delete begin insert Legislature, pursuant to Section 9795 of the
Government Code, end insert as to why the revisions will not be adopted.

(f) Upon the adoption of the guidelines and selection criteria,
the council shall, pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government
Code, submit copies of the guidelines to the fiscal and appropriate
policy committees of the Legislature.

(g) Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of
Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code does not apply to
the development and adoption of the guidelines and selection
criteria pursuant to this section.