The Department of Housing and Community Development just released the NOFA for the Local Early Action Planning (LEAP) Grants Program, noting an application deadline of July 1, 2020. This program has allocated funding in the amount of $119,040,000 million for local governments to help in accelerating housing production and the implementation of the Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) 6th Cycle, which covers the planning period of January 1, 2019 to August 31, 2027. Program funding for jurisdictions can be utilized for the following activities:
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Rezoning and updating planning documents
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Completing environmental clearance to eliminate need for project-specific review
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Infrastructure planning
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Developing or improving accessory dwelling unit ordinance
The maximum funding grant amount is based on jurisdiction population, with the following guidelines:
This funding program is part of the AB 101 Budget Trailer bill passed last year by Governor Newsom, which sought to boost housing production in California by:
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Allocating $2.5 billion in funding for issues related to California’s housing and homelessness crisis;
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Incentivizing housing production in cities and counties;
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Setting in place processes for courts to determine cities and counties compliance with housing element laws; and
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Enforcing penalties for cities and counties who disregard directions of a court and refuse to adhere to housing element law.
That July 1st, 2020 application deadline will be here sooner than you think so if you are interested in applying or just want to know more on how this funding might help your jurisdiction, please contact Tara Matthews, Principal, at [email protected].