BILL ANALYSIS
AB 842
Page 1
REPLACE - 01/29/2008
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 842 (Jones)
As Amended January 17, 2008
Majority vote
LOCAL GOVERNMENT 4-2 HOUSING 5-2
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|Ayes:|Caballero, De La Torre, |Ayes:|Saldana, Bass, Hancock, |
| |Lieber, Ma | |Mullin, Swanson |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Houston, La Malfa |Nays:|Garcia, Sharon Runner |
| | | | |
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APPROPRIATIONS 10-5
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|Ayes:|Leno, Davis, DeSaulnier, | | |
| |Huffman, Karnette, | | |
| |Krekorian, Lieu, Ma, | | |
| |Nava, Solorio | | |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Walters, Emmerson, La | | |
| |Malfa, Nakanishi, Sharon | | |
| |Runner | | |
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SUMMARY : Requires the Department of Housing and Community
Development (HCD) to give priority to projects located in
jurisdictions or regions that have adopted plans that will
reduce the amount of vehicle miles traveled by at least 10% when
awarding grants under the Infill Incentives Grant Program and
the Transit-Oriented Development Implementation Program (TOD
Implementation Program). Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires HCD, in ranking applications for capital improvement
project grants under the Infill Incentives Grant Program, to
give priority to:
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a) Applications for projects that are located in a city,
county, or city and county that has adopted a general plan
that will reduce the amount of vehicle miles traveled by at
least 10%, if the project is consistent with the plan; and,
b) Applications for projects that are located in a region
covered by a council of governments that has adopted a
transportation plan, a regional transportation plan, a
regional blueprint, or similar document that will reduce
the amount of vehicle miles traveled by at least 10%, if
the project is consistent with the plan, blueprint, or
similar document.
2)Requires HCD, in ranking applications for grants under TOD
Implementation Program, to award a substantial preference to:
a) Applications for projects that are located in a city,
county, or city and county that has adopted a general plan
that will reduce the amount of vehicle miles traveled by at
least 10%, if the project is consistent with the plan; and,
b) Applications for projects that are located in a region
covered by a council of governments that has adopted a
transportation plan, a regional transportation plan, a
regional blueprint, or similar document that will reduce
the amount of vehicle miles traveled by at least 10%, if
the project is consistent with the plan, blueprint, or
similar document.
3)Requires the California Transportation Commission (CTC) to
update its guidelines for the preparation of regional
transportation plans (RTPs) to include a requirement that each
RTP provide for a 10% reduction in the growth increment of
vehicle miles traveled.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Creates the $850 million Regional Planning, Housing, and
Infill Incentive Account and specifies that funds in the
account shall be made available, upon appropriation and
subject to any other conditions and criteria that the
Legislature establishes in statute, for the following
purposes:
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a) Infill incentive grants for capital outlay related to
infill housing development and other related infill
development, including, but not limited to, all of the
following:
i) Park creation, development, or rehabilitation to
encourage infill development, with expenditures for this
purpose limited to no more than $200 million;
ii) Water, sewer, or other public infrastructure costs
associated with infill development;
iii) Transportation improvements related to infill
development projects; and,
iv) Traffic mitigation.
b) Brownfield cleanup that promotes infill housing
development and other related infill development consistent
with regional and local plans.
2)Establishes the Infill Incentive Grant Program, to be
administered by HCD, to provide grants for 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.
3)Specifies that under the Infill Incentive Grant Program,
qualifying infill projects or qualifying infill areas must,
among other things, include at least 15% affordable housing
units; meet specified minimum average residential densities;
and, be located in an area designated for mixed-use or
residential developed under an adopted general plan, project
area redevelopment plan, regional plan, or regional blueprint
plan.
4)Requires HCD, in ranking grant applications under the Infill
Incentive Grant Program, to base the rankings on the following
priorities:
a) Project readiness;
b) The depth and duration of the affordability of the
housing;
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c) The extent to which the average residential densities
will exceed the specified minimum density standards;
d) The inclusion of, or proximity to, a transit station or
major transit stop;
e) The proximity of housing to parks, employment or retail
centers, schools, or social services; and,
f) Consistency with an adopted regional blueprint plan or
other adopted regional growth plan intended to foster
efficient land use.
