Source: http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=201920200AB1706
Timestamp: 2020-01-25 20:28:24
Document Index: 648842165

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 1', 'art 1', 'art 7', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 2', 'art 2']

Bill Text - AB-1706 Housing development: incentives.
AB-1706 Housing development: incentives.(2019-2020)
AB1706:v98#DOCUMENT
An act relating to housing.An act to add and repeal Section 65913.3 of the Government Code, relating to housing.
AB 1706, as amended, Quirk. Planning and Zoning: affordable housing: streamline. Housing development: incentives.
The Planning and Zoning Law, until January 1, 2026, authorizes a development proponent to submit an application for a multifamily housing development that is subject to a streamlined, ministerial approval process, as provided, and not subject to a conditional use permit, if the development satisfies specified objective planning standards. Existing law requires the objective planning standards to include, among other things, that the development be located in a jurisdiction for which the department determines that the number of units that have been issued building permits is less than the local agency’s share of the regional housing needs, by income category, for the applicable reporting period.
This bill would, until January 1, 2035, provide specified financial incentives that ensure financial feasibility to a development proponent of a residential housing development in the 9-county San Francisco Bay area region that dedicates at least 20% of the development’s housing units to households making no more than 150% of the area median income. The incentives provided to those developments include an exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act, a density bonus of 35%, a waiver of local parking requirements, and a waiver of physical building requirements imposed on development by the local agency, such as green building standards.
This bill would require a development proponent to submit a request to the local agency on a project proforma that documents the necessity of the requested incentives to make the development financially feasible. The bill would require the Department of Housing and Community Development to develop a list of market conditions to be included in the project proforma and to be considered by the local agency and a methodology for the local agency to evaluate and determine whether the requested financial incentives are necessary to ensure that the development is financially feasible. The bill would require the department to develop a process for a local agency to contract with a qualified development expert to review a project proforma. The bill would require local agencies to report all housing units created pursuant to these provisions to the department, and would require the department to adopt guidelines for local agencies to increase the concessions and incentives as needed to assure the financial feasibility and accelerated production of housing units.
This bill would require a development subject to these provisions to be subject to a 12-month discretionary review period that may consist of no more than 2 public hearings. The bill would require a local agency to notify the development proponent in writing if the local agency determines that the development conflicts with any of the requirements provided for these incentives. The bill would allow a local agency to impose conditions of approval on a development if specified conditions are met.
This bill would apply only to a residential development project on a site that is zoned for residential development, located in an urban area, as defined, and not located within a historic district, coastal zone, very high fire hazard severity zone, or flood plain. The bill would not apply to developments that would require the demolition of specified types of affordable housing. The bill would require a development subject to these provisions to comply with specified prevailing wage and skilled and trained workforce requirements.
This bill would include findings that the changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities within the San Francisco Bay area, including charter cities.
This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the San Francisco Bay Area.
By requiring local agencies to provide specified financial incentives to eligible housing developments, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The Planning and Zoning Law requires a city or county to adopt a general plan for land use development within its boundaries that includes, among other things, a housing element. Existing law provides for various incentives intended to facilitate and expedite the construction of affordable housing. Existing law requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to determine existing and projected needs for housing for each region and, in consultation with each council of governments, adopt a final regional housing plan that allocates a share of the regional housing need to each city, county, or city and county that meets specified requirements.
This bill would state the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would provide streamlined approval, tax incentives, and other benefits to developers of middle-income housing projects that meet specified requirements.
(a) A development proponent that satisfies all of the following requirements may apply to the local agency for any of the incentives listed in subdivision (d) to offset the costs associated with providing deed-restricted affordable housing units and ensure the development is financially feasible:
(1) The development is a residential development project.
(2) The development complies with all existing zoning standards imposed by the local agency.
(3) The development is located in the nine-county San Francisco Bay area region.
(4) (A) The development proponent dedicates a percentage of the total number of for-sale and rental units to households making 150 percent of the area median income or less, with an average area median income of the affordable units not to exceed 120 percent of the area median income.
(B) The development applicant or proponent shall agree to, and the city or county shall ensure, the continued affordability of all the units subject to this paragraph for 55 years or a longer period of time if required by the construction or mortgage financing assistance program, mortgage insurance program, or rental subsidy program.
(C) The development proponent or applicant shall agree to, and the city or county shall ensure that, the initial occupant of all for-sale units under this paragraph are persons meeting the requirements of subparagraph (A). The local agency shall enforce an equity sharing agreement, unless it is in conflict with the requirements of another public funding source or law. The following apply to the equity sharing agreement:
(i) Upon resale, the seller of the unit shall retain the value of any improvements, the downpayment, and the seller’s proportionate share of appreciation. The local agency shall recapture any initial subsidy and its proportionate share of appreciation the local agency shall, within five years of the recapture, use any amounts recaptured for the construction, rehabilitation, or preservation of affordable housing for extremely low, very low, low-, and moderate-income persons or families as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 33334.2 of the Health and Safety Code that promote home ownership.
