Thread by @alfred_twu

2022 California Housing Legislation - over 100 bills this year.
More details: alfredtwu.medium.com/2022-californi…
PDF: dropbox.com/s/36zv8r1eacjr…
Details in thread! 1/
#CALeg

More bills this year on limiting wildfire risk:
#SB1292 from @HenrySternCA: Allows cities to limit housing in fire zones & replacing the zoned capacity elsewhere. For every unit of removed from a fire zone, 2 units of capacity must be added elsewhere. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Sharon @quirk_silva has several housing bills this year. a65.asmdc.org/legislative-up… including one that's wildfire related:
#AB2705 Fire hardening & retrofitting standards. Also provides funding for hardening 300,000 homes in very high fire hazard zones. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

For future Regional Housing Needs Allocations that set each cities' housing goals: #AB1445 from @marclevine Requires fire, sea level rise, evacuation risk to be considered in determining each city’s share of regional housing goals. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

A few other bills on the General Plan Housing Elements updates cities have to do every several years: #AB1976 from @SantiagoAD53 allows state to fine & rezone cities that don’t zone enough land for low income housing (which requires higher density zoning). leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…

#AB2339 from @RichardBloom would carry over unmet housing goals from previous planning cycles are carried over and added to goals of next cycle. Also requires cities to allow homeless shelters in more regular zones instead of using special overlay zoning. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

#AB2653 from @BuffyWicks would allow California to reject cities’ housing element annual reports that don’t meet state guidelines. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Like accessory dwelling units? 4 #ADU bills:
#SB897, @BobWieckowskiCA: 25' tall ADUs & converting apartment garages.
#AB916, @rudysalasjr: 18' ADUs & add bedrooms w/o public hearings.
#AB2221, @quirk_silva: Cleanup bill
#AB2430, @AsmGrayson: Allow tiny houses on wheels as ADUs

Link to bill text:
#SB897 25' ADUs or as nimbys call them, "Granny towers" 🤣leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…
#AB916 18' ADUs leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…
#AB2221 ADU cleanup bill leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…
#AB2430 Tiny houses leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Parking reform:
#SB1067 @Portantino: No parking required if 25% of units are low or mod income or for students/elderly/ persons with disabilities; within 1/2 mile of major transit stop.
#AB2097 @laurafriedman43: No parking needed for anything within 1/2 mile of major transit stop

another #YIGBY (Yes in God's Backyard) parking reform bill this year from @BuffyWicks
#AB2244 Reduction in parking requirements for sites with both housing & religious buildings. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

@BuffyWicks Bills about mixed use/reuse:
#SB6 @anna4thevalley Housing in office/retail zone
#AB682 @RichardBloom Density bonus for group living
#SB1369 @BobWieckowskiCA Convert commercial/industrial/etc to housing
#AB1551 @SantiagoAD53 Bonus for commercial bldgs that have affordable housing

Bills to get homes approved fast
#AB1952 @J_GallagherAD3: Faster approvals for projects that get Infill Infrastructure Grant $.
#AB2218 @quirk_silva Requires you to live within 20 miles of a infill housing to file CEQA lawsuit
#AB2234 @RobertRivas_CA Faster bldg permit approvals

@J_GallagherAD3 @quirk_silva @RobertRivas_CA Reducing cost to build homes:
#AB1056 @AsmGrayson Program to invest in industrialized housing / modular housing.
#AB2513 (also Grayson) State program to reduce construction defect insurance costs.
#AB2063 @Marc_Berman Removes affordable housing impact fees on density bonus units.

