by Ben van der Meer
The state Assembly approved a package of bills related to housing late Thursday, putting them closer to the governor’s desk for approval.
After a lengthy period of holding the roll open, closely watched Senate Bill 2 got the minimum necessary 54 votes to pass out of the Assemblyon a two-thirds vote. The bill would enact a $75 base fee, up to $225, on some kinds of real estate transactions, though home sales and commercial real estate sales are exempt. Proceeds from those fees would go into a fund for affordable housing statewide.
State Assembly members subsequently voted in favor of Senate Bill 3, a $4 billion bond measure also for affordable housing. If ultimately signed by the governor, the bond measure would go before state voters next year for approval.
Those bills addressed funding, but a handful of others approved addressed what many observers believe is a bigger issue in the state’s lack of housing: local approvals. Those bills, all approved on majority votes, generally limited the ability of jurisdictions to turn away housing projects for various reasons, or created incentives for those jurisdictions to approve more housing, particularly aimed at lower incomes.
Another bill created a streamlining process for affordable housing projects, urban infill and transit-oriented development under the California Environmental Quality Act. The bill would apply to cities and counties that haven’t built an appropriate amount of affordable housing under state requirements.
Bills streamlining the process may be key to an entire package of legislation ultimately being signed into law. Gov. Jerry Brown said earlier this year he was reluctant to approve new state spending for housing without changes to make housing easier to build.
Because of amendments to the bills in the Assembly, some of them will need to be approved again in the state Senate before they can go to the governor.
Housing has emerged in the last year as the state’s most critical social issue, with soaring rents and a growing homeless population in statewide both considered direct results of a lack of housing.
Some observers believe a lack of home construction over the last decade has exacerbated the issue. It’s not clear if any of the bills working their way through the Legislature will address that issue, with higher labor and materials costs a limiting factor in how many homes are built in recent years.