Transportation 

SB 1183 (DeSaulnier) – Support if Amended
As amended on April 21, 2014.

SB 1183, by Senator Mark DeSaulnier, would allow a city, county, or regional parks district to propose to the voters the imposition of a surcharge of up to five dollars on each vehicle registration to fund the construction or maintenance of paved or natural surface multi-use paths. The bill would provide a new tool to fund off-road bike paths, which currently lack a stable funding source. CSAC has recommended amendments that would allow agencies to use funding raised by an approved surcharge for a broader array of bicycle infrastructure and the sponsors have indicated that they are open to this approach.

SB 1183 was passed by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee and is set for hearing in the Senate Appropriations Committee on May 12.

AB 2197 (Mullin) – Support
As amended on April 23, 2014

AB 2197, by Assembly Member Kevin Mullin, would authorize the Department of Motor Vehicles to contract with a private industry partner to develop a temporary license plate program in California. It would also require vehicles sold or leased without a permanent license plate to be affixed with a temporary license plate. CSAC supports AB 2197, as it would make toll evasion, which results in millions of dollars in foregone transportation revenues each year, more difficult. The bill would also promote public safety by helping law enforcement identify vehicles involved in hit-and-runs and other criminal activity.

AB 2197 was passed by the Assembly Transportation Committee and will be heard in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on May 7.

Housing

SB 1439 (Leno) – Support 
As amended on April 1, 2014

SB 1439, by Senator Mark Leno, would allow the City and County of San Francisco to enact law or regulations to prohibit a rental housing owner from removing a building form the market under the Ellis Act, which prevents local governments from requiring that landlords continue to offer their property for rent if the landlord wants to “go out of business,” unless all owners of the property have held their ownership interest for at least five years. CSAC supports this measure as it would give the county an additional tool to ensure the continued availability of affordable rental housing at all income levels.

SB 1439 was passed by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee and will be heard in Senate Judiciary Committee on May 6.

AB 1690 (Gordon) – Support 
As introduced on February 13, 2014

AB 1690, by Assembly Member Rich Gordon, would allow local governments that are subject to a rezoning program under housing element law to accommodate more than half of its low- and very low-income housing need on lands zoned for residential or mixed uses. CSAC supports the bill because it provides counties the opportunity to use the rezoning program process to complement other smart growth policies.

AB 1690 was passed by the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee and is set for hearing in the Assembly Local Government Committee on May 7. 

AB 2135 (Ting) – Request for Comments
As amended on April 21, 2014

AB 2135, by Assembly Member Phil Ting, would amend the procedure for the disposal of surplus land by local agencies and expands the provisions relating to the prioritization of low- and moderate-income housing development if the surplus land will be used for residential development. Among other provisions, the bill extends the time local agencies must engage in good faith negotiations with affordable housing developers desiring to purchase or lease land from 60 to 90 days, and gives priority to entities that agree to use the surplus land for development of housing with 100% affordable units. The bill also requires that if the surplus land will be used for residential development, then 25% of the total units must be affordable for low- or moderate-income households.

CSAC is interested in comments from counties as to the impacts of this bill. AB 2135 was passed by the Assembly Committees on Local Government and Housing and Community Development and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.

Land Use

SB 944 (Torres) – Request for Comments
As amended on March 12, 2014

SB 944, by Senator Norma Torres, would prohibit a local government from rezoning state real property within its jurisdiction that is declared surplus by the state, unless the Department of General Services either requests or approves the rezoning. The author contends that the state has encountered situations in which the local agencies deliberately attempted to, or succeeded in “down-zoning” a parcel of land during the local agency’s negotiations with DGS, which resulted in a reduction in fair market value of the state-owned parcel. 

CSAC is concerned with the bill’s proposed interference with local land use decisions. We are interested in comments from counties as to the implications of this proposed legislation in your communities. SB 944 was passed by the Senate Governmental Organization Committee and has been referred to the Senate Floor.

SB 1155 (Lieu) – Request for Comments
As amended on April 30, 2014

SB 1155, by Senator Ted Lieu, would require counties and cities, prior to approving a project within a delineated earthquake fault zone, where mapping to identify seismic hazard zones has not been completed, to determine that either the project has a minimum setback of 75 feet from any mapped active trace fault or the project is not located on an active trace fault as determined by a geological site investigation. The bill assumes that cities and counties would pass the costs of compliance on to project applicants through fees. Stakeholders from local governments and the building industry have expressed concerns with the approach of the bill and the uncertainty it could create by broadening the types of maps local agencies must consult in approving a project.

CSAC is interested in comments from counties about the potential impacts of this legislation. SB 1155 was passed by the Senate Governance and Finance Committee and will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee on May 12.