That summarizes this year's planning, zoning and production bills. Now for some commentary. Nothing as dramatic as SB50 or SB9 this year, but parking reform, reuse of commercial bldgs, & building on past ADU and Housing Element success can add up to a lot of new homes. #CALeg

Also, @AsmGrayson's various bills focused on reducing construction costs are important. High costs, not zoning, is increasing the reason that keeps homes from getting built in many places.

https://twitter.com/CSElmendorf/status/1507937949844860934

Parking reform is also a potential big cost savings - for some projects, @laurafriedman43's #AB2097 (which applies near major/quality transit) could save $100,000 or more of construction costs per home. abundanthousingla.org/getting-to-pro… #CALeg

more summary and commentary to come later 🐦

one more zoning bill I missed earlier - #AB2619 from @JimPatterson559, which would make it easier to open a residential care facility for the elderly with more than 6 people. With California aging, this meets a growing need. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…

Ben is correct - @SantiagoAD53's #AB1976 is a big deal. If cities repeatedly fail to zone enough sites for low-income housing, AB1976 would allow the CA Dept. of Housing & Community Development to step in and rezone.

https://twitter.com/thisisbenphelps/status/1508650219893760006

the foundation was laid back in 2018 with @Scott_Wiener's #SB828, which raised housing goals cities had to meet from a formality to something real. This was first felt this year as many SoCal cities submitted plans that failed to meet new standards.

https://twitter.com/dillonliam/status/1192605271744376832

@Scott_Wiener Fast forward to the last couple years. Even though SB828 had changed the standards, many exclusionary cities still submitted unrealistic housing plans with sites that were unlikely if not outright impossible to build on.

https://twitter.com/JalbyMD/status/1382116682559148034

Unsurprisingly, California's Department of Housing and Community Development rejected many of these types of plans that used unrealistic sites to claim that there was enough land zoned for the housing goals the cities each had.

https://twitter.com/AbundantHousing/status/1483578559184605185

What's next if a city's housing element is non-compliant? In theory, state law says developers get to use a Builders' Remedy, and can ignore zoning and build skyscrapers, as long as 20% of the homes are affordable.
In practice, it's untested in court.

https://twitter.com/CSElmendorf/status/1483913030006030338

#AB1976 appears to allow for a more predictable fix. Rather than throw out an entire city's zoning, the state steps in and do a more surgical rezoning to create enough sites to meet the SB828 housing goals. City doesn't have to make tough decisions. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…

I don't have a soundcloud, but I do have an election campaign for the AC Transit board in the East Bay. Transit and housing go hand in hand. 🚌🏘️

https://twitter.com/alfred_twu/status/1482802936321220608

onto the next section: Homeownership!
First, 2 bills to prioritize tenants, future homeowners & nonprofits buy foreclosed homes, and limit investor buying:
#AB1837 from @MiaBonta and #AB2170 from @AsmGrayson.

@MiaBonta @AsmGrayson also,
#AB2013, @quirk_silva: Increase homeownership among people of color.
#AB2123, @AsmVillapudua: Housing grants for healthcare workers in areas w/ shortage of workers.
#AB2166, @ChadMayes Sets aside 30% of federal Comm. Dev Block Grant $ to help low/mod income homebuyers.

Bills such as #AB1837 and #AB2170 prioritizing of future homeowners & nonprofits for who gets to buy foreclosed homes builds on the success of last year's #SB1079, closing loopholes. Learn more about that bill and how you can use it at theselc.org/sb_1079_toolkit

Homelessness has been rising in CA. Many bills this year to provide relief.
#SB513, @hertzieLA: $ for pet facilities, food, & health at homeless shelters.
#SB914, @AsmBlancaRubio: Goal to end homelessness among domestic violence survivors, their children, & unaccompanied women.

@hertzieLA @AsmBlancaRubio From the East Bay, @NancySkinnerCA has a bill #SB1083 for grants to prevent homelessness for families & pregnant people. sd09.senate.ca.gov/news/20220218-…

For those living in their car, parking fines worsen homelessness and make saving up for an apartment harder. #AB1685 from Isaac Bryan @ib2_real would forgive parking fines for people who are homeless, up to $1500 per person per year.

https://twitter.com/ib2_real/status/1508463998693380102

@ib2_real Assemblymember @quirk_silva also has a bill to help those living in vehicles, #AB2011, which would provide funding for creating new RV parks and subsidies for RV dwellers to park in existing ones. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

