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Atlantic, fair use
Do localities really have to approve housing in hazard areas?
Is it better to crumple under threats from the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) in Sacramento or be reassured by Attorney General Ron Bonta?
There has been serious and seemingly intentional confusion about whether housing laws force localities to approve — ministerially — ADUs and other developments in hazard areas.
HCD has recently threatened Marin County with legal action if it doesn’t start approving multiple ADUs in Very Severe Fire Hazard Zones (VSFHZ), even without street access. The Planning Commission has, unfortunately, backed off its previous stand rejecting this unsafe practice.
https://www.marinij.com/2023/10/17/marin-county-on-track-to-streamline-adus/
HCD seems crystal clear their interpretation of law is correct, but so does AG Bonta. He has been adding to the confusion about what is allowed or not, constantly not just implying, but declaring that SB-9, SB-35, SB-423, & SB-2011 explicitly prevent this scenario.
Due to continual changes and additional laws regarding this issue, it’s hard for city and county governments — and citizens — to figure out what is true. Obviously, jurisdictions with hazards are very concerned about what type of urgency zoning ordinances are acceptable.
But Sonia Taylor from Santa Rosa has done the detail work and shared this letter with me, with permission to publish.
This is a serious issue — Who is interpreting the laws? Who is keeping track of how new laws alter previous ones? Who interprets the mitigation language?
The PDF below contains a letter by Sonia Taylor to AG Bonta calling out inconsistencies between state laws, and the difference between the ways the he and the HCD interpret them.
Bonta’s letter appears on page 7, followed by HCD documents on the guidelines of the Updated Streamlined Ministerial Approval Process, Government Code Section 65913.4
This is a serious issue with immediate real world repercussions. Until the onslaught of housing laws stops, and is sorted out, the confusion will continue. Unfortunately, it's obvious the laws are attempting -- savagely -- to require approval of development in areas where is it patently unsafe.