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ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW DRAFT
<br />Legal Foundation for the Housing Element
<br />In 1980, the State Legislature adopted Assembly Bill 2853, creating the basic statutory requirements
<br />for Housing Elements in California. Many of these requirements had previously been included in the
<br />State's General Plan Guidelines but had not been formally codified. In adopting this legislation, the
<br />State found that "The availability of housing is of vital statewide importance, and the early attainment
<br />of decent housing and a suitable living environment for every Californian, including farmworkers, is a
<br />priority of the highest order."
<br />Article 10.6 (Sections 65580-65589) of the Government Code establishes the legal basis for the
<br />Housing Element. Since 1980, additional provisions have been added to cover a broader range of
<br />topics. The specific provisions for Housing Elements, listed in Section 65583, are listed below:
<br />"The housing element shall consist of an identification and analysis of existing and projected housing needs and a
<br />statement of goals, policies, quantified objectives, financial resources, and scheduled programs for the preservation,
<br />improvement, and development of housing. The housing element shall identify adequate sites for housing, including
<br />rental housing, factory -built housing, and mobile homes, and shall make adequate provision for the existing and
<br />projected needs of all economic segments of the community."
<br />"The element shall contain all of the following` -
<br />(a) An assessment of housing needs and an ,inventory of resources and constraints relevant to the meeting of these
<br />needs. The assessment and inventory shall include the following:
<br />(1) An analysis of population and employment trends and documentation of projections and a quantification of
<br />the locality's existing and projected housing needs for all income levels. These existing and projected needs
<br />shall include the locality's share of the regional housing need in accordance with Section 65584.
<br />(2) An analysis and documentation of household characteristics, including level of payment compared to ability
<br />to pay, housing characteristics, including overcrowding, and housing stock condition.
<br />(3) An inventory of land suitable for residential development, including vacant sites and sites having potential for
<br />:redevelopment, and an analysis of the relationship of zoning and public facilities and services to these sites.
<br />(4) ,An analysis of potential and actual governmental constraints upon the maintenance, improvement, or
<br />development of housing for all income levels and for persons with disabilitiesas identified in the analysis
<br />including land use controls, building ,codes and their enforcement, site improvements, fees and other
<br />exactions required of developers, and local processing and permit procedures.... (additional text follows)
<br />(5) An analysis of potential and actual non governmental constraints upon the maintenance,. improvement, or
<br />development of housing for all income levels, including the availability of financing, the price of land, and the
<br />cost of construction.
<br />(6) An analysis of any special housing needs, such as those of the elderly, persons with disabilities, large
<br />families, farmworkers, families with female heads of households, and families and persons in need of
<br />emergency shelter.'
<br />(7) An analysis of opportunities for energy conservation with respect to residential development.
<br />(8) An analysis of existing assisted housing developments that are eligible to change from low-income housing
<br />uses during the next 10 years due to termination of subsidy contracts, mortgage prepayment,or expiration of
<br />restrictions on use.... (additional text follows)
<br />(b) A statement of the community's goals, quantified objectives, and policies relative to the maintenance,
<br />preservation, improvement, and development of housing.
<br />(c) A program which sets forth a five-year schedule of actions the local government is undertaking or intends to
<br />undertake to implement the policies and achieve the goals and objectives of the housing element through the
<br />administration of land use and development controls, provision of regulatory concessions and incentives, and the
<br />utilization of appropriate federal and state financing and subsidy programs when available and the utilization of
<br />moneys in a low- and moderate income housing fund of an agency if the locality has established a
<br />redevelopment project area the program shall do all of the following:
<br />(1) Identify adequate sites which will be made available through appropriate zoning and development standards
<br />and with services and facilities... to facilitate and encourage the development of a variety of types of housing
<br />for all income levels (additional text follows)
<br />(2) Assist in the development of adequate housing to meet the needs of low- and moderate -income households.
<br />(3) Address and, where appropriate and legally possible, remove governmental constraints to the maintenance,
<br />improvement, and development of housing (additional text follows)
<br />(4) Conserve and improve the condition of the existing affordable housing stock, which may include addressing
<br />ways to mitigate the loss of dwelling units demolished by public or private action,
<br />(5) Promote housing opportunities for all persons regardless of race, religion, sex, marital status, ancestry,
<br />national origin,color, familial status, or disability.
<br />(6) Preserve for lower income households assisted housing developments (additional text follows)."
<br />HOUSING ELEMENT 1-3 SAN LEANDRO GENERAL PLAN
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