#AB2325, @LuzRivas: Interagency coordination to end homelessness.
#AB2483, @BMaienschein: Prioritize $ for housing that contains at least 25 units for people who are homeless. Also provides assistance for people with disabilities to live in their own homes.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…

#AB2547 from @adrin_nazarian would provide grants to prevent homelessness for older adults & people with a disability. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…
justiceinaging.org/fact-sheet-ab2…

For California renters, retirement isn't something to look forward to. Wages are too low to buy a home, retirement income is too low to afford rents. Unless CA fixes this, we're going to see a huge amount of elderly homelessness.

https://twitter.com/RedwoodGirl/status/1504841755551698945

#AB2547 from @adrin_nazarian would help around 25,000 extremely low-income older adults and people with disabilities who are currently homeless or at risk of homelessness to afford housing on the rental market. It's a start, though we'll need a lot more. justiceinaging.org/fact-sheet-ab2…

Housing First is a recent CA policy to get people housed first, as it's easier to deal with addiction when indoors. However, there's still a desire for some sober facilties.
#AB2623 by @AsmVillapudua would allow exception to have sober housing in facilities that have children.

During the pandemic, due to the slow and uncertain relief, many tenants who lost jobs moved in with friends or family, or into vehicles, or ran up lots of credit card debt to pay rent. Now they face barriers to renting housing. Many bills this year seek to make it easier to apply

#SB649, @SenDaveCortese: Preference for local residents at risk of displacement in getting spots in affordable housing near where they live.
#SB1026, @BobWieckowskiCA: Energy efficiency disclosure for rental housing so tenants can estimate future utility bills.

Several bills on credit reports:
#SB1335 by @SusanEggman & #AB2203 by @LuzRivas would ban landlords from using credit reports to screen tenants who receive Section 8 vouchers or other govt subsidies.
#AB2527 by @quirk_silva would have banned it for all tenants, but was shelved

@SusanEggman @LuzRivas @quirk_silva #AB2559 from @ChrisWardCA would reduce the cost of applying for apartments, by requiring landlords to note whether they accept reusable credit / tenant screening reports. It would also prohibit landlords from charging fees if using the reusable reports. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

@SusanEggman @LuzRivas @quirk_silva @ChrisWardCA As saving up for a security deposit has been a barrier to getting an apartment, @BuffyWicks has introduced #AB2297, a bill to require landlords to accept a small monthly fee instead of a large one-time deposit leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…

#AB1816 from @ib2_real & @Ash_Kalra is a bill for re-entry housing for people released from jail or prison, including grants for applicants, incentives for landlords, and rent assistance. Getting people housed reduces the rate of new crimes.

https://twitter.com/safeandjust/status/1506683186079678466

@ib2_real @Ash_Kalra Another re-entry housing bill #AB2383 from @JonesSawyerAD59 would prevent landlords from asking about criminal record on initial application. However, could still do background check & reject someone after. Some orgs have asked AB2383 to be strengthened so that it's meaningful.

and now... Renaming Things without actually changing anything: #AB2503 would change "Landlord" / "Tenant" in California law to "Lessor" / "Lessee" - language that's used for renting commercial space. Why? To get rid of "archaic and medieval terms" leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

If you haven't read the bill text for 2022's AB2503 yet, you're missing out!

https://twitter.com/rcmoya84/status/1504718700586291200

don't forget to ask your assemblymember to oppose this change that would do nothing but confuse tenants. this is 2022's version of housing crisis awareness license plates.🤣

Next up: Tenant Rights and Protections! This year's bills cover a lot of topics, including covid emergency protections, Ellis Act, mobile homes, tax refunds, domestic violence survivors, pets, air conditioning, habitability, protecting tenants when buildings are sold.

