This week in affordable housing news…:

State Update:

• Six cities across California were awarded the state’s new “Prohousing Designation” by HCD this week, a program created in 2019 that recognizes local governments committed to policies and practices that remove barriers to housing production. Cities with this designation also qualify for additional community development resources, including $25.7 million in existing funding to accelerate housing production and preservation. This week’s awardees include the cities of Citrus Heights, Fontana, Oakland, Roseville, San Diego, and West Sacramento. They join the City of Sacramento, which became the first city to earn a Prohousing Designation earlier this year. “These communities have stepped up to implement policies that aggressively eliminate bureaucratic obstacles and drive the growth of housing throughout the state,” said Governor Newsom. “This is one of many innovative approaches the state is taking to create greater accountability and reward municipalities willing to do their part to help collectively tackle the need for more housing.”

• In case you missed it: The new Legislature was seated for the first time last week, and members have already reintroduced several housing bills that failed to advance in recent years. One notable new proposal, SB 4 (Wiener), the so-called “Yes In God’s Back Yard (YIGBY)” bill, would allow religious groups to build affordable housing by-right on land they own, removing barriers posed by local zoning restrictions or discretionary approval processes. Another bill, ACA 1 (Aguiar-Curry), seeks to lower the vote threshold for local affordable housing bonds to 55%. New members have introduced a number of spot bills impacting other housing policies, and more affordable housing legislation is expected when the Legislature returns in early January. The deadline for bills to be introduced next year is February 17.

Other top news stories:

League of California Cities backs Livermore in Eden Housing appeal
Livermore Vine
The League of California Cities recently demonstrated support for the city of Livermore in the pending appeal challenging the City Council’s approval of the 130-unit Eden Housing development under the California Environmental Quality Act. The League filed an amicus brief with the appellate court last month, backing the city against community group Save Livermore Downtown: “As Cal Cities’ members strive to meet their communities’ mounting housing needs, opponents of housing development seek to delay or halt such efforts through misuse of the state’s environmental laws,” the amicus brief argues. “Cal Cities believes this court’s decision on the appellant’s CEQA claims may implicate future CEQA disputes and ultimately, the law’s identity as either an obstructive tool for anti-housing groups or a powerful tool for proponents of affordable housing.”

‘This is a war’: Californians seek affordable housing alternatives
CNN
At 26, Ixchel Hernandez has become the defender and protector of her family’s modest apartment. In the two decades they’ve lived in their Los Angeles home, the family of four has successfully fought against multiple attempts aimed at pricing and, ultimately, forcing them out. “We are human beings with the right to live in our home, and that’s just frankly what every person… in every home and [in] every building should know … they have the right to have their own space, to have their home,” Hernandez said. But, across the country, affordable housing is becoming increasingly rare to find. The lack of housing inventory coupled with inflation and zoning inequalities have priced out most families, especially those who start with little-to-no capital of their own.

L.A.’s rich are already scheming ways to avoid new ‘mansion tax’
Los Angeles Times
Death and taxes are life’s two certainties—but not if the rich can help it. Just weeks after Los Angeles voters backed a new measure that puts a one-time transfer tax on property sales above $5 million to generate money for affordable housing and homelessness prevention, the city’s affluent homeowners are exploring potential ways of avoiding the tax. With the new tax set to take effect on April 1, 2023, it’s already causing shock waves in the L.A. housing market. While some analysts say high-end transactions will remain highly profitable, others fear the tax will not only drive high-end developers elsewhere, but also discourage the construction of multifamily housing that it was meant to foster.