Planning and zoning: housing element: inventory of sites: regional housing need.

Existing law, the Planning and Zoning Law, requires each county and each city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the county or city, and specified land outside its boundaries, that includes specified mandatory elements, including a housing element. Existing law also establishes a planning agency in each city and each county with the powers necessary to carry out the Planning and Zoning Law. Existing law requires the housing element to include, among other things, an inventory of land suitable and available for residential development. For a housing element or amendment adopted on or after January 1, 2021, existing law requires the planning agency to submit to the Department of Housing and Community Development an electronic copy of its inventory, as specified. Existing law requires a county or city to submit each revision or amendment of its housing element to the department promptly following adoption of the revision or amendment and requires the department, within 90 days, to review the adopted housing element or amendment and report its findings to the planning agency. Existing law requires the department to determine the existing and projected need for housing for each region, as specified. Existing law requires the appropriate council of governments, or for cities and counties without a council of governments, to adopt a final regional housing need plan that allocates a share of the regional housing need to each city, county, or city and county, as provided. Existing law requires a city or county to determine whether each site in its inventory of land can accommodate the development of some portion of its share of the regional housing need, as specified. This bill would expand the requirement to submit an electronic copy of the above-described inventory to the department to additionally require the planning agency to submit a housing element or amendment prepared on or after January 1, 2021. The bill would additionally require a planning agency to post the most recent version of the inventory on its internet website, as specified. The bill would require the posting to include a notice describing how property owners and other members of the public can submit information to the planning agency indicating an interest in adding a site to the land inventory and developing the site for housing. The bill, on or before an unspecified date, would require the department to establish a pilot program to develop a methodology to analyze if the inventory of suitable land has identified adequate sites to accommodate a city's or county's regional housing need, as specified. The bill would require the pilot program to include (1) methods for estimating the likely number of units that can be accommodated on sites in the land inventory during the planning period using a probability analysis and (2) methods for estimating the likely number of units that can be accommodated on the sites in the land inventory during the planning period under existing conditions and potential policy and other changes. By adding duties of local officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.