Homeowners save on taxes through the mortgage interest deduction. CA has low income renters credit, but it's tiny. #SB843 from @Steve_Glazer would up it from $60 to $500 for individuals, from $120 to $1000 for couples /heads of households

https://twitter.com/SenJoshBecker/status/1481452906377211906

@Steve_Glazer As currently written, the #SB843 low income renter tax refund would be given to individuals making up to $43,533 and families making up to $87,066. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Two COVID relief bills:
#SB847 by @Senator_Hurtado: Grants for landlords who participated in the COVID rent relief program.
#AB2179 by @AsmGrayson would extend some statewide tenant protections, but also override some local ones.

https://twitter.com/KQED/status/1508632539547807744

@Senator_Hurtado @AsmGrayson For example, San Francisco was set to have additional local protections start April 1, but they will be overridden by AB2179. Luckily here in the East Bay, our local protections will still remain.

https://twitter.com/CalMatters/status/1508492897301274624

For tenants with pets, getting an apartment can be hard. #SB971 from @JoshNewmanCA would allows pets in new affordable housing buildings.

https://twitter.com/JoshNewmanCA/status/1491911024756379655

#SB1017 from @SusanEggman would protect domestic violence survivors from eviction, for example by allowing survivors to use eviction protections when the abusive person is on the lease but no longer residing in the residence.

#AB1858 from @quirk_silva Extends health and safety regulations to substandard buildings that people live in, even if they are not officially zoned for residential use. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

In cities with rent control, Ellis Act is used by speculators to kick tenants out. #AB2050 by @alex_lee limits when Ellis Act can be used to close an apartment building and evict everyone. Owners would have to have owned the building for at least 5 years.

https://twitter.com/beyondchron/status/1508838480415117314

@alex_lee Another bill to protect tenants from speculative evictions is #AB2713 by @BuffyWicks. It would limit certain types of owner move-in evictions, and also delay renovation evictions from starting until a building permit is obtained. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

@alex_lee @BuffyWicks #AB2713 owner move-in limits are to close loopholes in cases like one in Oakland where owner bought a 3plex, moved into 1 unit & tried to take over other 2. It would ban OMIs if owner lives in a different unit on the property, or if there's a vacancy

https://twitter.com/defendauntif/status/959570108472373249

@alex_lee @BuffyWicks Owner move-in and Ellis Act evictions are most likely to happen when a building is sold. #AB2710 from @Ash_Kalra is a #TOPA bill that would give tenants the time and opportunity to purchase when bldg is sold, either themselves or with a nonprofit.

https://twitter.com/publicadvocates/status/1507447573304422402

Similar to #AB2710, a local effort to create a Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) in Berkeley has been in the works for a few years, and has broad support.

https://twitter.com/Yes2Topa/status/1485695282268413955

Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Acts address the issue that while tenants/nonprofits have the income to buy their homes when sold, they can't move as fast as an all-cash investor, even if they can match the offer. #TOPA bills like #AB2710 give them time.

A mobile home protection bill this year: #AB2240 from @AMuratsuchi intends to implement Rent cap & protections from lease termination for mobile homes. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Currently, landlords are required to provide heat, but not cooling, even though hot days are as deadly as cold ones. #AB2597 by @RichardBloom would require cooling to be provided. The idea was first explored in 2019.

https://twitter.com/Mollydacious/status/1156295562548748289

There is also a bill to reduce the hot days by reducing climate change - #AB2446 from @ChrisHoldenNews to reduce carbon emissions from the manufacturing of building materials. 80% reduction by 2045. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavC…

There are some bills that would need voter approval. These are ones that amend the state constitution or involve bond measures. This year's proposals would create a right to housing, make it easier to build public housing, and fund new affordable housing.

