Several CHC-sponsored bills and a number of other key affordable housing and tenant protection bills advanced out of the Legislature this week and are now on the governor’s desk. The governor has until October 13th to sign legislation. Major bills of interest to advance this year include:
CHC-sponsored bills:
- AB 1483 (Grayson) – Increases transparency around fees imposed on housing by requiring local governments to post fee information on their websites
- AB 1743 (Bloom) – Exempts affordable housing developments from Mello Roos fees
- AB 1763 (Chiu) – Allows 100% affordable projects to build up to 80% more units under Density Bonus law, with increased density options for projects near transit
CHC-supported bills:
- AB 1197 (Santiago) – Exemption specified emergency shelters and supportive housing projects approved or carried out by the City of Los Angeles (City) from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
- AB 1482 (Chiu, Bloom, Bonta, Grayson, Wicks) – Caps annual rent increases at 5% plus inflation and strengthens eviction rules, allowing more tenants to stay in their homes
- AB 1486 (Ting)/SB 6 (Beall, McGuire) – Expands the state’s inventory of surplus public land available for affordable housing development
Other housing bills of interest:
- SB 5 (Beall) – Creates a new $2 billion pool of statewide funding for affordable housing
- SB 329 (Mitchell) – Prohibits landlords from discriminating against tenants on the basis of their participation in a housing voucher program
- SB 330 (Skinner) – Declares a statewide “housing crisis” and, for the next five years, reduces the length of time it takes to obtain building permits, limits fees on housing, and bars local governments from reducing the number of homes that can be built
STATE HOUSING POLICIES
California lawmakers move to reinstate, revamp local affordable housing program
Los Angeles Times
California lawmakers have approved a bid to renew a program that pumped hundreds of millions of dollars a year into affordable housing and economic development that had been eliminated during the state’s budget crisis eight years ago. But it’s uncertain if Gov. Gavin Newsom will sign off on the plan. Senate Bill 5 by Sen. Jim Beall (D-San Jose) would effectively revive the state’s redevelopment system, which for decades allowed cities and counties to sequester a portion of local property tax revenue so that the money could be used on downtrodden neighborhoods.
Bill to boost California homebuilding headed to Newsom’s desk
Southern California News Group
The “Housing Crisis Act of 2019” is heading to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk, seeking to boost homebuilding in “urbanized” zones throughout the state, according to the bill’s author, state Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley. The bill won final passage Friday, Sept. 6, with business backing but over the objections of the League of California Cities and 56 cities and counties. Newsom has indicated he would sign the measure.
Berkeley senator’s new law would put moratorium on housing moratoriums
Curbed San Francisco
The California State Senate approved the final version of Berkeley-based State Sen. Nancy Skinner’s “Housing Crisis Act of 2019” last week, a new law that “suspends local practices that are documented obstacles to housing production” such as housing moratoriums and certain fees. Since the Assembly also passed the bill, dubbed SB 330, earlier in the week, that leaves it clear for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk and presumed signature.
Opinion: Faulty housing report leads to faulty California policies
Orange County Register
Gov. Gavin Newsom has proposed a $1.75 billion “Marshall Plan” for affordable housing to meet a goal of producing 3.5 million new housing units in California by 2025. But his plan is built on a faulty foundation. The empirical basis for the governor’s plan is a McKinsey & Company report, “A Tool Kit to Close California’s Housing Gap: 3.5 Million House by 2025.” This report is widely accepted and provides a rationale for forceful state intervention in California’s housing market.
Opinion: California’s housing market is overburdened. Loosening laws on ‘granny flats’ can help
Sacramento Bee
With more millennials projected to be in the market for homes over the next decade and a senior population that is expected to grow more rapidly than the state average during that period, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), also known as granny flats, provide a less-costly alternative for house hunters on both ends of the age spectrum.
Opinion: Bill would empower Bay Area to take action against housing crisis
Marin Independent Journal
Recently, a Marin Voice column in the Independent Journal opposed state legislation such as Assembly Bill 1487, the Housing Alliance for the Bay Area Act. It referred to Wall Street and local government control of housing development. Unfortunately much of our lack of housing supply, of which growing homelessness is a symptom, is a result of lack of action — indeed resistance to action — by local governments across California.
HOUSING CRISIS
The Cities Where Job Growth Is Outpacing New Homes
City Lab
California is permitting new housing at the slowest rate since the Great Recession according to a new report released by California’s Legislative Analyst’s office, using data from the Construction Industry Research Board. “Since 1990, only two other time periods—the first half of 1990s and the Great Recession—have had permitting declines as significant as the state has experienced over the past year,” analysts Brian Uhler and Justin Garosi write.
Open Forum: Four ways to fix the California housing crisis
San Francisco Chronicle by Ben Metcalf
Last week, I stepped down as director of California’s Housing and Community Development department after almost four years. I have seen the good, the bad and the ugly in housing — as a housing developer, senior official with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and, most recently, state housing director.
TENANT PROTECTION
California tenants will see cap on rent increases under bill sent to Newsom
Los Angeles Times
Tenants across California will for the first time have protections against how much landlords can increase their rents after legislators on Wednesday narrowly approved a measure to cap annual rent hikes. Under Assembly Bill 1482, most yearly rent increases over the next decade will be limited to 5% plus inflation and tenants will receive protections against being evicted without cause. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who brokered the deal that led to its passage, pledged to sign the bill in a statement issued immediately after the vote.
California lawmakers act to keep landlords from refusing low-income renters
Los Angeles Times
California landlords would no longer be allowed to reject prospective tenants solely because they hold federal Section 8 housing vouchers under a bill passed by the state Legislature on Wednesday. Should Gov. Gavin Newsom sign it, Senate Bill 329 would prohibit landlords from issuing blanket denials against the 300,000 Californians who receive the vouchers. The program provides the largest direct federal subsidy for low-income tenants.
