Housing element: regional housing need plan: judicial review.

Existing law requires each city, county, or city and county to prepare and adopt a general plan for its jurisdiction that contains certain mandatory elements, including a housing element. Under existing law, a part of the housing element is an assessment of housing needs, which includes the locality's share of the regional housing need. Under existing law the Department of Housing and Community Development, in consultation with each council of governments, determines each region's existing and projected housing needs. Under existing law, upon making that determination, the council of governments may object to the determination, and the department is required to respond to an objection by making a final written determination. Existing law requires that, based on the determination of the department, a council of governments, or for cities and counties without a council of governments, the department, adopts a final regional housing need plan that allocates a share of the regional housing need to each locality in the region. This bill would subject the department's final written determination of a region's housing needs to judicial review in an action brought by the council of governments. The bill would also subject the final regional housing need plan adopted by the council of governments or the department, as the case may be, to judicial review.