Bill Text: CA AB1474 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Chaptered

California Assembly Bill 1474

Bill Title: California Statewide Housing Plan.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)

Status: (Passed) 2023-10-11 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 762, Statutes of 2023. [AB1474 Detail]

Download: California-2023-AB1474-Chaptered.html

Assembly Bill No. 1474

CHAPTER 762

An act to amend Sections 50422 and 50423 of the Health and Safety Code, relating to housing.

[ Approved by Governor October 11, 2023. Filed with Secretary of State October 11, 2023. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1474, Reyes. California Statewide Housing Plan.

Existing law establishes the California Statewide Housing Plan, developed in cooperation with the private housing industry, regional and local housing and planning agencies, and other agencies of the state, to serve as a state housing plan. Existing law requires the plan to incorporate specified segments, including, among others, a housing strategy that coordinates the housing assistance and activities of state and local agencies, including the provision of housing assistance for various population groups, including, but not limited to, elderly persons, persons with disabilities, and other specific population groups as deemed appropriate by the department. Existing law, to the extent possible, requires the department to consult with various state departments, including the California Department of Aging and the State Department of Social Services, in developing that housing strategy.

This bill would add veterans to the list of population groups included in the housing strategy described above. The bill would require the department to also consult with the Department of Veterans Affairs in developing the housing strategy, to the extent possible.

This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 50423 of the Health and Safety Code proposed by AB 1764 to be operative only if this bill and AB 1764 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 50422 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

50422.

The plan shall incorporate a statement of housing goals, policies, and objectives, as well as all of the following segments:

(a) An evaluation and summary of housing conditions throughout the state, with particular emphasis upon the availability of housing for all economic segments of the state. The evaluation shall include summary statistics for all counties, all multicounty metropolitan areas, and rural areas, as defined and designated by the Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce, rather than as defined in Section 50101. The evaluation shall include the existing distribution of housing by type, size, gross rent, value, and, to the extent data is available, condition, and the existing distribution of households by gross income, size, and ethnic character for each of those areas.

(b) A determination of the statewide need for housing development for the plan period. The determination of statewide need shall be established as the minimum number of units necessary to be built or rehabilitated in order to provide sufficient housing to house all residents of the state in standard, uncrowded units in suitable locations.

(c) Goals for the provision of housing assistance for the plan period. The goals shall be established as the minimum number of households to be assisted that will result in achieving, by the fourth subsequent year, a substantial reduction in the number of very low income households and other persons and families of low or moderate income constrained to pay more than 30 percent of their gross income for housing. Income groups to be considered in establishing the goals shall be designated by the department and shall include households a significant number of which are required to pay more than 30 percent of their gross income for housing in the fiscal year the plan is revised, as determined by the department.

(d) An identification of governmental and nongovernmental constraints and obstacles and specific recommendations for their removal.

(e) An analysis of state and local housing and building codes and their enforcement. The analysis shall include consideration of whether those codes contain sufficient flexibility to respond to new methods of construction and new materials.

(f) Recommendations for actions by federal, state, and local governments and the private sector that will contribute to the attainment of the housing goals established for California.

(g) A housing strategy that coordinates the housing assistance and activities of state and local agencies, including the provision of housing assistance for various population groups, including, but not limited to, elderly persons, persons with disabilities, veterans, large families, families where a female is the head of the household, farmworker households, and other specific population groups as deemed appropriate by the department. To inform the strategy, the department shall, to the extent possible, do the following:

(1) Consider information compiled by relevant state and local agencies on aging, and from provider and consumer organizations as available.

(2) Consult with various state departments, including the California Department of Aging, the State Department of Social Services, the State Department of Health Care Services, the Employment Development Department, the State Department of Developmental Services, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and other state departments or agencies to obtain information deemed relevant to the housing needs of populations addressed in the housing strategy. This paragraph shall not be construed to require activity beyond the customary scope of the department’s planning process.

(h) A review of housing assistance policies, goals, and objectives affecting the homeless.

SEC. 2.

Section 50423 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

50423.

(a) The department shall update and provide a revision of the plan to the Legislature by January 1, 2006, by January 1, 2009, and every four years thereafter. The revisions shall contain all of the following segments:

(1) A comparison of the housing need for the preceding plan period with the amount of building permits issued and mobilehome spaces created in those fiscal years.

(2) A revision of the determination of the statewide need for housing development specified in subdivision (b) of Section 50422 for the plan period.

(3) A revision of the housing assistance goals specified in subdivision (c) of Section 50422 for the plan period.

(4) A revision of the evaluation required by subdivision (a) of Section 50422 as new census or other survey data become available. The revision shall contain an evaluation and summary of housing conditions throughout the state and may highlight data for multicounty or regional areas, as determined by the department. The revision shall include a discussion of the housing needs of various population groups, including, but not limited to, elderly persons, disabled persons, veterans, large families, families where a female is the head of the household, and farmworker households.

(5) An updating of recommendations for actions by federal, state, and local governments and the private sector which will facilitate the attainment of housing goals established for California.

(6) For the next revision of the plan on or after January 1, 2020, and each subsequent revision thereafter, a 10-year housing data strategy that identifies the data useful to enforce existing housing laws and inform state housing policymaking. In developing this data strategy, the department shall establish a workgroup that includes, but is not limited to, representatives from the Department of Technology, metropolitan planning organizations, local governments, relevant academic institutions, and nonprofit organizations with relevant expertise selected by the department. The strategy shall include, but is not limited to, the following:

(A) An evaluation of data priorities.

(B) A strategy for how to achieve more consistent terminology for housing data across the state.

(C) An evaluation of the costs and benefits of, and the ways the department could support, a more integrated digital land use management system, building permit application management system, and other tools that would minimize resources needed for jurisdictions to submit required data.

(D) Information that must be reported under paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 65400, including, but not limited to, information that:

(i) Supports enforcement of laws, policies, and informs efforts to preserve existing affordable housing stock.

(ii) Supports enforcement of laws, policies, and informs efforts to protect tenants, and ensure habitability of existing housing stock.

(iii) Provides a better understanding of housing project appeals, approvals, delays, and denials, including any relevant data from courts and other state departments.

(iv) Provides an understanding of the process, certainty, cost, and time to approve housing and affordable housing projects.

(E) An assessment of the quality of data submitted by annual reports and recommended changes to annual report requirements and technical assistance based on this assessment.

(F) An assessment of the nature and cost of staffing and technology required for the department and local governments to meet data goals and requirements over the 10-year strategy period.

(G) Information that is useful to enforce state and local housing law and policy, including, but not limited to, enforcement of anti-rent gouging and just cause for eviction policies and ordinances.

(b) The Legislature may review the plan and the updates of the plan and transmit its comments on the plan or updates of the plan to the Governor, the Secretary of Business, Consumer Services and Housing, and the Director of Housing and Community Development.

SEC. 2.5.

Section 50423 of the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:

50423.

(a) The department shall update and provide a revision of the plan to the Legislature by January 1, 2006, by January 1, 2009, and every four years thereafter, which shall be included in the annual report required by Section 50408. The revisions shall contain all of the following segments: