Land Use and Planning

AB 1236 (Chiu) – Request for Veto 
As enrolled on September 11, 2015

AB 1236, by Assembly Member David Chiu, would mandate all 58 counties and 482 cities adopt an ordinance to create a new expedited permitting and inspection process for electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. Specifically, this bill would require cities and counties with over 200,000 residents to adopt an ordinance by September 30, 2016 that creates an expedited and streamlined permitting process for EV charging stations that also includes a checklist of all requirements with which EV charging stations shall comply to be eligible for expedited review. Smaller jurisdictions would have an additional year to complete the ordinance. Further, AB 1236 would require every city and county to approve the installation of EV charging stations unless the city or county makes written findings, based on substantial evidence in the record, that the proposed installation would have an adverse impact upon the public health or safety and that those impacts cannot be mitigated.

CSAC opposes this overly-broad and prescriptive measure, which would require the costly and time-consuming adoption of a local ordinance. We are concerned that the approach will not allow for consideration of unique local circumstances, nor applications that may be more complicated than the installation of a single charging station. For instance, a station with multiple charging outlets that qualifies as a public accommodation may have accessibility issues and implications related to parking standards or other local ordinances. 

AB 1236 was enrolled and presented to the Governor on September 11. CSAC encourages counties to write to the Governor and request his veto of this bill. 

Housing

AB 35 (Chiu) – Support 

As amended on September 10, 2015Assembly Bill 35, by Assembly Member David Chiu, was amended to increase the state’s Low Income Housing Tax Credit by $100 million annually from 2016 through 2021. The bill previously would have provided an increase of $300 million on an ongoing basis. The LIHTC program is used for the construction and rehabilitation of affordable housing units across the state. The increase in the state investment is expected to leverage an additional $200 million in federal tax credits and federal tax-exempt bonds.

The Assembly concurred in the Senate amendments in the early hours on September 12. The bill will be enrolled and sent to the Governor for final action.