Existing law within the Planning and Zoning Law describes various reforms and incentives enacted by the Legislature to facilitate and expedite the construction of affordable housing. Existing law within the Planning and Zoning Law, in certain civil actions or proceedings against a public entity that has issued specified approvals for a housing development, authorizes a court to award all reasonably incurred costs of suit to a prevailing public entity or nonprofit housing corporation that is a real party in interest and the permit applicant of the low- or moderate-income housing if the court makes specified findings. This bill, where the applicant for a housing development is a prevailing party in an action brought by the applicant to enforce the public agency's compliance with a housing reform law as applied to the applicant's housing development project, would entitle an applicant for a housing development project to reasonable attorney's fees and costs and would require a court to impose fines on a local agency, as specified. The bill would extend any period of limitation for actions under any state law for a period of 60 days beginning on the date the applicant provides written notice to the local agency indicating its intent to commence an action. The bill would prohibit a public agency from requiring the applicant to indemnify, defend, or hold harmless the public agency in any action alleging the public agency violated the applicant's rights or deprived the applicant of the benefits or protection provide by a housing reform law. The bill would define housing reform law as a law that establishes or facilitates protections for the benefit of applicants for housing development projects or imposes limitations on a public agency for the benefit of housing development projects.
Existing law makes it a crime to willfully threaten to commit a crime that will result in death or great bodily injury to another person, with the specific intent that the statement is to be taken as a threat that, on its face and under the circumstances in which it is made, is so unequivocal, unconditional, immediate, and specific as to convey to the person threatened a gravity of purpose and an immediate prospect of execution of the threat, and thereby reasonably causes the threatened person to be in sustained fear for their own safety or the safety of their immediate family, as defined. Under existing law, this crime is punishable as a misdemeanor or in state prison as a felony. This bill would, for the purposes of sentencing for a felony violation of these provisions, authorize the court to consider, as a factor in aggravation, that the defendant willfully threatened to commit a crime that would result in the death or great bodily injury of a person the defendant knew was a state constitutional officer, a Member of the Legislature, or a judge or court commissioner, as specified.
Existing law establishes the Department of Housing and Community Development (department) in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. Existing law grants the department various powers, including the power to provide bilingual staff in connection with services of the department and make available departmental publications in a language other than English when necessary to effectively serve groups for which the services or publications are made available. Existing law authorizes the department to adopt and amend guidelines for various purposes, including for the preparation of housing elements or to implement uniform standards or criteria, as provided. This bill would require the department to review all guidelines it has adopted or amended to determine whether those guidelines explain rights or services available to the public. For guidelines that meet that criteria, the bill would require the department to translate those guidelines into any non-English languages spoken by a substantial number of non-English-speaking people, as defined.
(1) The Planning and Zoning Law requires each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for its physical development, and the development of certain lands outside its boundaries, that includes, among other mandatory elements, a housing element. That law, until January 1, 2033, deems a housing development project an allowable use on any real property owned by a local educational agency if the housing development satisfies specified conditions, including, among others, consisting of at least 10 housing units, 100% of the units being rented by local educational agency employees, local public employees, and general members of the public pursuant to a specified priority, and a majority of the units being deed restricted for lower income or moderate-income households, as specified. Existing law, the Housing Accountability Act, among other things, prohibits a local agency from disapproving a housing development project for very low, low-, or moderate-income households unless the local agency makes written findings as to one of certain sets of conditions, as specified, and describes various requirements applicable to housing development projects. This bill would revise and recast the provisions deeming a housing development project an allowable use on any real property owned by a local educational agency. The bill would require the housing development to satisfy specified conditions, and would apply the requirements of the Housing Accountability Act to review of housing development projects subject to these provisions. The bill would provide that a proposed housing development project is eligible for a density bonus, as specified, and would define various terms for these purposes. The bill would extend the operation of these provisions until January 1, 2036. (2) Existing law, prior to the sale, lease, or rental of any excess real property, requires the governing board of each school district to appoint a school district advisory committee to advise the governing board of the school district in the development of districtwide policies and procedures governing the use or disposition of school buildings or space in school buildings that is not needed for school purposes. Notwithstanding that law, existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to elect not to appoint a school district advisory committee in the sale, lease, or rental of excess real property to be used for teacher or school district employee housing. This bill would specify that the governing board of a school district is authorized to elect not to appoint a school district advisory committee in the sale, lease, or rental of excess real property to be used for teacher or school district employee housing and that is subject to the provisions governing real property owned by a local educational agency described above. (3) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. Existing law, until January 1, 2033, exempts from CEQA certain actions taken by a public agency related to affordable housing projects, as defined, if certain requirements are met. This bill would provide that an affordable housing project for purposes of the CEQA exemption includes real property owned by a local educational agency, as described above, and would exempt these projects from certain of the requirements for other affordable housing projects. (4) The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities. (5) By adding to the duties of local planning officials with respect to approving certain development projects, 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.
