BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE
Senator Richard K. Rainey, Chairman
BILL NO: AB 1505 HEARING: 7/14/99
AUTHOR: Ducheny FISCAL: Yes
VERSION: 7/12/99 CONSULTANT: Detwiler
FARMWORKER HOUSING AND LOCAL LAND USE REGULATION
Background
Despite the mechanization of California's agribusiness
industry, there is still a demand for farm labor. Changing
crop patterns shifted the demand for farmworkers and also
changed the need for employee housing. As growers change
the location of market crops, grape and fruit orchards,
coastal strawberries, and nurseries, they attract
farmworkers to new areas. In 1995, the Senate Housing and
Land Use Committee held an interim hearing on farmworker
housing. The Committee found that, Local community
opposition to new farmworker housing can stop projects
favored by growers, farmworkers, and local officials.
Housing sponsors want to make it easier to build farmworker
housing.
Proposed Law
I. Williamson Act . When a landowner signs a Williamson
Act contract with a county or a city agreeing to keep the
property in agriculture, open space, or compatible uses for
at least 10 years, county officials must reduce the
property's assessed valuation. Assembly Bill 1505 makes
three changes to the Williamson Act's handling of
farmworker housing:
Compatible use . The Williamson Act recognizes
utility facilities and agricultural laborer housing as
compatible uses. AB 1505 recognizes that agricultural
laborer housing facilities are a compatible use under
Williamson Act contracts, regardless if the facilities are
provided by the landowner, a city, a county, a city and
county, the state government, or a nonprofit organization.
Indemnification . When a landowner permits free
public recreational use of Williamson Act contracted land,
the Act allows local officials to indemnify the landowner
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against all claims arising from public use. AB 1505 allows
a city, county, city and county, the state government, or a
nonprofit corporation to indemnify a Williamson Act
landowner against all claims arising from the use of the
land for agricultural laborer housing facilities.
Lot split . The Subdivision Map Act prohibits the
subdivision of Williamson Act contracted land into parcels
that are too small for agricultural use. Parcels must be
at least 10 acres for prime agricultural land and 40 acres
for nonprime agricultural land. However, local officials
can approve a lot split of Williamson Act contracted land
to transfer a small parcel to an immediate family member
provided that the transferred parcel meets land use
standards, adheres to the Williamson Act contract, and
there is a written agreement to operate the property under
joint management. The properties remain subject to the
Williamson Act.
AB 1505 allows a Williamson Act landowner to set aside a
parcel of up to five acres for agricultural laborer
housing. While the property is used for farmworker
housing, the landowner may convey the title to a nonprofit
corporation, a city, a county, a city and county, or the
state government. The bill requires five conditions:
* The property must remain under Williamson Act
contract.
* The housing developer must record a deed restriction
limiting the use of
the property to farmworker housing for at least 30
years.
* When the property stops being farmworker housing,
the parcels must
must merge and title returns to the Williamson Act
property owner.
* The farmworker housing project must be consistent
with the local
general plan and zoning.
* The property must be within a city's sphere of
influence or adjacent to
existing urban development and services in an
unincorporated area.
II. Housing elements . The Planning and Zoning Law
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requires every city and county to adopt a general plan with
seven specified elements, including a housing element. In
that document, local officials must identify their
community's share of regional housing needs and then
identify adequate sites for housing, including rental
housing, factory-built housing, mobilehomes, emergency
shelters, and transitional housing. If the housing element
does not identify adequate sites, the housing element must
provide that local zoning permit residential "use by right"
for very low and low-income households. "Use by right"
means that a builder does not need an additional
conditional use permit.
Assembly Bill 1505 requires local general plans' housing
elements to identify adequate sites for housing for
agricultural employees to meet the city or county's
regional share of farmworker housing. If the housing
element inventory of sites does not identify adequate sites
for farmworker housing, AB 1505 requires the document to
provide for zoning that permits farmworker housing and
specified ancillary uses in residential zones as a "use by
right."
III. Permit Streamlining Act . The Permit Streamlining Act
requires public officials to act on development projects
within 180 days of the certification of the project's
environmental impact report.
Assembly Bill 1505 requires public officials to act on a
development project within 90 days of the certification of
an environmental impact report under three conditions:
The development project is for agricultural employee
housing and is
affordable to very low and low-income households.
The project's applicant has applied or will apply
for housing tax credits.
The tax credit application was received before the
EIR was certified.
This provision takes effect only if SB 948 is not enacted.
Comments
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1. Gimme shelter . Farmworkers, especially migrants, must
endure some of California's worst housing conditions.
Legislative hearings documented the need for safe, decent,
and affordable housing, as well as the lack of adequate
private and public funding. As the state government and
local officials begin to increase the amount of capital
available for building and rehabilitating farmworker
housing, there is still a need to find acceptable locations
for these projects. AB 1505 responds to these problems by
making it easier to develop farmworker housing on
Williamson Act land, planning for more sites, and speeding
up development decisions.
2. Good concept, needs a better method . AB 1505 allows
growers to turn over some of their Williamson Act land for
farmworker housing if the projects meet specific
conditions. This concept is similar to the current law
allowing farmers and ranchers to split off a parcel for a
family home site. To make the bill work more effectively,
the Committee may wish to consider clarifying amendments
that would more closely parallel the family home site
provision. Moving the statutory location of the proposed
provision, for example, will demonstrate that the new
farmworker housing can remain under the property's existing
Williamson Act contract.
3. Contingent enactment . Earlier this year the Senate
passed SB 948 (Alarc?n, 1999) that amends the Permit
Streamlining Act to speed up the approval of affordable
housing developments. SB 948 applies to all very low and
low-income housing developments while AB 1550 applies to
very low and low-income housing for farmworkers. Because
the language in AB 1550 is narrower than SB 948, Section 6
of the Ducheny bill will go into effect only if the Alarc?n
bill does not.
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Assembly Actions
Assembly Housing & Community Development Committee:10-0
Assembly Natural Resources Committee:11-0
Assembly Appropriations Committee:21-0
Assembly Floor: 79-0
Support and Opposition (7/12/)
Support : Agricultural Council of California, Bank of
America, California Building Industry Association,
California Catholic Conference, California Coalition for
Rural Housing, California Manufactured Housing Institute,
California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation, JERICHO,
Lieutenant Governor Cruz Bustamante, Western Center on Law
and Poverty, Western Growers Association.
Opposition : California Farm Bureau Federation.