#SCA2 from Senators @BenAllenCA and @Scott_Wiener would repeal a 1950s constitutional amendment that requires cities that want to build low income housing - even if it doesn't require spending city funds - to get voter approval

https://twitter.com/eb4everyone/status/1367506992529477638

#SCA2's proposal to make it easier to build public housing was first introduced a few years ago but has been stalled due to a lack of big donors for the eventual Proposition that would need to be passed. It could finally move forward this year.

https://twitter.com/HousingHumanRt/status/1503146292469399552

#SCA9 from @SenGonzalez33 would establish a right to housing in California. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText… The state would then be required to fund or provide housing, similar but to a higher quality than NYC's right to emergency shelter. kcrw.com/news/shows/gre…

@SenGonzalez33 Similarly, #ACA14 would prioritize housing in the state budget, setting aside $10 billion a year for the next 10 years.

https://twitter.com/BuffyWicks/status/1507508492021559300

@SenGonzalez33 #AB411 from @ASM_Irwin would issue a $600 million bond for housing for veterans. Latest bill text plans it for the March 2024 ballot. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

#SB1457 from @hertzieLA is $25 billion general purpose housing bond leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

#AB1771 from Chris Ward would discourage speculators from buying and flipping houses by taxing their profits. To avoid discouraging the building of new homes or the subdivision of lots, there are some exceptions.

https://twitter.com/AsmChrisWard/status/1505980752697049089

Details on AB1771 here: leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

A few bills this year on using surplus public land, as well as housing on golf courses, parking lots of parks & rec facilities, and at DMV's.

#AB1748 by @AssemblySeyarto would make it easier to sell surplus land "zoned for a density of up to 30 residential units & is owned by a city or county that demonstrates adequate progress in meeting its share of regional housing need in its annual report" leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

#AB1910 from Assemblymember Cristina Garcia would help convert golf courses to general purpose parks and mixed income housing.

https://twitter.com/AsmGarcia/status/1491880409797312533

#AB2357 from @PhilTing would add list of interested organizations to website listing public land available for building affordable housing. Would help govt find builders. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

@PhilTing Want to live above a DMV? soon you might be able to. #AB2439 from Asm. @RichardBloom would build combined DMV field offices and housing at 3 locations in Santa Monica, Culver City, and LA
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

@PhilTing @RichardBloom Or, perhaps you want to live next to a public park? Another Richard Bloom bill, #AB2762, would build affordable housing on parking lots that serve public parks and recreational facilities. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Affordable Housing Production:
#AB2334 by @BuffyWicks would make zoning changes to allow more affordable housing, especially in areas with less driving (low vehicle travel areas).
#AB2445 by @J_GallagherAD3 would make it more expensive to file lawsuits against affordable housing

Several bills on the affordable housing funding process:
#SB948 by @SenJoshBecker: Statewide reserve fund for affordable projects, instead of requiring individual projects to have transition reserves in case of loss of operating subsidies. 1/

@SenJoshBecker #AB1288 by @Quirk_Silva
tax credits for new construction by allowing shifting of funds from 4% tax credit program to 9% tax credit program.
#SB1466 by @SenHenryStern
$200–250 million/year for affordable housing
#AB1945 by @AsmAguiarCurry Disaster recovery & rebuilding fund 2/

@SenJoshBecker @quirk_silva @SenHenryStern @AsmAguiarCurry #AB2006 by @Marc_Berman: Streamlined monitoring of affordable projects for compliance with funding programs.
#AB2186 by @AsmGrayson: Grants for cities that waive fees.
#AB2233 by @Quirk_Silva: public housing loan fund.
#AB2305 by @AsmGrayson: Consolidated funding application 3/

A 2019 bill created Bay Area regional affordable housing agency. This year, 4 proposals for SoCal:
#SB679 by @sydneykamlager: LA County.
#SB1105 by @SenBenHueso: San Diego County.
#SB1177 by @Portantino: Burbank, Glendale, Pasadena.
#SB1344 by @SenSusanRubio: San Gabriel Valley.

more about the Bay Area Housing Finance Agency (BAHFA), the regional affordable housing agency that was created in 2019 here: mtc.ca.gov/about-mtc/auth…

A few bills on housing data:
#AB889 by @AsmMikeGipson: Transparency on who owns rental property.
#AB2094 by @RobertRivas_CA: Annual report data on extremely low income (less than 30% of area median income) housing production.

