Bill > SB677

This bill streamlines the financing of residential rental housing and limits certain local subdivision appeals by making specific changes to California’s Joint Exercise of Powers Act and Subdivision Map Act. Under context where local public agencies form a joint powers authority—an entity created when two or more government agencies join forces to share powers—to issue bonds for affordable housing, member cities or counties sometimes fail to approve the required federal tax documents or local agreements in a timely manner. To address this, the bill allows the State Treasurer to bypass standard Department of General Services approval to join an existing joint powers authority specifically so the state can step in, act as the local city or county, and issue the necessary bond approvals when a local member agency delays or fails to do so. Additionally, the bill amends the Subdivision Map Act—which governs how land is divided into building lots—to prohibit "interested persons" (such as members of the general public) from filing administrative appeals against local decisions on tentative or final maps for eligible urban housing development projects that meet specific environmental, safety, and infrastructure criteria, while still preserving appeal rights for project developers, tenants, and public agencies.