(1) The Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Reorganization Act of 2000 governs the procedures for the formation and change of organization of cities and special districts and establishes a local agency formation commission in each county consisting of members appointed as provided. The act expresses the intent of the Legislature that each local agency formation commission, by January 1, 2002, establish written policies and procedures and exercise its powers in a way that encourages and provides planned, well-ordered, efficient urban development patterns, as specified. The act requires these written policies and procedures to include forms to be used for various submittals to the commission, as provided. The act requires each commission to provide access to notices and other information to the public on an internet website, as specified, including notice of all public hearings and commission meetings. This bill would require that each local agency formation commission establish the written policies and procedures described above. The bill would require that the written policies and procedures include any forms necessary for a complete application to the commission concerning a proposed change of organization or reorganization. The bill would require each commission to provide access to its written policies and procedures to the public, including any forms necessary for a complete application for a change of organization or reorganization, through its internet website. (2) The Permit Streamlining Act, among other things, requires a public agency to compile a list of the information required from an applicant for a development project, as provided. This bill would require a public agency, for each type of approval issued in connection with a housing development project, as defined, to publish online the above-described list, including the criteria that the public agency will apply in order to determine the completeness of the development application and the name of the type of approval, as provided. (3) By increasing the duties of local agency formation commissions in establishing and publishing written policies and procedures and of local planning officials in reviewing permit applications for housing development projects, 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.
Under the Planning and Zoning Law, the legislative body of a county or city may adopt ordinances that, among other things, regulate the use of buildings, structures, and land, as provided. The Subdivision Map Act vests the authority to regulate and control the design and improvement of subdivisions in the legislative body of a local agency and sets forth procedures governing the local agency's processing, approval, conditional approval or disapproval, and filing of tentative, final, and parcel maps. Existing law requires a local agency to consider ministerially a specified proposed housing development or to ministerially approve a parcel map for an urban lot split if the development or parcel meets specified requirements, including, that the development or parcel is not located within a historic district or property included on the State Historic Resources Inventory or within a site that is designated or listed as a city or county landmark or historic property or district pursuant to city or county ordinance, as specified. Existing law authorizes a local agency to impose specified objective standards on the development or parcel created by an urban lot split, except as specified. With respect to ministerial review of a proposed housing development under the above-described provisions, this bill would, if the other specified requirements are met, instead require a local agency to consider ministerially the development that is not located in either a contributing structure within a historic district included on the State Historical Resources Inventory or within a historic property or district pursuant to city or county ordinance or in a parcel individually listed as a historical resource included in the State Historical Resources Inventory or within a property individually designated or listed as a city or county landmark under a city or county ordinance. The bill would also authorize a local agency to adopt objective standards for the purposes of maintaining the historical value of a historic district listed in the California Register of Historical Resources, as specified. With respect to an urban lot split under the above-described provisions, this bill would, if the other specified requirements are met, instead require a local agency to ministerially approve the urban lot split if the parcel is not located within a historic landmark property included on the State Historical Resources Inventory or within a site that is designated or listed as a city or county landmark pursuant to a city or county ordinance. The bill would additionally require that the proposed urban lot split not require demolition or alteration of specified structures. By imposing additional duties on local agencies, 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.
Existing law authorizes a court to issue a gun violence restraining order to prohibit a person from purchasing or possessing a firearm or ammunition for a period of one to 5 years, subject to renewal for additional one- to 5-year periods, if the subject of the petition poses a significant danger of self-harm or harm to another in the near future by having a firearm and the order is necessary to prevent personal injury to the subject of the petition or another. Existing law also allows a gun violence restraining order to be issued on an ex parte basis for up to 21 days. Existing law allows a petition for these gun violence restraining orders to be made by a law enforcement officer, or an immediate family member, employer, coworker, or teacher, as specified, of the subject of the petition. This bill would authorize the Counties of Alameda, El Dorado, Santa Clara, and Ventura to establish, until January 1, 2032, a pilot program to additionally authorize a district attorney to request that the court issue a temporary emergency gun violence restraining order, as specified. The bill would require the district attorney of a county that establishes a pilot program, commencing April 1, 2027, to annually submit specified data to the California Firearm Violence Research Center at UC Davis, and would authorize the center, commencing July 1, 2027, to conduct an evaluation of the pilot program and annually report that evaluation to the Legislature, as specified. The bill would require the district attorney of a county that establishes a pilot program, commencing April 1, 2027, to make the data described above available upon request to the Department of Justice and the Judicial Council. The bill would make related findings and declarations.