Podcast: The strange politics behind California’s rent cap bill
CalMatters
Late last week, Democratic leaders including Gov. Gavin Newsom announced they had reached a deal on a bill that would limit how much a California landlord can raise the rent. AB 1482 by Assemblyman David Chiu, Democrat from San Francisco, would cap annual rent increases at 5% plus inflation. The bill would also require landlords to list a “just cause” before evicting a tenant, extending renter protections to millions of California households.
Opinion: State rent control will hit small rental owners hardest
San Francisco Business Times
Californians need to brace for higher rental costs in 2020. Our cost of living is one of the highest in the country and legislators are poised to pass legislation that would increase the costs of rents while exacerbating the housing crisis. Behind closed doors, state leaders made a deal with large corporate interests to pass a statewide rent control and just cause eviction measure known as Assembly Bill 1482 by Assemblymember David Chiu.
Opinion: You Can Thank the Legislature for Your Next Big Rent Increase
Voice of San Diego
No one likes a rent increase, but as with all expenses, it is normal for rents to increase over time. While reasonable rent increases are to be expected, a small number of owners have taken advantage of high demand for housing to impose larger rent hikes. These rare instances of “rental price gouging” have made headlines, but they don’t reflect the reality of most renters in California.
LOCAL HOUSING INITIATIVES
SANDAG board moves forward with formula used to set housing quotas
San Diego Union Tribune
Elected leaders on the board of the region’s top planning agency moved forward Friday with a hotly debated methodology used to divvy up the number of homes each jurisdiction in San Diego County will need to accommodate in the coming years.
Mayor Commits San Diego to Planning for 110,000 New Housing Units Over Next Decade
Voice of San Diego
Mayor Kevin Faulconer has committed San Diego to plan for nearly 110,000 new housing units over the next decade to keep up with job growth and help alleviate the California housing crisis. Faulconer voted with a majority of board members of the San Diego Association of Governments, the regional planning agency for San Diego County, on Friday to approve the state-mandated Regional Housing Needs Assessment.
HOUSING MARKET
Some California Housing Markets More At Risk Should Recession Hit
Capital Public Radio
California has several of the most vulnerable housing markets should another recession hit, but new research shows it’s not all bad news. Real estate data firm Redfin looked at the 50 largest housing markets in the United States, ranking them from lowest risk to highest based on seven factors including price volatility, number of flips and employment diversity. The findings were not encouraging for Southern California.
FEDERAL HOUSING POLICIES
Candidates, it’s time to talk about housing
Curbed
As last week’s climate town hall began, it was immediately clear that the candidates had done their homework. All 10 front-running presidential candidates were well-prepared on climate issues, and could talk eloquently, and sometimes passionately, about how the U.S. will wean itself off fossil fuels. Candidates spoke about the country’s swift transition to wind and community solar, the U.S.’s incredibly carbon-intensive built environment, and yes, they even talked about transportation, albeit the discussion was mostly about electric cars.
Can’t buy a house? 2020 Democrats say they’ll push cities to build more homes
Washington Post
The Democrats running for president all say they want to help contain America’s soaring housing prices. But some are promising more aggressive steps to tackle one of the root issues: the lack of housing supply. A handful of 2020 candidates have embraced proposals to pressure cities and towns to loosen zoning laws, which experts blame for a lack of home construction. Many residents and local politicians, particularly those in affluent suburbs, oppose construction of high-rise apartment buildings and affordable housing units in their communities.
HOMELESSNESS
What Mayors in California Say About Trump’s Effort to Fix Homelessness
New York Times
The news that Trump administration officials are on a fact-finding mission in California to explore solutions to homelessness was greeted with skepticism, to put it mildly, by mayors of several of the state’s biggest cities. A spokesman for the president, Judd Deere, said Tuesday that President Trump had “taken notice of the homelessness crisis, particularly in cities and states where the liberal policies of overregulation, excessive taxation and poor public service delivery are combining to dramatically increase poverty and public health risks.”
Trump pushing for major crackdown on homeless camps in California, with aides discussing moving residents to government-backed facilities
Washington Post
President Trump has ordered White House officials to launch a sweeping effort to address homelessness in California, citing the state’s growing crisis, according to four government officials aware of the effort. The planning has intensified in recent weeks. Administration officials have discussed using the federal government to get homeless people off the streets of Los Angeles and other cities and into new government-backed facilities, according to two officials briefed on the planning.
Editorial: L.A. has a program to build affordable housing near transit. Of course, NIMBYs want to shut it down
Los Angeles Times
California desperately needs to build more homes to ease its housing shortage, yet residential construction remains sluggish across the state. One exception is Los Angeles, the rare city that is having a building boom. Thousands of new apartments are in the development pipeline in L.A., all because of a program approved by voters in 2016 that makes it easier to build taller, denser buildings near rail stations and major bus stops if the projects include affordable housing.
Editorial: Trump’s homelessness proposal for California would be ineffective and punitive policy
San Francisco Chronicle
President Trump has ordered government officials to look into ways his administration can address California’s homeless crisis, calling it a “disgrace.” The effort, which was announced Tuesday and came as a surprise to local and state officials, may involve getting homeless people off the streets and into federally backed facilities. It may also mean cracking down on the encampments that form a grim trail from Los Angeles to Mendocino County.
Editorial: With so little housing for the homeless, can outreach workers really help?
Los Angeles Times
For homeless people adrift on the streets or moored temporarily in a shelter bed, an outreach worker can be the lifeline to everything from a bottle of water to a permanent supportive housing unit. At a time when passersby routinely ignore homeless people, outreach workers are the ones who do talk to homeless people on the street, returning numerous times to win their trust, get them services and steer them toward housing.