The 2017 Legislative Housing Package passed 15 bills that enact new housing regulations in California. Assembly Bill (AB) 879 and Senate Bill (SB) 35 placed increased importance on Housing Element Annual Progress Reports (Annual Reports) that are due to HCD by April 1 each year. New consequences for failing to complete Annual Reports include court sanctions and losing local control over affordable multifamily housing development entitlements to a new streamlined approval process. If your jurisdiction is behind on its Annual Reports, it could lose local control over affordable multifamily housing development entitlements as early as this year.
Charter Cities Must Complete Report
· Charter cities used to be exempt from submitting an Annual Report. They must now submit an Annual Report beginning with the 2017 report due April 1, 2018.
Failure to Submit Annual Reports
· Failure to submit an Annual Report within 60 days of the due date could result in court orders to compel compliance, and court sanctions if not completed as ordered.
· Failure to submit the Annual Report for two or more consecutive years triggers SB 35 provisions streamlining affordable multifamily housing development approvals, losing significant local control over the entitlement process.
New Annual Reporting Requirements
Local jurisdictions need to track new housing production data in 2018 to include in the Annual Report due April 2019, and ongoing years. This includes data on:
· Housing Development Applications and Approvals
· Housing Production in progress (via entitlement, building permit, or certificate of occupancy)
· Sites Identified or Rezoned to Accommodate RHNA Need (related to “No Net Loss” provisions passed by AB 166)
HCD will use new Annual Report data to determine if a locality has not issued enough building permits to satisfy its RHNA allocation by income category for a reporting period, subjecting it to SB 35 streamlining provisions until the next reporting period.
Annual Reports due by April 1 must continue to include the Housing Successor Annual Report for redevelopment housing successors that are not Housing Authorities (Housing Authority reports are due by October 1 and December 31).
Contact Suzy Kim, Senior Associate, at [email protected] or 714.316.2116, if you have questions or need assistance preparing your Annual Report to retain local control over housing development and avoid court sanctions.
Written by Suzy Kim, a Senior Associate at RSG