READ THIS FROM HCD
What’s the purpose of these guidelines? One of the challenges in building new affordable homes is acquiring land suitable for housing. In 2019, Governor Newsom took action to address this challenge by signing AB 1486 (Ting, 2019). The Surplus Land Act aims to make local public land that is no longer necessary for government purposes available for building affordable homes. This law made several changes to the requirements in the Surplus Land Act that local agencies must adhere to when disposing of surplus public land.
Why are the guidelines being updated? HCD’s initial Surplus Land Act Guidelines were adopted in April 2021. Since then, HCD and its many local partners have identified areas of the Guidelines that need revision and/or additional clarity. In addition, the California State Legislature has passed several bills that have amended the Surplus Land Act, including bills passed just last year. The need for additional clarity coupled with changes to the law has led HCD to initiate its first revisions to the Surplus Land Act Guidelines.
To better inform that process, HCD engaged in a series of broad-based, regionally diverse Listening Sessions with local partners and housing organizations. The goal was to collect firsthand feedback from those entities that were on the ground navigating and implementing this new law. HCD hosted more than 20 Listening Sessions that included representatives from cities, counties, special interest districts, law firms, housing advocates and housing developers. Those Listening Sessions resulted in over 50 suggested changes to the Guidelines.
HCD also engaged in a thorough internal review of the Guidelines based on three years of implementing the law that resulted in numerous recommended changes to the Guidelines.
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