(I) “Initial subsidy” means the fair market value of the home at the time of initial sale minus the initial sale price to the moderate-income household, plus the amount of any downpayment assistance or mortgage assistance. If upon resale the market value is lower than the initial market value, then the value at the time of the resale shall be used as the initial market value.
(II) “Proportionate share of appreciation” means the ratio of the local agency’s initial subsidy to the fair market value of the home at the time of initial sale.
(5) The development, excluding any additional density or any other concessions, incentives, or waivers of development standards granted pursuant to the Density Bonus Law in Section 65915, is consistent with objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, and objective design review standards in effect at the time that the development is submitted to the local government pursuant to this section.
(6) The development is located on a site that satisfies all of the following:
(7) The development is not located on a site that is any of the following:
(D) Within a very high fire hazard severity zone, as determined by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection pursuant to Section 51178, or within a high or very high fire hazard severity zone as indicated on maps adopted by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection pursuant to Section 4202 of the Public Resources Code. A site is not ineligible within the meaning of this subparagraph if it is either of the following:
(G) Within a special flood hazard area subject to inundation by the 1 percent annual chance flood (100-year flood) as determined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in any official maps published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. If a development proponent is able to satisfy all applicable federal qualifying criteria in order to provide that the site satisfies this subparagraph and is otherwise eligible for streamlined approval under this section, a local agency shall not deny the application on the basis that the development proponent did not comply with any additional permit requirement, standard, or action adopted by that local agency that is applicable to that site. A development may be located on a site described in this subparagraph if either of the following are met:
(i) The site has been subject to a Letter of Map Revision prepared by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and issued to the local agency.
(H) Within a regulatory floodway as determined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency in any official maps published by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, unless the development has received a no-rise certification in accordance with Section 60.3(d)(3) of Title 44 of the Code of Federal Regulations. If a development proponent is able to satisfy all applicable federal qualifying criteria in order to provide that the site satisfies this subparagraph and is otherwise eligible for streamlined approval under this section, a local agency shall not deny the application on the basis that the development proponent did not comply with any additional permit requirement, standard, or action adopted by that local agency that is applicable to that site.
(8) The development is not located on a site where any of the following apply:
(9) The development proponent has done both of the following, as applicable:
(A) Certified to the local agency that either of the following is true, as applicable:
(IV) Except as provided in subclause (V), the obligation of the contractors and subcontractors to pay prevailing wages may be enforced by the Labor Commissioner through the issuance of a civil wage and penalty assessment pursuant to Section 1741 of the Labor Code, which may be reviewed pursuant to Section 1742 of the Labor Code, within 18 months of the completion of the development, by an underpaid worker through an administrative complaint or civil action, or by a joint labor-management committee though a civil action under Section 1771.2 of the Labor Code. If a civil wage and penalty assessment is issued, the contractor, subcontractor, and surety on a bond or bonds issued to secure the payment of wages covered by the assessment shall be liable for liquidated damages pursuant to Section 1742.1 of the Labor Code.
(V) Subclauses (III) and (IV) shall not apply if all contractors and subcontractors performing work on the development are subject to a project labor agreement that requires the payment of prevailing wages to all construction workers employed in the execution of the development and provides for enforcement of that obligation through an arbitration procedure.
(I) On and after January 1, 2020, until December 31, 2021, the development consists of 75 or more units with a residential component that is not 100 percent subsidized affordable housing and will be located within a jurisdiction with a population of 225,000 or more.
(II) On and after January 1, 2022, until December 31, 2025, the development consists of 50 or more units with a residential component that is not 100 percent subsidized affordable housing and will be located within a jurisdiction with a population of 225,000 or more.
(ii) If the development proponent has certified that a skilled and trained workforce will be used to complete the development and the application is approved, the following shall apply:
(III) Except as provided in subclause (IV), the applicant shall provide to the local agency, on a monthly basis while the development or contract is being performed, a report demonstrating compliance with Chapter 2.9 (commencing with Section 2600) of Part 1 of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code. A monthly report provided to the local agency pursuant to this subclause shall be a public record under the California Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 6250) of Division 7 of Title 1) and shall be open to public inspection. An applicant that fails to provide a monthly report demonstrating compliance with Chapter 2.9 (commencing with Section 2600) of Part 1 of Division 2 of the Public Contract Code shall be subject to a civil penalty of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per month for each month for which the report has not been provided. Any contractor or subcontractor that fails to use a skilled and trained workforce shall be subject to a civil penalty of two hundred dollars ($200) per day for each worker employed in contravention of the skilled and trained workforce requirement. Penalties may be assessed by the Labor Commissioner within 18 months of completion of the development using the same procedures for issuance of civil wage and penalty assessments pursuant to Section 1741 of the Labor Code, and may be reviewed pursuant to the same procedures in Section 1742 of the Labor Code. Penalties shall be paid to the State Public Works Enforcement Fund.
