AgdaPkt 2002-08-12 - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

I .A Legislative Bill Action The following are summaries of just a few of~ the legislative bills that ere currentl~v being acted upon by the League of California Cities. The League encourages you to review the bills on its Web site at www. cacities, org/ legtracking and contact the appropriate committees to demonstrate your support or opposition of issues. Your assistance is appreciated. TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC WORKS AB 2292 (Durra). General Plans. Residential Density. A~ 22§2 prohibits a city and a county from AB 1839 (Campbell). Indemnity. Public Agency. reducing, requiring, or permitting the reduction of a parcel's AB 1839 limits the conditions under which a design profes- residential density to a lower residential density that is sional would be required to indemnify a public agency to below the density used to determine compliance with the - negligence and willful miscon~, which is the normal tort housing element, unless the city or county makes written rule, and hence provides for no indemnification of public findings supported by substantial evidence that: agencies. Indemnity of the public agency is further limited to causation arising from action "in the performance of the The reduction is consistent with the general plan, agreement or contract," which allows an additional Ioopbole for the design professional to avoid indemnifying a public including the housing'element. agency. While AB 1839 does not specifically state that it The reduction substantially complies with other affects design-build contracts, it would bar public agencies, statutory provisions, including residential zoning on design-build projects where the architectural and standards, density bonus requirements, the housing engineering firm is also doing the construction, from element's inventory of sites, and the housing element's obtaining the broad indemnity protection normally recom- program for identifying sites. mended from construction contractors. We believe existing · · The remaining sites identified in the housing element are statutory requirements are sufficient protection for both adequate to accommodate the regional share of housing local agencies and design professionals. Staff: Natesha needs. Fooman, Status: SenJud;Hrg-8/6, Position: Oppose. This bill not only undermines local control but would serve to handcuff local governments, developers, and HOUSING AND LAND USE property owners with threats of lawsuits rot down zoning SB 1~21 (Kuehl). Land Use. Model Planning or rezoning residential property to reflect market needs. · Practices and Policies. SB 1521 requires the Governor's Staff: Dan Carrigg, Status: SenLG;Hrg-8/7, Position: Office of Planning and Research (OPR) to develop model Oppose. p~anning practices and policies, and requires that any city or county that adopts and implement~ practices and policies AB 1866 (Wright). Preemption of Local Authority, substantially comparable to the model being given priority Second Units and Density Bonuses, Despite opposition in the award of specified competitive grants, testimony from the League, CSAC, the American Planning Association, and the Coastal Commission, AB 1865 passed to The League has taken a position of Suooort, if Amended the friendly confines of the Senate Housing Committea with on an earlier version of SB 1521, but there are numerous relatively little policy discussion, aspects o¢ this bil~ which remain troublesome. It is not clear which policies and practices will be developed, nor is it clear AB 1866: (1) Prohibits a local government from exercis- which state funding pots will be used for the "incentives." log any discretionary review when approving a second unit; The League continues to be active in negotiations to ensure (2) Makes a number of alterations, to density bonus law, that if this program becomes law that lOCal control is including converting a somewhat workable area of law into protected, and the program functions as an award program a legal quagmire by (3) Turning an existing meet and confer that local governments participate in at their own option, process into one where a developer threatens a local Staff: Dan Carrigg; Status: AsApps, Position: Support, If government with ultimatums and lawsuits, requiring the Amended. waiver of all other local policies and laws which would impede the developers desired incentives, and establishing a Visit the League's Official Web Site--www.cacities,org PRIORITY FOCUS/PAGE 9