Bill > AB650

This bill modifies several sections of California's Government Code related to housing element planning and regional housing needs allocation, with the primary goal of improving housing planning processes and addressing housing challenges. The bill makes several key changes to how local governments and councils of governments develop and implement housing elements. Specifically, the bill extends timelines for determining regional housing needs from 2 to 3 years before a scheduled housing element revision for most regions, with some variations for specific councils of governments. It requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to develop a standardized reporting format for fair housing assessments by December 31, 2026, and introduces more detailed requirements for analyzing housing needs, including considerations for university enrollment, homelessness, and income categories. The bill also adjusts the methodology for allocating regional housing needs, emphasizing factors like jobs-housing balance, fair housing objectives, and sustainable development patterns. Additionally, the bill incorporates provisions to ensure that housing elements address the needs of various income levels, including acutely low and extremely low income households, and strengthens requirements for identifying and addressing constraints to housing development. The bill includes complex provisions for how it interacts with other pending legislation and ensures that its amendments will only become operative under specific conditions, reflecting a nuanced approach to legislative coordination in housing policy.

Budget and Finance, Government Affairs, Housing and Urban Affairs

https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billStatusClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260AB650