(IV) Subclause (III) shall not apply if all contractors and subcontractors performing work on the development are subject to a project labor agreement that requires compliance with the skilled and trained workforce requirement and provides for enforcement of that obligation through an arbitration procedure.
(i) The development includes 10 or fewer units.
(ii) The development is not a public work for purposes of Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 1720) of Part 7 of Division 2 of the Labor Code.
(10) The development did not or does not involve a subdivision of a parcel that is, or, notwithstanding this section, would otherwise be, subject to the Subdivision Map Act (Division 2 (commencing with Section 66410)) or any other applicable law authorizing the subdivision of land, unless the development is consistent with all objective subdivision standards in the local subdivision ordinance, and either of the following apply:
(A) The development has received or will receive financing or funding by means of a low-income housing tax credit and is subject to the requirement that prevailing wages be paid pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (9).
(B) The development is subject to the requirement that prevailing wages be paid, and a skilled and trained workforce used, pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (9).
(11) The development shall not be upon an existing parcel of land or site that is governed under any of the following:
(A) The Mobilehome Residency Law (Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section 798) of Title 2 of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Civil Code).
(B) The Recreational Vehicle Park Occupancy Law (Chapter 2.6 (commencing with Section 799.20) of Title 2 of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Civil Code).
(C) The Mobilehome Parks Act (Part 2.1 (commencing with Section 18200) of Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code).
(D) The Special Occupancy Parks Act (Part 2.3 (commencing with Section 18860) of Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code).
(b) (1) A development proponent that meets the requirements of subdivision (a) may submit a request with the local agency for any of the financial incentives listed in subdivision (d) to offset the costs associated with providing deed-restricted affordable housing units and ensure the development is financial feasible. The local agency shall review the request for incentives pursuant to the procedure provided in paragraph (3) of subdivision (c).
(2) The development proponent shall document the need for each financial incentive requested on a standard project proforma that accounts for local market conditions that affect the financial feasability of the development, as provided in subdivision (c).
(c) (1) The Department of Housing and Community Development shall develop a list of market conditions to be included in the standard project proforma required in subdivision (b). That list shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
(A) Market rental rates.
(B) Standard capital returns.
(C) Costs for different types of housing that accounts for the prevailing wage and skilled and trained workforce requirements required by this section.
(2) The department shall develop a methodology for a local agency to evaluate a project proforma submitted by a development proponent to determine whether the requested financial incentives are necessary to ensure the development is financially feasible.
(3) The department shall develop a process for a local agency to contract with a qualified development expert to review an application submitted pursuant to this paragraph. The development proponent shall pay for costs associated with the review of an application reviewed pursuant to this subparagraph. The department shall determine the standards on whether a development expert is qualified pursuant to this paragraph.
(4) A local agency shall report all housing units produced pursuant to this section to the department by December 31 of each year.
(5) The department shall, by December 31, 2020, adopt guidelines and a standardized process for local agencies to increase the concessions, incentives, and combinations thereof, as needed to assure the financial feasibility and accelerated production of housing units produced under this section to produce middle-income ownership and rental housing without financial subsidy.
(d) A development proponent may request any of the following financial incentives from the local agency pursuant to the procedure described in subdivisions (b) and (c):
(1) The development, including all activities associated with the project, as defined in Section 21065 of the Public Resources Code, shall be exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code).
(2) A density bonus of 35 percent. The bonus shall be in addition to any density bonus received under the Density Bonus Law in Section 65915. The development shall not be required to provide any additional affordable housing units beyond those required in paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) as a result of the density bonus provided in this paragraph.
(3) A waiver of local parking requirements.
(4) A waiver of physical building requirements imposed on development by the local agency, such as green building standards.
(5) A waiver of deed-restricted affordability requirements with the payment of an in lieu fee.
(e) A local agency in reviewing a development under this section shall be subject to a 12-month discretionary review and approval process, which may include up to two public hearings with an appointed or elected board, commission, or council, and shall include the resolution of any administrative appeals challenging a development approval. The local agency may require the development proponent to comply with conditions of approval, provided that:
(1) The required project application documentation shall be limited to confirmation of the development’s eligibility under this section.
