AB 168 — Planning and zoning: annual report: housing development: streamlined approvals.

Summary

(1) The Planning and Zoning Law requires a city or county to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the city or county and specified lands outside its boundaries that includes, among other things, a housing element. That law requires the planning agency of a city or county to provide by April 1 of each year an annual report to the legislative body of the city or county, the Office of Planning and Research, and the Department of Housing and Community Development that includes, among other specified information, the status of the general plan and progress in its implementation. This bill would additionally require that this annual report include information on the progress of the city or county in adopting or amending its general plan or local open-space element in compliance with its obligations to consult with California Native American tribes, and to identify and protect, preserve, and mitigate impacts to specified places, features, and objects, pursuant to specified law. (2) Existing law, until January 1, 2026, authorizes a development proponent to submit an application for a multifamily housing development that is subject to a streamlined, ministerial approval process, as provided, and not subject to a conditional use permit, if the development satisfies specified objective planning standards. Under existing law, the objective planning standards include, among others, (A) a requirement that the development not be located on specified sites, including those within a coastal zone, very high fire hazard severity zone, delineated earthquake fault zone, or special flood hazard area, and sites designated as prime farmland, wetlands, or a habitat for a protected species, and (B) a requirement that the development be consistent with objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, and objective design review standards in effect at the time that the development is submitted to the local government. The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. Prior to the release of a negative declaration, mitigated negative declaration, or an EIR for a project, CEQA requires the lead agency to begin consultation with a California Native American tribe that is traditionally and culturally affiliated with the geographic area of the proposed project, as provided. Under existing law, a development subject to the streamlined, ministerial approval process described above is not subject to CEQA. This bill would require a development proponent, before submitting an application for streamlined approval described above, to submit notice of its intent to submit an application under these provisions, which must be in the form of a preliminary application, as described below. The bill would revise the above-described provisions to instead require the development to be consistent with objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, and objective design review standards in effect at the time that the development is submitted to the local government or at the time the notice of intent is submitted, whichever occurs earlier. The bill would require, after that notice is received by the local government, a local government to provide formal notice, as provided, to each California Native American tribe that is traditionally and culturally affiliated with the geographic area of the proposed development and to engage in a scoping consultation, as provided, regarding the potential effects the proposed development could have on a potential tribal cultural resource. The bill would exempt a scoping consultation conducted pursuant to its provisions from CEQA. This bill would deem a project ineligible for the streamlined, ministerial approval process described above, and thereby subject to CEQA, if (A) the site of the proposed development is a tribal cultural resource that is on a national, state, tribal, or local historic register list, (B) the local government and the California Native American tribe do not agree that no potential tribal cultural resource would be affected by the proposed development, or (C) the local government and California Native American tribe find that a potential tribal cultural resource could be affected by the proposed development and the parties do not document an enforceable agreement regarding the methods, measures, and conditions for treatment of those tribal cultural resources, as provided. If the proposed development is not eligible for streamlined, ministerial approval because the parties do not agree that a potential tribal cultural resource would be affected or do not document an enforceable agreement regarding methods, measures, and conditions for tribal cultural resource treatment, the bill would require the local government to provide written documentation of that fact to the development proponent and to any California Native American tribe that is a party to that scoping consultation, as provided. The bill would require a local government to notify a California Native American tribe if the development or environmental setting substantially changes after the completion of the scoping consultation, and would require the local government to engage in a subsequent scoping consultation if requested by the California Native American tribe. The bill would specify that its provisions do not apply to any project that is approved under the streamlined, ministerial approval process described above before the bill's effective date. (3) The Permit Streamlining Act, which is part of the Planning and Zoning Law, requires each state agency and each local agency to compile one or more lists that specify in detail the information that will be required from any applicant for a development project. That act, until January 1, 2025, provides that an applicant for a housing development project, as defined, is deemed to have submitted a preliminary application upon providing specified information about the proposed project to the city, county, or city and county from which approval for the project is sought. Under existing law, the Housing Accountability Act, a housing development may only be subject to the ordinances, policies, and standards adopted and in effect when a preliminary application was submitted, except as specified. This bill would provide that submission of a preliminary application pursuant to these provisions does not preclude the listing of a tribal cultural resource on a national, state, tribal, or local historic register list on or after the date that the preliminary application is submitted. For purposes of the Housing Accountability Act or any other law, the bill would provide that the listing of a tribal cultural site on a national, state, tribal, or local historic register on or after the preliminary application was submitted is not a change to the ordinances, policies, and standards adopted and in effect at the time that the preliminary application was submitted. (4) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 65400 of the Government Code proposed by AB 2345 and SB 1085 to be operative only if this bill and either or both AB 2345 and SB 1085 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 65913.4 of the Government Code proposed by AB 831 to be operative only if this bill and AB 831 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. (5) By imposing new requirements on local planning officials with respect to the annual report and the streamlined, ministerial approval process, as described above, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. (6) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Bill Text