5)Creates the $300 million TOD Implementation Account and
specifies that funds in the account shall be made available,
upon appropriation, for expenditure pursuant to the TOD
Implementation Program.
6)Establishes the TOD Implementation Program under HCD to
provide assistance to cities, counties, cities and counties,
transit agencies, and developers in developing or facilitating
the development of higher density uses within close proximity
to transit stations that will increase public transit
ridership.
7)Specifies that to the extent funds are available under the TOD
Implementation Program, HCD shall make grants to cities,
counties, cities and counties, or transit agencies for the
provision of infrastructure necessary for the development of
higher density uses within close proximity to a transit
station, or to facilitate connections between that development
and the station.
8)Specifies that to the extent funds are available under the TOD
Implementation Program, HCD shall make loans for the
development and construction of a housing development project
within close proximity to a transit station in which at least
15% of the units will be affordable to lower-income households
for at least 55 years.
9)Requires HCD, in ranking applications for grants and loans
under the TOD Implementation Program, to consider the extent
to which the project or development will increase public
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transit ridership and minimize automobile trips.
10)Requires HCD, in ranking applications for grants and loans
under the TOD Implementation Program, to grant bonus points to
projects or developments that are in an area designated by the
appropriate council of governments for infill development as
part of a regional plan.
11)Authorizes the CTC to prepare guidelines for the preparation
of RTPs.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
1)Increased costs to the CTC to update RTP guidelines to include
the vehicle miles traveled requirements. Magnitude of cost
increase would depend on how detailed the guidelines would
need to be, but could be greater than $150,000.
2)Increased costs to regional transportation agencies to develop
methodologies to measure and achieve 10% reductions in the
growth in vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Not state
reimbursable.
COMMENTS : In November 2006, California voters approved
Proposition 1C, the Housing and Emergency Shelter Trust Fund
Act, to provide $2.85 billion in bonds to support a variety of
housing and development programs. Included in the $2.85 billion
was $850 million for the Regional Planning, Housing, and Infill
Incentives Account to support infill development and brownfield
cleanup and $300 million for the TOD Implementation Account to
support higher-density development near transit stations.
Existing law establishes the Infill Incentives Grant Program and
the TOD Implementation Program, both administered by HCD, to
allocate funds from each account.
Both the infill grant program and the TOD Implementation Program
already include statutory requirements related to the ranking
and prioritizing of applications. For example, under the infill
program, HCD must prioritize projects based on factors such as
residential density, proximity to transit, and project
readiness, among other things. Under the TOD Implementation
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Program, HCD must give bonus points to projects that will
increase transit ridership and minimize automobile trips. Both
programs give priority to projects that are consistent with an
adopted regional blueprint plan.
This bill requires, in addition to the criteria established in
existing law, that HCD give priority to projects under the
infill program and the TOD Implementation Program that are
located in a city or a county that has a general plan that will
reduce VMT by at least 10% or in a region covered by a council
of governments that has a regional transportation plan or
regional blueprint plan that will reduce VMT by at least 10%.
This bill is intended to help achieve the state's goal of
reducing greenhouse gas emissions by promoting land use and
transportation planning that reduces vehicle miles traveled.
The author asserts that a reduction in VMT will have a strong
positive impact on air quality, will reduce traffic congestion
and urban sprawl, and will help the state develop energy
independence.
It is unclear how HCD is supposed to determine whether a
particular local or regional plan will in fact reduce VMT by
10%. HCD's expertise is in housing, not transportation
modeling, so it may be difficult for them to make this
determination.
In addition, this bill requires CTC to update its guidelines for
the preparation of RTPs to include a requirement that each RTP
provide for a 10% reduction in the growth increment of VMT. It
is unclear why this bill proposes that RTPs must provide for a
reduction in the growth in VMT, while prioritization under the
infill and TOD programs is tied to a reduction in actual VMT.
Analysis Prepared by : Anya Lawler / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958
FN: 0003915