Existing law, the Contractors State License Law, establishes the Contractors State License Board to license and regulate contractors and establishes the registrar of contractors as the executive officer and secretary of the board. Existing law requires the registrar, upon receipt of the Labor Commissioner's finding of a willful or deliberate violation of the Labor Code by a licensee or transmission to the board of citations or other actions taken by the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, to initiate disciplinary action against the licensee within 18 months. This bill would authorize the Attorney General to bring a civil action to impose discipline upon, to deny an application for, or to deny continued maintenance of, a contractor's license for failing to pay its workers the full amount of wages the workers are entitled to under state law or because the contractor has not fulfilled a wage judgment or is in violation of an injunction or court order regarding the payment of wages to its workers. The bill would require the Attorney General to notify the registrar before bringing a civil action and would authorize the board to intervene in a proceeding brought pursuant to the bill's provisions. The bill would require a court to issue an order directing the registrar to suspend or revoke, to deny an application for, or to deny the continued maintenance of, a contractor's license under terms specified by the court.
Existing law, the Floating Home Residency Law, prescribes various terms and conditions on tenancies in floating home marinas, as defined. Existing law, until January 1, 2030, prohibits management of a floating home marina located in the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, or Marin from increasing the gross rental rate for a tenancy for a floating home berth in a floating home marina more than 3% plus the percentage change in the cost of living, or 5%, whichever is lower, of the lowest gross rental rate charged for a tenancy at any time during the 12 months prior to the effective date of the increase. Existing law prohibits management of a floating home marina from increasing the rent of a new homeowner that purchases a floating home in the marina if the purchase qualifies as an in-place transfer, as defined. This bill would, until January 1, 2038, prohibit management of a floating home marina located in the County of Marin from increasing the above-described rent more than the percent change in the cost of living, as specified, over the course of any 12-month period. The bill would require management to provide notice of any rental rate increases to each homeowner, as specified. The bill would specify that its provisions apply to rent increases for a tenancy in a floating home marina occurring on or after July 1, 2025. The bill would provide that in the event that management increases the rent by more than the amount specified above between July 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026, then the applicable rent on January 1, 2026, is the rent as of July 1, 2025, plus the maximum permissible increase, and that management is not liable to the homeowner for any corresponding rent overpayment. This bill would, until January 1, 2038, in the event that an in-place transfer of a floating home involves the sale of a floating home subject to an existing lease with a 10-year or longer term or that was offered a lease of that term between 2 years and 6 months prior to the time of the sale, except as specified, permit management of a floating home marina located in the County of Marin to establish a new initial rental rate for a prospective homeowner, subject to specified conditions, including that the final sale price of the home provided to the marina owner shall be certified and substantiated in writing to be true under penalty of perjury by the buyer. By expanding the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would exempt specified floating home berths from the rental rate increase limitations. The bill would void any waiver of the rights provided under these provisions and would provide that its provisions do not affect specified authority of local governments. Existing law prohibits a homeowner from being charged a fee when obtaining a rental agreement on a floating home berth for a term of 12 months or a lesser period, or for charges other than rent, utilities, and incidental charges, as specified. This bill would, until January 1, 2038, for a floating home marina located in the County of Marin, require that fees for utilities and incidental reasonable charges reflect actual costs, and would require a marina owner to demonstrate for all fees charged to a homeowner that the service was, or is currently being, actually rendered. The bill would prohibit marina owners from charging a fee to a homeowner for enforcement of marina rules. This bill would make conforming changes. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Marin. 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.