• Chaptered 09/25/20 - Chaptered Current pdf September 25, 2020
• Enrolled 09/04/20 - Enrolled pdf September 04, 2020
• Amended 08/25/20 - Amended Senate pdf August 25, 2020
• Amended 06/23/20 - Amended Senate pdf June 23, 2020
• Amended 09/06/19 - Amended Senate pdf September 06, 2019
• Amended 07/01/19 - Amended Senate pdf July 01, 2019
• Amended 05/08/19 - Amended Assembly pdf May 08, 2019
• Introduced 01/08/19 - Introduced pdf January 08, 2019
• AB168 View text html

Action History

1. September 25, 2020

   Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 166, Statutes of 2020.

2. September 25, 2020

   Approved by the Governor.

3. September 14, 2020

   Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.

4. September 01, 2020

   Urgency clause adopted. Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 72. Noes 0. Page 5523.).

5. September 01, 2020

   Assembly Rule 63 suspended. (Page 5523.)

6. September 01, 2020

   In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.

7. September 01, 2020

   Read third time. Urgency clause adopted. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly.

8. August 26, 2020

   Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

9. August 25, 2020

   Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

10. August 07, 2020

    Ordered to third reading.

11. August 07, 2020

    From committee: That the measure be returned to Senate Floor for consideration. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (August 6)

12. July 01, 2020

    Re-referred to Com. on HOUSING.

13. June 24, 2020

    Re-referred to Com. on RLS. pursuant to Senate Rule 29.10(b).

14. June 24, 2020

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

15. June 23, 2020

    Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.

16. June 23, 2020

    Ordered to second reading.

17. June 23, 2020

    From inactive file.

18. September 09, 2019

    Ordered to inactive file at the request of Senator Wiener.

19. September 09, 2019

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

20. September 06, 2019

    Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.

21. August 13, 2019

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

22. August 12, 2019

    From committee: Be ordered to second reading pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8.

23. July 10, 2019

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 10). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.

24. July 03, 2019

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on GOV. & F. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 3). Re-referred to Com. on GOV. & F.

25. July 03, 2019

    From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on EQ. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (July 2). Re-referred to Com. on EQ.

26. July 01, 2019

    From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on HOUSING.

27. June 18, 2019

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

28. May 30, 2019

    In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.

29. May 22, 2019

    Referred to Coms. on HOUSING, EQ. and GOV. & F.

30. May 14, 2019

    In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.

31. May 13, 2019

    Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 76. Noes 0. Page 1624.)

32. May 09, 2019

    Read second time. Ordered to third reading.

33. May 08, 2019

    Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.

34. May 07, 2019

    From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (May 1).

35. April 22, 2019

    Coauthors revised.

36. January 24, 2019

    Referred to Com. on H. & C.D.

37. January 09, 2019

    From printer. May be heard in committee February 8.

38. January 08, 2019

    Read first time. To print.

Sponsors

• Cecilia M. Aguiar-Curry · Primary
• James C. Ramos · Cosponsor

Votes

Subjects