Government Code Section 65583(a) requires “An analysis of potential and actual governmental constraints upon the maintenance, improvement, or development of housing for all income levels,…including land-use controls, building codes and their enforcement, site improvements, fees and other exactions required of developers, and local processing and permit procedures…”
Requisite Analysis
Codes and Enforcement
- Identify current “uniform building code” adopted and enforced by the jurisdiction. Describe how the building code is implemented and whether the process optimizes predictability for developers. A code amendment, which specifies expensive materials and/or methods, can pose a significant constraint to housing development or maintenance.
- Identify and analyze any local amendments to the state housing law or uniform building code.
- Local amendments to the building code are permitted within reason but local governments should ensure that code amendments with higher costs for materials of methods do not pose a constraint for housing development and maintenance. If building code amendments impact housing costs and development, it must be addressed within the analysis and include a programmatic response.
- Discuss the type and degree of enforcement (proactive, reactive or a combination of both) and which enforcement agency conducts enforcement (e.g. code enforcement officer, other City/County staff, etc.).
- Local governments that rely on the usage of law enforcement for code enforcement should analyze that practice as a constraint on special needs populations and potential conflict with Fair Housing law. In general, jurisdictions should strive to enforce code without police presence.
- The housing element analysis should describe how the building code is implemented and if that process optimizes predictability for housing developers or hinders development, thus posing a constraint. If so, the element must mitigate and remove through programmatic action.
- Describe any efforts to link code enforcement activities to housing rehabilitation programs.
- Describe compliance with Health and Safety Code 17980(b)(2), as noted below:
- When deciding whether to require a substandard building be vacated or to repair (as necessary), the Health and Safety Code requires local governments to give consideration to the needs for housing (as expressed in the housing element). The enforcement agency is required to give preference to the repair of the building whenever it is economically feasible to do so without having to repair more than 75 percent of the dwelling.
- The element’s code enforcement policies and procedures should comply with Health and Safety Code 17970.7, including:
- develop policies and procedures for inspecting a building with multiple units to determine if buildinga have substandard conditions by utilizing criteria such as building type, age, size, type of construction, cause of substandard condition, and history of violations;
- requires inspectors to reasonably attempt to inspect additional units that could be impacted by the defect or violation that was found in the initial unit inspection. (HSC § 17970.7 (b) (2)).
- permits the inspection of all units in the premise if severe, premise-wide defects or violations are found. (HSC § 17970.7 (b)(3)); and
- requires the code enforcement officer to provide a notice of violation(s) and remedies to the owner within a reasonable time after the inspection is completed, and then to schedule a follow-up inspection to re-inspect and verify the corrections of the violations. (HSC § 17970.7 (c)).
- Additionally, local governments may also utilize an ADU amnesty program, which may help jurisdictions that are struggling to bring all buildings in the housing stock up to code. Jurisdictions should take action to prevent substandard housing without posing a constraint on the development and costs.
When deciding whether to require a substandard building be vacated or to repair (as necessary), health and safety code requires local governments to give consideration to the needs for housing (as expressed in the housing element). The enforcement agency is required to give preference to the repair of the building whenever it is economically feasible to do so without having to repair more than 75 percent of the dwelling.
Onsite/Offsite Improvement Standards
Onsite/offsite improvement standards establish infrastructure or site requirements to support new residential development such as streets, sidewalks, water and sewer, drainage, curbs and gutters, street signs, park dedications, utility easements, and landscaping. While these improvements are necessary to ensure that new housing meets the local jurisdiction’s development goals, the cost of these requirements can represent a significant share of the cost of producing new housing.
Such requirements can reasonably be considered regulatory barriers to affordable housing if the jurisdiction-determined requirements are greater (and hence, more costly) than those necessary to achieve health and safety requirements in the community.
Required Analysis
The housing element must identify and analyze any on- and offsite improvements for impacts on housing supply and cost. Examples include street widths, curbs, gutters, sidewalks, water and sewer connections, landscaping, circulation improvement, and any other onsite/offsite improvement required by the jurisdiction that could potentially be a constraint to development of housing. In addition, the housing element must describe any generally applicable level of service standards or mitigation thresholds.
Helpful Hints
Substandard Housing Program
The Franchise Tax Board (FTB) operates the Substandard Housing Program, which assists the state and local agencies responsible for addressing unsafe living conditions that violate health and safety codes. Property owners in violation of Health and Safety Code standards are not allowed to make certain deductions on their personal tax returns pursuant to California Revenue & Taxation Code (CR&TC) Sections 17274 and 24436.5. That additional revenue collected by FTB is transferred to the Local Code Enforcement Rehabilitation fund. These funds are then disbursed to the cities and counties that generated the notification of substandard housing to the FTB.