(2) Fees imposed by all public agencies under the Mitigation Fee Act on the development do not exceed twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) per unit, in the aggregate, except as provided in paragraph (3). If applicable fees exceed twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) per unit at the time the initial project application is filed, all fees shall be decreased pro rata by the amount required to limit per unit fees to twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
(3) Other costs imposed by any discretionary condition of approval do not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) per unit in aggregate. The local agency shall bear the burden of proof in demonstrating, in its discretionary approval decision, that discretionary condition of approval costs do not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) per unit in aggregate. This cost constraint does not apply to development costs required to physically connect to existing infrastructure, or development costs required to protect public safety from significant adverse public safety impacts that are specific to the development costs.
(4) If the local agency determines that a development submitted pursuant to this section is in conflict with any of the objective zoning, subdivision, and design review standards specified in paragraph (5) of subdivision (a), it shall provide the development proponent written documentation of which standard or standards the development conflicts with, and an explanation for the reason or reasons the development conflicts with that standard or standards, as follows:
(A) Within 60 days of submittal of the development to the local agency pursuant to this section if the development contains 150 or fewer housing units.
(B) Within 90 days of submittal of the development to the local agency pursuant to this section if the development contains more than 150 housing units.
(5) The 12-month period for the city or county to exercise its discretion under this subdivision shall commence upon the application being deemed complete by the local agency pursuant to Section 65943. If a local agency does not complete its review and discretionary approval within the 12-month period, the development shall be deemed approved without discretionary conditions of approval provided that it meets the requirements provided in subdivision (a).
(f) (1) Any action brought to enforce the provisions of this section shall be brought pursuant to Section 1094.5 of the Code of Civil Procedure, and the local agency shall prepare and certify the record of proceedings in accordance with subdivision (c) of Section 1094.6 of the Code of Civil Procedure no later than 30 days after the petition is served. The local agency shall bear the cost of preparation of the record, unless the petitioner elects to prepare the record.
(2) A petition to enforce the provisions of this section shall be filed and served no later than 90 days from the effective date of a decision of the local agency imposing conditions on, disapproving, or any other final action on a housing development project.
(3) Upon entry of the trial court‘s order, a party may, in order to obtain appellate review of the order do one of the following:
(A) File a petition within 20 days after service upon it of a written notice of the entry of the order, or within such further time not exceeding an additional 20 days as the trial court may for good cause allow.
(B) Appeal the judgment or order of the trial court under Section 904.1 of the Code of Civil Procedure.
(4) If the local agency appeals the judgment of the trial court, the local agency shall post a bond, in an amount to be determined by the court, to the benefit of the plaintiff if the plaintiff is the development proponent.
(g) (1) In any action, the record of the proceedings before the local agency shall be filed as expeditiously as possible and, notwithstanding Section 1094.6 of the Code of Civil Procedure or subdivision (f) of this section, all or part of the record may be prepared under one of the following:
(A) The petitioner with the petition or petitioner‘s points and authorities.
(B) The respondent with respondent‘s points and authorities.
(C) After payment of costs by the petitioner.
(D) As otherwise directed by the court.
(2) If the expense of preparing the record has been borne by the petitioner and the petitioner is the prevailing party, the expense shall be taxable as costs.
(1) “Consistent with” means there is substantial evidence that would allow a reasonable person to conclude that the development is consistent, based solely on the objective standards set forth in the objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, or objective design review standards.
(3) “Local agency” means a city, including a charter city, a county, including a charter county, or a city and county, including a charter city and county.
(4) “Objective zoning standards,” “objective subdivision standards,” and “objective design review standards” mean standards that involve no personal or subjective judgment by a public official and are uniformly verifiable by reference to an external and uniform benchmark or criterion available and knowable by both the development proponent and the public official before submittal. These standards may be embodied in alternative objective land use specifications adopted by a city or county, and may include, but are not limited to, housing overlay zones, specific plans, inclusionary zoning ordinances, and density bonus ordinances, subject to the following:
(A) A development shall be deemed consistent with the objective zoning standards related to housing density, as applicable, if the density proposed is compliant with the maximum allowable residential density within that land use designation, notwithstanding any specified maximum unit allocation that may result in fewer units of housing being permitted.
(5) “Project labor agreement” has the same meaning as set forth in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) of Section 2500 of the Public Contract Code.
(6) “Residential development project” means a use consisting of either of the following:
(A) Residential units for rent or for-sale units only.
(B) Mixed-use developments consisting of for-rent or for-sale residential and nonresidential units with at least two-thirds of the square footage designated for residential use.
(i) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2035, and as of that date is repealed.
The Legislature finds and declares that providing an additional process for affordable housing development in the San Francisco Bay area, is a matter of statewide concern and is not a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, this act applies to all cities within the San Francisco Bay area, including charter cities.
The Legislature finds and declares that a special statute is necessary and that a general statute cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because of the uniquely severe shortage of available affordable housing and the particularly acute nature of the housing crisis within the nine counties of the San Francisco Bay area region.
It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation that would provide streamlined approval, tax incentives, and other benefits to developers of middle-income housing projects that meet specified requirements.