Majority of SoCal Cities Miss State Housing Plan Deadline, Face Possible Consequences

Homes in Lake Forest, Calif., on June 6, 2019. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Sixty-one percent of Southern California cities failed to have an approved housing element plan by the Oct. 15 deadline—as mandated by the state—and now face possible consequences including loss of state funding, less control over certain development projects, and a shortened period for rezoning.

The state has required cities and counties to update their housing element plans every five or eight years since 1969 to “meet the housing needs of everyone in the community,” according to the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), which handles housing programs that provide loans and grants for California cities.

When a city doesn’t have an HCD-approved plan, they might be given less time for rezoning—the process of re-categorizing land or property for a different usage—which is a time-consuming task.

“The whole point of those consequences is to encourage jurisdictions to meet their deadlines,” David Zisser, the assistant deputy director of housing policy for the department, told The Epoch Times.

New homes under construction at a housing development in Novato, Calif., on March 23, 2022. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Zisser said cities that have state-approved housing plans within four months after their statutory deadline would be given three years to complete any required rezoning. Cities that failed to comply in time would only have one year.

For the Southern California Association of Governments region—which includes Los Angeles, Orange, Imperial, Riverside, Ventura, and San Bernardino counties—the statutory deadline was Oct. 15 last year.

Under state law, cities must have enough residential zones for a certain number of housing units, including affordable housing, as part of their housing element plan updated every eight years. The mandate for zoning is known as the Regional Housing Needs Allocation, or RHNA.

Thanks to Senate Bill 197, which was passed in June, cities that managed to have an approved plan by Oct. 15 this month could keep their three-year rezoning period. But many cities once again failed to fulfill the requirement in time, and they now must have their rezoning completed along with an approved housing element plan to be considered compliant—and avoid consequences for non-compliance.

‘Builder’s Remedy’

With a non-compliant status, jurisdictions are subject to what is known as the “builder’s remedy.” Under this state provision, housing developers are allowed to bypass a city’s zoning code or general plan, as long as their proposals include 20 percent affordable housing, or 100 percent moderate-income housing.

Santa Monica is one city now facing the activation of this law.

Although the city became compliant with an approved housing element plan a few days before the deadline in October, it had been out of compliance for nearly a year, leaving a window of opportunity for developers.

Developers in Santa Monica applied for 16 projects—4,500 housing units—for buildings up to 15 stories tall, according to media reports.

A homeless encampment looking towards Santa Monica, Calif., on Jan. 27, 2021. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Loss of Funding, Lawsuits

Other disadvantages for non-compliant cities include losing out on funding for housing development. According to the HCD, jurisdictions must have an approved plan before the time of award for any grants.

The HCD or the state Attorney General’s office can also pursue legal action against a non-compliant city after sending out warning notices.

“We have sent a number of letters to jurisdictions that are out of compliance, months after their deadline,” Zisser said.

According to Zisser, Compton, Commerce, and San Bernardino haven’t submitted a housing element plan, and have been sent a notice of violation. If no action is taken after that, they could be served with a lawsuit to force them into compliance, he said.

60 Percent of Orange County Cities Are Out of Compliance

In Orange County, 60 percent of cities still don’t have a housing element plan approved by the state.

Costa Mesa is one example, although they have submitted their housing element plan twice but were rejected both times. City officials said they will soon submit another one.

“The state has required additional changes and the revised Housing Element will be submitted to the State again shortly,” city spokesman Tony Dodero told The Epoch Times.

Anaheim submitted its plan on time last October but has also been rejected twice. City officials are working on their third draft and “are confident we will get to a final plan soon,” spokesman Mike Lyster told The Epoch Times.

Lyster said officials are aware of the “builder’s remedy” but don’t consider it a major concern for the city.

“Anaheim has a long track of embracing housing and working collaboratively with developers, and we expect that to be the case going forward,” he said.

An apartment complex displays leasing opportunities in Costa Mesa, Calif., on Nov. 16, 2020. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

The Huntington Beach City Council also plans to vote in November on its housing element plan, Councilman Mike Posey told The Epoch Times. According to Councilman Erik Peterson, the process is taking longer because the requirements and work involved are onerous, making it difficult to meet the deadline.

Villa Park also submitted three plans before the most recent deadline, but none were approved by the HCD, according to City Manager Steve Franks.

“Our [current] focus is on getting a Housing Element Update approved by HCD, and moving forward from that point on the implementation,” Franks told The Epoch Times in an email.

According to the HCD, Southern California cities that are currently compliant include Brea, Cypress, Dana Point, Fountain Valley, Irvine, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Newport Beach, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Clemente, San Diego, San Juan Capistrano, Santa Ana, Stanton, Tustin, and Yorba Linda.