Land use: general plan: Future Sustainable Communities Pilot Project.

The Planning and Zoning Law requires a city or county to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the city or county and of any land outside its boundaries that bears relation to its planning. That law also requires the general plan to contain specified mandatory elements, including, among others, a housing element for the preservation, improvement, and development of the community's housing. Existing law requires the Strategic Growth Council to manage and award financial assistance to specified regional and local governments to support the planning and development of sustainable communities, as specified, from bond funds made available through the Safe Drinking Water, Water Quality and Supply, Flood Control, River and Coastal Protection Bond Act of 2006. This bill would establish the Future Sustainable Communities Pilot Project. The bill would authorize a city or county with a disadvantaged unincorporated community, as defined, inside or near its boundaries to apply to the Strategic Growth Council, as specified, to receive the financial assistance necessary to update its general plan to facilitate the transformation of the disadvantaged unincorporated community into a sustainable community. The bill would require the Strategic Growth Council to choose 5 cities and 5 counties with a disadvantaged unincorporated community inside or near their boundaries to receive financial assistance. The bill would require, upon receipt of the financial assistance from the council, the city or county to review, prepare, and adopt amendments to one or more elements of its general plan, as necessary to include data and analysis, goals, implementation measures, policies, and objectives to address the presence of unincorporated island, unincorporated fringe, or unincorporated legacy communities, as respectively defined, inside or near its boundaries, and to incorporate into the general plan specified purposes relating to the establishment of sustainable communities. The bill would also require the updated general plan to include specified information. This bill would further require the city or county to make a diligent effort to involve all members of the public in preparing the review and update of the general plan.