Appendix I: SB 2 and SB 35

Senate Bill 2: Definition and Expectations of Local Governments

Senate Bill 2 (SB 2) amended the State Housing Element Law and the State Housing Accountability Act (HAA) to require local governments to remove zoning barriers that prevent or discourage the development of emergency shelters, transitional housing, and supportive housing (Public Counsel 2). Therefore, in General Plan Housing Element updates, local governments are required to do the following:  Assess the need for emergency shelter  Identify zone(s) where shelters are permitted without discretionary approval (by-right)  Treat transitional and supportive housing the same as other residential uses  Include shelters, transitional housing, and supportive housing as protected by the HAA (Public Counsel, 3)

While SB 2 does not require local governments to build or fund emergency shelters, transitional housing, or supportive housing, it does require a local government’s zoning code to encourage the previously stated uses.

Senate Bill 2: The City of Downey

The City of Downey is in compliance with SB 2 Emergency Shelter Zoning.

Senate Bill 35: Definition and Expectations of Local Governments

If a city fails to issue building permits for its designated share of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), then SB 35 streamlines project approvals for eligible multifamily housing. In California, all local governments are required to adopt a Housing Element as part of a General Plan to show that the city plans to meet the housing needs of community members at all income levels. According to the Southern California Association of Governments, the RHNA “quantifies the need for housing within each jurisdiction during specified planning periods” (scag.ca.gov). If the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) finds that a city issued fewer building permits than the city’s RHNA identifies, then the city is subject to SB 35 streamlining (League of California Cities, 6). Passed in 2017, SB 35 requires cities to approve qualified housing developments on eligible sites as a ministerial act and without CEQA review or public hearings (League of California Cities, 6). Under the streamlining, project approval is through “objective standards” and involves “no personal or subjective judgment by a public official” (League of California Cities, 6).

Senate Bill 35: The City of Downey

Downey has made insufficient progress toward the City’s Above Moderate Income RHNA and is therefore subject to SB 35 streamlining for proposed developments with at least 10 percent of units restricted for affordable housing. For additional information about SB 2, see Public Counsel’s Local Zoning Best Practices for Shelter and Transitional and Supportive Housing. For additional information about SB 35, see the League of California Cities 2018 Guide to New Housing Law in California.