Changes housing element rules for emergency shelters

(1)The Planning and Zoning Law requires the legislative body of each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the county or city that includes a housing element. Existing law requires that the housing element identify adequate sites for housing, including rental housing, factory-built housing, mobilehomes, and emergency shelters, and to make adequate provision for the existing and projected needs of all economic segments of a community. Existing law also requires that the housing element include an analysis of potential and actual governmental constraints upon the maintenance, improvement, or development of housing for all income levels.

This bill would revise the requirements of the housing element, as described above, in connection with identifying zones or zoning designations that allow residential use, including mixed use, where emergency shelters are allowed as a permitted use without a conditional use or other discretionary permit. If an emergency shelter zoning designation where residential use is a permitted use is unfeasible, the bill would permit a local government to designate zones for emergency shelters in a nonresidential zone if the local government demonstrates that the zone is connected to amenities and services, as specified, that serve homeless people. The bill would delete language regarding emergency shelter standards structured in relation to residential and commercial developments and instead require that emergency shelters only be subject to specified written, objective standards. If a local government has adopted written, objective standards pursuant to these provisions, the bill would require the local government to include an analysis of these standards in the above-described analysis of constraints included in the housing element. The bill would require that zones where emergency shelters are allowed include sites that meet at least one of certain prescribed standards. The bill would also require that the number of people experiencing homelessness that can be accommodated on each identified site under these provisions be demonstrated by calculating a minimum of 200 square feet per person.

(2)The Planning and Zoning Law requires that the housing element include, among other things, an inventory of land suitable and available for residential development. If the inventory of sites does not identify adequate sites to accommodate the need for groups of all household income levels, as provided, existing law requires that the local government rezone sites within specified time periods. If the local government fails to adopt a housing element within 120 days of the applicable statutory deadline, existing law requires that the local government (A) complete this rezoning no later than 3 years and 120 days from the statutory deadline for the adoption of the housing element and (B) revise its housing element every 4 years until the local government has adopted at least 2 consecutive revisions by the statutory deadline.

This bill, for the 6th and each subsequent revision of the housing element, would instead require that a local government that fails to adopt a housing element that the Department of Housing and Community Development has found to be in substantial compliance with state law within 120 days of the statutory deadline to complete this rezoning no later than one year from the statutory deadline for the adoption of the housing element. The bill would also specify that the above-described requirement for the local government to revise its housing element every 4 years applies until the due date for the 6th revision of the housing element and that adoption of a 6th revision housing element that is found to be in substantial compliance satisfies any obligation to adopt a 4-year housing element. The bill would make conforming changes by deleting provisions made obsolete by this bill.

(3)This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 65583 of the Government Code proposed by AB 1561 to be operative only if this bill and AB 1561 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.

(4)By increasing the duties of local planning 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.