Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) signed into law a bill allowing housing projects on religious lands to be fast-tracked in an effort to address California's housing crisis.
The bill, part of the "Yes, in God's backyard" movement and sponsored by the nonprofit group YIMBY, expedites low-income housing development on religious lands and on surplus land owned by nonprofit colleges. The bill’s sponsor, Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener, has said it will make 170,000 acres of land eligible for affordable housing.
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The legislation was one of 56 bills signed by Newsom that contain multiple key provisions to fast-track building new housing and extend a prominent affordable housing law in the state.
“California desperately needs to ramp up housing production, and the Governor’s actions today help put us on a path to achieve that goal,” Wiener said in a statement. “The era of saying no to housing is coming to an end. We’ve been planting seeds for years to get California to a brighter housing future, and today we’re continuing strongly down that path.”
Multiple bills in the package contain provisions to streamline approval processes, such as two by Democratic state Sen. Anna Caballero, with one also sponsored by YIMBY, aiming to accelerate the construction of homes by granting ministerial approval for 10 or fewer residential units on urban lots fewer than 5 acres.
Wiener, who represents San Francisco, which has one of the least affordable housing markets in the nation, sponsored two other bills among the dozens signed by Newsom. Senate Bill 423 sunsets a previous bill from Wiener, Senate Bill 35, which streamlines the permitting process for new housing developments, bypassing a number of expensive and timely local environmental reviews and other rules if certain criteria are met.
Wiener’s bill was passed in 2017 and is set to expire in 2025. That law is now set to sunset in 2036, and the projects that will stem from YIGBY can use the extended measure to their advantage.
“This year’s housing package takes bold action on the housing shortage crippling California,” said Laura Foote, executive director of YIMBY Action. “With each of these critical bills, we are making a statement about the need for more homes. With the permit streamlining in SB 423, we are saying yes to more homes today.”
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Newsom also signed Senate Bill 593, sponsored by Wiener, which greenlights replacing and repairing 5,800 homes that were lost during the 1950s-70s, the era of urban renewal. The bill will fund projects in multiple San Francisco neighborhoods that were affected by the midcentury redevelopment.
“It’s simple math — California needs to build more housing and ensure the housing we have is affordable,” Newsom said. “In partnership with the Legislature, we have advanced billions of dollars to that end. These 56 bills build on that work, supporting tenants and ensuring cities are held accountable to plan for and permit their fair share of housing.”