BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1033
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 18, 2014
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Ed Chau, Chair
SB 1033 (Torres) - As Introduced: February 14, 2014
SENATE VOTE : 34-0
SUBJECT : Housing element law and housing successor agencies
SUMMARY : Replaces housing element law references to
"redevelopment housing funds" with "housing successor agency
funds."
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires redevelopment agencies (RDAs) to dissolve effective
February 1, 2012, pursuant to the California Supreme Court's
decision in CRA v. Matosantos (2011).
2)Establishes successor agencies to RDAs that would, except in
certain situations, be the city, county, or city and county in
the territorial jurisdiction of the former RDA. If no local
agency elects to be the successor agency, a designated local
authority is to be formed with three members appointed by the
Governor.
(Health & Safety Code Section 34173)
3)Requires successor agencies to transfer a former RDA's housing
assets and functions to "housing successors." Housing
successors retain the housing assets, functions, and powers
previously performed by an RDA, excluding any enforceable
obligations retained by the successor agency.
4)Provides that the city, county, or city and county within the
territorial jurisdiction of the former RDA may elect to act as
the housing successor. If they do not elect to act as the
housing successor, then the local housing authority is
required to act as the housing successor. If there is no
local housing authority, then the Department of Housing and
Community Development (HCD) acts as the housing successor.
5)Provides that housing successors may, amongst other things,
SB 1033
Page 2
enforce affordability covenants and perform related activities
pursuant to applicable provisions of Community Redevelopment
Law (CRL).
(Health & Safety Code Section 34176)
6)Requires a jurisdiction's housing element to identify and
analyze existing and projected housing needs, identify
adequate sites with appropriate zoning to meet the housing
needs of all income segments of the community, and ensure that
regulatory systems provide opportunities for, and do not
unduly constrain, housing development.
(Government Code Section 65583)
7)Requires, prior to each housing element revision, that each
council of governments (COG), in conjunction with HCD, prepare
a regional housing needs assessment (RHNA) and allocate to
each jurisdiction in the region its fair share of the housing
need for all income categories. Where a COG does not exist,
HCD determines the local share of the region's housing need.
(Government Code Sections 65584-65584.09)
8)Requires housing elements to include an inventory of land
suitable for residential development that identifies enough
sites that can be developed for housing within the planning
period to accommodate the jurisdiction's entire share of the
RHNA.
(Government Code Sections 65583 and 65583.2)
FISCAL EFFECT : None.
COMMENTS :
Purpose of the bill : The housing element describes a city's or
county's housing goals, the programs it will administer to
achieve those goals, and the resources that it has and will use
to implement those programs. With the demise of redevelopment,
there are no redevelopment tax increment funds available for
housing purposes, but housing successor agencies do receive
limited program income from outstanding loans originally made by
their communities' redevelopment agencies. This bill updates
housing element law to reflect this change in available funding
SB 1033
Page 3
sources for housing.
Redevelopment agency dissolution : Historically, the Community
Redevelopment Law allowed a local government to establish a
redevelopment area and capture all of the increase in property
taxes generated within the area (referred to as "tax increment")
over a period of decades. The law required RDAs to deposit 20%
of tax increment into a Low and Moderate Income Housing Fund
(L&M fund) to be used to increase, improve, and preserve the
community's supply of low- and moderate-income housing available
at an affordable housing cost.
In 2011, as a result of serious budget shortfalls, the Governor
proposed eliminating RDAs and creating a Voluntary Alternative
Redevelopment Program (VARP) to replace them. Two pieces of
budget trailer legislation, AB1X 26 (Chapter 5, Statutes of
2011-12 First Extraordinary Session) and AB1X 27 (Chapter 6,
Statutes of 2011-12 First Extraordinary Session), were enacted
to achieve this goal. AB1X 26 provided for the dissolution of
RDAs and for the winding up of their obligations by successor
agencies. AB1X 27 established VARP, which would have allowed
RDAs to continue operations if their local city or county made
voluntary annual payments benefitting schools, for the purpose
of offsetting state education costs. In CRA v. Matosantos
(2011), the California Supreme Court upheld the
constitutionality of AB1X 26, but invalidated AB1X 27. This had
the effect of dissolving RDAs without giving them the option of
continuing operations by offsetting state education costs. As a
result, all of the state's roughly 400 redevelopment agencies
dissolved on February 1, 2012.
Housing Elements : Every local government is required to prepare
a housing element as part of its general plan. The housing
element process starts when HCD determines the number of new
housing units a region is projected to need at all income levels
(very low-, low-, moderate-, and above-moderate income) over the
course of the next housing element planning period to
accommodate population growth and overcome existing deficiencies
in the housing supply. This number is known as the regional
housing needs assessment (RHNA). The COG for the region, or HCD
for areas with no COG, then assigns a share of the RHNA number
to every city and county in the region based on a variety of
factors.
A housing element must identify and analyze existing and
SB 1033
Page 4
projected housing needs, identify adequate sites with
appropriate zoning to meet its share of the RHNA, and ensure
that regulatory systems provide opportunities for, and do not
unduly constrain, housing development. Among other things, the
element must specifically include an analysis of existing
assisted housing developments that are eligible to convert to
market-rate rental housing upon the expiration of affordability
restrictions, and identify all public resources, including
redevelopment agency tax increment funds, that are available to
preserve the affordability of these housing units. In addition,
the housing element must include a program of actions that the
city or county will undertake to implement the policies and
achieve the goals and objectives of the housing element through
regulatory measures and the utilization of available public
funding, including redevelopment agency tax increment funds.
HCD reviews both draft and adopted housing elements to determine
whether or not they are in substantial compliance with the law.
This bill updates housing element law references to
redevelopment agency housing funds with a reference to housing
successor agency funds.
Staff Comment : The author's office has indicated that this is a
spot bill and may be used to address another unrelated policy
issue. The Committee may wish to inquire what the author plans
for this bill should it pass out of the Committee.
Double referred : If SB 1033 passes this committee, the bill will
be referred to the Committee on Local Government.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Rebecca Rabovsky / H. & C.D. / (916)
319-2085
SB 1033
Page 5