Monday, Oct. 13 marked the final day for Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign bills passed during this legislative session by California’s Senate and Assembly. Below is a round-up of key housing-related bills signed by the governor, organized by impact area: enforcement, small-scale development, streamlining permit processing and specialty housing bills. The wide-ranging nature of these bills underscores the state’s continued multi-pronged strategy to address California’s housing crisis.
In addition to these recently passed housing bills, on June 30, 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law budget trailer bills AB 130 and SB 131 to, among other things, streamline the approval of housing development projects. For more information on these bills, please see the series about AB 130 and SB 131 our office published earlier this year.
Enforcement
SB 79 – Housing development: transit-oriented development
Requires local agencies in eight “urban transit counties” to adopt minimum zoning standards allowing for taller, denser housing projects that meet certain affordability and labor requirements near qualified rail and bus rapid transit stops.
AB 712 – Housing reform laws: enforcement actions: fines and penalties
Entitles housing development applicants to reasonable attorney’s fees and costs, in addition to other penalties and remedies, if a public agency violates housing reform laws. Prevents public agencies from requiring developers to indemnify, defend or hold harmless the agency if the developer sues the agency for violating housing reform laws.
AB 1308 – Residential building permits: inspections: Housing Accountability Act
Requires building departments to inspect applicable residential construction projects within 10 business days of receiving notice of completion of the permitted work. Categorizes any failure to complete such an inspection a violation of the Housing Accountability Act.
SB 786 – Planning and zoning: general plan: judicial challenges
Clarifies ambiguities in state housing element law, such as mandating that the most recently adopted element controls when there are conflicting development standards included in different general plan elements.
Establishes additional consequences for local governments when they commit, but fail, to meet the deadline for removing constraints on housing development, including authorizing the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) to review housing elements adopted by those agencies for decertification. Amends judicial procedures for housing element cases, including expediting temporary relief in certain scenarios and specifying that a court order to adopt a housing element is not stayed pending appeal.
SB 808 – Civil Actions: writs: housing development projects
Expedites enforcement actions brought by project applicants or the attorney general challenging improper denial of a housing project application under state housing laws, including the Housing Accountability Act, ministerial approval laws, and accessory dwelling unit (ADU) laws.
Small-scale Development
AB 1154 – Junior accessory dwelling units
Changes the requirements for junior accessory dwelling unit (JADU) ordinances, such that owner-occupancy is not required if there are separate sanitation facilities, and clarifies that any rental of a JADU must be for more than 30 days.
AB 462 – Land use: accessory dwelling units
Facilitates construction of ADUs in areas affected by a proclaimed state of emergency (intended to help recovery efforts after the Eaton and Pacific Palisades Fires). Requires the California Coastal Commission to approve or deny ADUs within areas not subject to a certified local coastal program within 60 days of receiving a complete application.
SB 9 – Accessory Dwelling Units: ordinances
Invalidates a local agency’s ADU ordinance if the agency fails to submit a copy of the ordinance to HCD within 60 days of adoption or fails to respond within 30 days to a finding that the ordinance is not in compliance.
SB 543 – Accessory dwelling units and junior accessory dwelling units
Clarifies and codifies existing HCD guidance regarding ADUs and JADUs.
AB 1061 – Housing developments: urban lot splits: historical resources
Expands the application of SB 9 (2021) by allowing lot splits and/or the development of duplexes on single-family-zoned parcels to be approved ministerially in historic districts, as long as the development does not alter or demolish existing historic structures.
Streamlining Permit Processing
AB 87 – Housing development: density bonuses/SB 92 – Housing development: density bonuses
Specifies that certain provisions of the Density Bonus Law (e.g., incentives, concessions, waivers or reductions of development standards) do not apply to transient lodging that is part of a housing development, unless it is a residential hotel.
AB 253 – California Residential Private Permitting Review Act: residential building permits
Allows licensed and certified third-party reviewers to review housing permit applications for 10 units or fewer if a public agency fails to complete permit review within 30 days.
AB 301 – Planning and zoning: housing development projects: postentitlement phase permits: state agencies
Accelerates housing development by requiring state agencies to follow the same streamlined procedures as local agencies concerning post-entitlement permit application examples and timelines.
AB 920 – Permit Streamlining Act: housing development projects: centralized application portal
Builds upon the Permit Streamlining Act processes by requiring California cities and counties with over 150,000 residents to enable development permit tracking through centralized portals displaying application status information.
AB 1007 – Land use: development project review
Reduces the amount of time from 90 to 45 days that public agencies serving as responsible agencies pursuant to CEQA may take to approve an approved development project.
AB 1050 – Unlawfully restrictive covenants: housing developments
Prevents private restrictive covenants limiting density, size and location from blocking housing projects when an entity is redeveloping commercial land for residential use.
SB 358 – Mitigation Fee Act: mitigating vehicular traffic impacts
Mandates local governments reduce traffic impact fees to adhere to new criteria, replacing proximity to “convenience retail” with more specific locations like grocery stores and pharmacies. Requires local agencies make certain findings supported by substantial evidence to adjust vehicle mitigation fees.
SB 489 – Local agency formation commissions: written policies and procedures: Permit Streamlining Act: housing development projects
Requires local agency formation commissions (LAFCOs) to publish information regarding changes in local agency organization and permitting criteria for housing development projects in transparent and accessible formats online.
Specialty Housing Bills
AB 1021 – Housing: local educational agencies
Streamlines the approval process for local educational agencies to develop affordable housing on school district property and exempts qualifying developments from certain CEQA requirements.
AB 893 – Housing development projects: objective standards: campus development zone
Expands the eligibility for streamlined, ministerial review of mixed-income housing developments under AB 2011 (2022) to include projects in “campus development zones” (i.e., within a half mile of a University of California, California State University or California Community College campus).
SB 486 – Regional housing: public postsecondary education: changes in enrollment levels: California Environmental Quality Act
Requires regional transportation plans to consider changes in enrollment levels at institutions of public higher education. Streamlines CEQA compliance for related development projects by not requiring a “no project” alternative analysis under certain conditions when the University of California or the California State University are the lead agency.
AB 507 – Adaptive reuse: streamlining incentives
Requires local agencies to permit by-right adaptive reuse projects, allowing the conversion of existing commercial/industrial buildings to residential or mixed use, where qualifying projects meet certain affordability requirements and labor standards.