Currently many homes are owned by big investors, but official documents will list a mysterious LLC. #AB889 would require the actual owner to be disclosed.
cayimby.org/ab-889/

Similarly, #AB2469 from @BuffyWicks would create a statewide rental registry tracking ownership, physical attributes of the unit, length of tenancy, vacancies, and rent.
You can see a local example of a registry at the Berkeley Rent Board website cityofberkeley.info/Rent_Stabiliza…

@BuffyWicks Rent registries have two main uses:
1) Providing the info needed to enforce tenant protection laws such as limits on rent increases.
2) Providing data on the housing market that can be used to create better public policy.

#AB2531 by @AsmGrayson would require cities to have a website listing development/permit fees, zoning, and other requirements.
#AB2873 by @JonesSawyerAD59 would requires reporting on diversity of businesses involved in affordable housing projects. cayimby.org/ab-2873/

Social Housing (@alex_lee 's #AB2053) is a big enough deal to be its own category. This would be a new way to build homes in California - mixed income housing where the profits from wealthy tenants/homebuyers go to subsidizing low income residents, instead of a landlord's pocket.

Advantages social housing has:
- Reduces costs and length of waitlists
- Smoothes out the boom/busts that damage the construction industry
- Desegregation
- Cross-subsidies mean no cost to taxpayer
- and more!

https://twitter.com/IDoTheThinking/status/1508601982881214470

Learn more about social housing and #AB2053 at californiasocialhousing.org

The housing crisis hits young Californians the hardest. This year there are several bills around housing for students, youth, and school employees.

#AB1719 from @ChrisWardCA is a bill for Community college worker housing.
#AB2295 from @RichardBloom would allow housing for school employees to exceed local zoning, up to 3 stories if zoning doesn't already allow that. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

Remember the recent bill to allow UC Berkeley to enroll more students? There's a follow up to it to allow UC & other colleges to build more housing faster: #SB886 by @Scott_Wiener: Faster approvals for student housing, creates a CEQA exemption.

@Scott_Wiener Other student housing bills:
#AB1602 by @KevinMcCartyCA: Revolving loan fund.
#AB1764 by @AsmJoseMedina: Student housing insecurity data + Field Act exemption for community college student housing
#AB2272 by @Evan_Low: Loans for maintenance of student housing at private colleges

@Scott_Wiener @KevinMcCartyCA @AsmJoseMedina @Evan_Low A cause of youth homelessness is aging out of the foster care system before they can get housing on their own. #AB1615 by @PhilTing expands a foster youth housing program to also cover age 22–24. Extends transition housing to cover those that are 25. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

More info on how #AB1615 keeps young people housed in this report from @JBAforYouth: jbay.org/wp-content/upl…

The 3 P's of housing are Produce new homes, Preserve existing, and Protect Tenants.
Bills to preserve housing include:
#AB1911 by @AsmJesseGabriel: tax credit funding
#SB490 by @CASenCaballero: Technical assistance to help nonprofits and govt purchase buildings. 1/

@AsmJesseGabriel @CASenCaballero There's also #AB1850, a bill from @ChrisWardCA to make sure that a new way of converting private bldgs to affordable housing actually delivers significant rent savings. leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billText…

#AB1850 is aimed at CA Community Housing Agency, an entity chartered by a small county that buys new bldgs statewide & turns them into mod-income housing. Concerns are high fees that the bankers get upfront, as well as cost to cities of lost property tax $ forbes.com/sites/schifrin…

Finally, 3 bills to reduce property taxes on the following
#AB1206 by @asmstevebennett: limited equity co-ops.
#SB1456 by @SenHenryStern: more types of affordable housing, especially larger buildings.
#AB1933 by @laurafriedman43: land that will be used for low income homes.

that's all for now, though more bills might be added later as the Legislature amends bills.
Full summary is here:
alfredtwu.medium.com/2022-californi…

PDF Link dropbox.com/s/36zv8r1eacjr… (fits on 11x17)