Existing law requires cities, counties, and continuums of care receiving state funding to address homelessness on or after January 1, 2024, to include families, people fleeing or attempting to flee domestic violence, and unaccompanied women within the vulnerable populations for whom specific system supports are developed to maintain homeless services and housing delivery. Existing law also requires the cities, counties, and continuums of care to develop analyses and goals with victim service providers to address the specific needs of the above-described population with data measures not included within the Homeless Management Information System, in accordance with federal policies and specified guidelines. Existing law requires the Interagency Council on Homelessness to set and measure progress on goals to prevent and end homelessness among domestic violence survivors and their children and among unaccompanied women in California. This bill would specifically include women with children in the populations described above. The bill would require the cities, counties, and continuums of care developing the analyses and goals described above to the Interagency Council on Homelessness. The bill would require the Interagency Council on Homelessness to post the analyses and goals on its website. By imposing new duties on cities and counties, 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.
Existing law, the Affordable Housing and High Road Jobs Act of 2022 (act) , until January 1, 2033, authorizes a development proponent to submit an application for an affordable housing development or a mixed-income housing development that meets specified objective standards and affordability and site criteria, including being located within a zone where office, retail, or parking are a principally permitted use. The act makes a development that meets those objective standards and affordability and site criteria a use by right and subject to one of 2 streamlined, ministerial review processes depending on, among other things, the affordability requirements applicable to the project. The act requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to undertake at least 2 studies, one completed on or before January 1, 2027, and one completed on or before January 1, 2031, on the outcomes of the act. This bill would provide that, for purposes of determining whether a property or site satisfies the criteria, objective development standards, or other requirements for receiving streamlined, ministerial review under the act, a local government's review of the property or site is limited to the area described as being physically disturbed by construction in the application for streamlined, ministerial review and does not include, unless expressly stated otherwise, other contiguous or noncontiguous areas even if under the ownership or control of the project proponent. The bill would provide that easements for public right-of-way, public or private utilities, or other public improvements in, under, or over the property shall not make the property ineligible to receive streamlined, ministerial review for either affordable or mixed-income housing developments. This bill would also expand the eligibility for the above-described streamlined, ministerial review for mixed-income housing developments to include developments located in a campus development zone, as defined, as long as the development meets certain affordability requirements and objective standards, as provided. The bill would require the outcomes of projects built under campus development zones to be reported in the January 1, 2031, outcomes report. The bill would also make related findings and declarations. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment. CEQA does not apply to the approval of ministerial projects. By expanding the scope of projects eligible for streamlined, ministerial approval as described above, this bill would expand the scope of the exemption from CEQA for ministerial projects. Existing law includes certain setback requirements in the objective standards that a mixed-income development project must meet to be subject to the above-referenced streamlined, ministerial review process. In this regard, existing law requires all parking to be set back at least 25 feet. This bill would instead impose that setback requirement only on parking that is aboveground. By changing the criteria local agencies must follow for the approval of certain development projects, 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.
Existing law, the California Coastal Act of 1976 (the Coastal Act) , among other things, requires anyone wishing to perform or undertake any development in the coastal zone, except as specified, in addition to obtaining any other permit required by law from any local government or from any state, regional, or local agency, to obtain a coastal development permit, as provided. The Coastal Act generally requires each local government, as specified, to prepare a local coastal program, for certification by the California Coastal Commission. Existing law also imposes an analogous requirement on port governing bodies to prepare port master plans, for certification by the commission. With regard to local coastal programs and port master plans, existing law provides that an amendment determined to be de minimis by the executive director of the commission, after notice in the agenda of the next scheduled commission meeting, becomes a part of the certified program or plan 10 days after the commission meeting if 3 or more members of the commission do not object to the de minimis determination. This bill would make de minimis amendments to local coastal programs and port master plans effective upon adjournment of that meeting if 3 or more members of the commission do not object to the de minimis determination. The Coastal Act authorizes the commission to impose specified administrative penalties on a person, including a landowner, who is in violation of any provision of the act other than public access, and separate administrative penalties for violations relating to public access. Regarding the violations of the act unrelated to public access, existing law requires the commission staff to annually prepare and present a written report to the full commission that includes specified information related to the imposition of those penalties and to annually provide the written report to the Legislature, as prescribed. This bill would require the commission staff to prepare and present a written report to the full commission every 5 years instead of annually, as specified, and would require the report to address public access violations as well. The bill would require the report to include, in addition, the number of violations referred to the Attorney General, the number of pending violations at the end of the reporting period, and summaries of violations that were resolved that are both illustrative of the commission's enforcement workload and that provided significant public benefit. This bill would repeal an obsolete reporting requirement that concerned violations of the act related to public access.
