A Tale of Two Studies: Proposals to Solve California’s Housing Crisis

- “Broad anti-gouging” rent control to be applied to units State wide, that would make it illegal to raise rents above a maximum threshold; and
- Developer incentives to construct new and rehabilitate existing rental housing units that include a certain quantity of below market rent units.
Compact Element | details |
Just Cause eviction policy | Purpose. Ensure that renters are protected from arbitrary evictions by adopting a policy requiring specific “just causes” (both fault and no-fault) for termination of tenancy, such as failure to pay rent or violation of lease terms. Require housing providers to provide relocation assistance for covered “no fault” evictions. Exclusions. Excluded from coverage are certain government owned housing, transient hotel occupancy, dormitories, and single owner-occupied residences. Relocation benefits would not be applicable for owner move-ins. Waiting Period. The “just cause” protections and relocation benefits would apply only after one-year of tenancy. Local Ordinances Supersede. There would be no preemption of more restrictive local ordinances. |
Rent Cap | Purpose. Establish a rent “cap” that limits annual increases in rent to a reasonable amount. Proposed “Cap” on Rent. For an emergency period (15 years), no increase to exceed the Consumer Price Index for a region plus 5%. The “cap” on rent increases would apply to the renter and not the unit (in other words, vacancy de-control would be permitted). Housing providers would be able to “bank” unused rent increases for 3 to 5 years up to a maximum of 10% to 15%.Pass-Throughs. Housing providers would be permitted to “pass-through” certain cost increases to renters, including water and other utilities through use of a Ratio Utility Billing System (R.U.B.S.).Local Ordinances Supersede. There would be no preemption of more restrictive local ordinances. |
rent assistance and access to legal counsel | Purpose. For low income renters facing eviction, provide access to legal counsel and emergency rent assistance.Exclusion. Tenants of property owners or master tenants residing in the same dwelling unit are not eligible for legal assistance. Emergency rental assistance is to be limited “Cap on Assistance”. Assistance would not exceed $5,000 to $10,000. |
Remove regulatory barriers to accessory dwelling units (Adu) | Purpose. Extend San Francisco Bay Area best practices regarding accessory dwelling units to every jurisdiction by removing regulatory barriers. Allow multiple ADUs on multifamily properties and “small” and “tiny” home building codes. |
Miniumum zoning near transit | Purpose. Establishes minimum zoning standards in areas served by high quality transit services, including housing near jobs, and increases minimum building height within specified areas. Tenant Protections and Preservation. All sites rezoned under this element would be subject to tenant protections. Onsite affordable housing would be required at levels no less than current California bonus density laws or developers would have an option to contribute to an affordable housing fund as an “in-lieu” fee. |
good governement Reforms to Housing Approval Process | Purpose. Establish government standards for streamlining the entitlement and permit process for residential development.Proposed Standards. Jurisdictions would not require more than three de novo public hearings on a zoning compliant residential project. Building permits would expire after 24-months in order to encourage more timely construction. Adoption of deferral programs that allow builders to pay some fees later in the development process. |
Expedited approvals for Financial Incentives and Selct Housing | Purpose. Ensure timely approval of zoning-compliant housing projects and create financial incentives for enabling on-site affordability. Proposed Standards. Streamlined review process under state law for residential projects that meet certain criteria. These projects should be granted statutory exemptions to compliance under the California Environmental Quality Act (C.E.Q.A.) and would be subject to limited discretionary review process. Qualifying Projects. Among other qualifications, (1) Complies with existing zoning standards; (2) located in urbanized area; (3) restricts units to 20% middle income that may range from 80% to 150% average median income (AMI).Financial Incentives. (1) 15-years of property tax increment abatement; (2) “cap” on certain impact fees; (3) density bonus of 35%; (4) parking reduced to 50% of local standards at developer discretion; and (5) relief from strict liability standards for housing ownership. |
Unlock Public Land for Affordable Housing | Purpose. Promote utilization of publicly owned land (surplus and/or underutilized) for affordable housing. Amend the State’s housing element to allow residential uses on developable public land regardless of zoning. |
Funding and Financing the CASA Compact | Purpose. Raise $1.5 Billion in new, annual revenue from a broad range of sources, including property owners, developers, local governments and taxpayers to fund implementation of the CASA Compact elements. (Note: annual goal to expand the implementation of these elements Statewide would be significantly greater.) Potential Funding Sources. Sources include, among others: (1) tax on vacant homes; (2) parcel tax; (3) commercial linkage fees; (4) gross receipts tax; (5) employer (per head) taxes; (6) sales tax (e.g., additional ¼ cent); and (7) general obligation bonds. |
Regional Housing Enterprise | Purpose. Establish a regional leadership entity to implement the CASA Compact. The entity must be governed by an independent board. |