SACRAMENTO, Calif. — To help California's rising affordability crisis, Governor Gavin Newsom signed 27 housing bills Tuesday in Oakland. He called it a historic package.
Surrounded by elected leaders, Newsom said the state is simply not building enough housing for all income levels. He claimed this package will help create 84,000 new units but admits there's still a lot more work to be done.
Assembly Bill 215 requires cities that fall behind on their construction targets to adopt policies that make it easier to plan and build housing. If they don’t, it gives regulators and the attorney general greater authority to enforce the state’s housing laws.
Bills like these don’t come without opposition. 260 cities urged the governor not to sign the bill in a letter.
"Trust me, it’s not overwhelmingly popular," Newsom said at the press conference.
Senate Bill 791 creates a task force to identify empty or surplus lots and facilitate new housing developments. It also assists housing developers and local agencies with obtaining grants, loans, tax credits, and other types of financing that help the construction of housing.
Senate Bill 290 creates more incentives for developers to build affordable housing for college students. For example, if a development meets affordability requirements, it will not have to reach the required parking ratio.
Newsom said historically housing development has been in the hands of cities, but he hopes to change that and streamline the process. He knows this is not a solution but a step in the right direction.
The governor signed 27 bills on Tuesday. Here is the full list provided by his office:
- AB 68 by Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva (D-Fullerton) – Department of Housing and Community Development: California Statewide Housing Plan: annual reports.
- AB 215 by Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco) – Planning and Zoning Law: housing element: violations.
- AB 345 by Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva (D-Fullerton) – Accessory dwelling units: separate conveyance.
- AB 447 by Assemblymember Tim Grayson (D-Concord) – California Debt Limit Allocation Committee: income taxes: low-income housing tax credits.
- AB 491 by Assemblymember Christopher Ward (D-San Diego) – Housing: affordable and market rate units.
- AB 571 by Assemblymember Chad Mayes (I-Rancho Mirage) – Planning and zoning: density bonuses: affordable housing.
- AB 602 by Assemblymember Tim Grayson (D-Concord) – Development fees: impact fee nexus study.
- AB 634 by Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo (D-Los Angeles) – Density Bonus Law: affordability restrictions.
- AB 721 by Assemblymember Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica) – Covenants and restrictions: affordable housing.
- AB 787 by Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel (D-Encino) – Planning and zoning: housing element: converted affordable housing units.
- AB 838 by Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale) – State Housing Law: enforcement response to complaints.
- AB 948 by Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena) – Bureau of Real Estate Appraisers: disclosures: demographic information: reporting: continuing education.
- AB 1029 by Assemblymember Kevin Mullin (D-South San Francisco) – Housing elements: prohousing local policies.
- AB 1043 by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles) – Housing programs: rental housing developments: affordable rent.
- AB 1095 by Assemblymember Ken Cooley (D-Rancho Cordova) – Affordable rental and owner-occupied housing: equity in state and local programs.
- AB 1297 by Assemblymember Chris Holden (D-Pasadena) – California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank: public and economic development facilities: housing.
- AB 1304 by Assemblymember Miguel Santiago (D-Los Angeles) – Affirmatively further fair housing: housing element: inventory of land.
- AB 1398 by Assemblymember Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica) – Planning and zoning: housing element: rezoning of sites: prohousing local policies.
- AB 1466 by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento) – Real property: discriminatory restrictions.
- AB 1584 by the Committee on Housing and Community Development – Housing omnibus.
- SB 263 by Senator Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) – Real estate applicants and licensees: education requirements: fair housing and implicit bias training.
- SB 290 by Senator Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) – Density Bonus Law: qualifications for incentives or concessions: student housing for lower income students: moderate-income persons and families: local government constraints.
- SB 381 by Senator Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) – Surplus residential property: priorities, procedures, price, and fund: City of South Pasadena.
- SB 478 by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) – Planning and Zoning Law: housing development projects.
- SB 591 by Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) – Senior citizens: intergenerational housing developments.
- SB 728 by Senator Robert Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) – Density Bonus Law: purchase of density bonus units by nonprofit housing organizations.
- SB 791 by Senator Dave Cortese (D-San Jose) – California Surplus Land Unit.
The Governor previously signed:
- AB 1174 by Assemblymember Tim Grayson (D-Concord) – Planning and zoning: housing: development application modifications, approvals, and subsequent permits.
- SB 8 by Senator Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) – Housing Crisis Act of 2019.
- SB 9 by Senator Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego) – Housing development: approvals.
- SB 10 by Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) – Planning and zoning: housing development: density.