To: Board of Supervisors
From: Monica Nino, County Administrator
Report Title: PROPOSED RESPONSE TO GRAND JURY REPORT NO. 2306, AFFORDABLE HOUSING - A PLAN WITHOUT A HOME
RECOMMENDATIONS:
ADOPT report prepared by the Department of Conservation and Development as the Board of Supervisors' response to Contra Costa Civil Grand Jury Report No. 2306, entitled “Affordable Housing - A Plan Without a Home” (Report), and DIRECT the Clerk of the Board to transmit the Board's response to the Superior Court no later than September 18, 2023.
FISCAL IMPACT:
No fiscal impact.
BACKGROUND:
The 2022/23 Civil Grand Jury filed the above-referenced report dated June 14, 2023 (see Attachment) which was addressed to and received by the Board of Supervisors on June 20, 2023 and subsequently referred to the County Administrator and the Department of Conservation and Development Director, who prepared the attached response (see Attachment)
The civil grand jury began the investigation for the report by understanding how Contra Costa County (County and cities) is addressing the need for affordable housing. They began by reviewing California Housing and Community Development reports titled Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) results for the County, which identify housing permits issued for various income levels, related to the allocation of units assigned to various jurisdictions. After reviewing these reports, the grand jury concluded that most cities and unincorporated Contra Costa County were not meeting the goals, primarily for very low- and low-income resident housing.
Based on these initial findings, the grand jury focused its efforts on housing for residents classified as very low (50% Area Median Income (AMI)) or low (80% AMI) income. They wanted to understand who in local government is responsible for implementation of approved housing plans and why were those plans failing to address permit targets for very low- and low-income residents. They investigated the drivers/obstacles behind these missed targets, and what actions were being taken to increase the availability of affordable housing for these residents throughout our county.
The grand jury found that although there is ownership for the creation and approval of Housing Elements that address affordable housing targets, they could not find clear assigned responsibility inside local government to implement plans after approval. This problem, combined with the myriad challenging obstacles outlined in this report has translated into years of missed targets for residents classified as very low or low income. Without significant changes to how local governments address affordable housing, cities and the County risk the imposition of State mandated solutions that bypass local development protocols. This report is a summation of the grand jury’s work, findings and recommendations for improvement.
Attached are the proposed responses to the grand jury’s findings and recommendations. The California Penal Code specifies that the Board of Supervisors must forward its response to the Superior Court no later than September 18, 2023 (90 days from receipt of the report).
The report includes thirteen (13) findings. For each finding, the County is responsible for indicating one of the following actions:
• We agree with the finding.
• We disagree with the finding.
• We partially disagree with the finding.
In each case where the County disagrees or partially disagrees, the County must specify the portion of the finding that is disputed and include an explanation of the reasons therefor.
The report concludes with ten (10) recommendations. The County is responsible for replying to nine of the ten recommendations (Recommendation #9 is not applicable to the County) by stating one the following actions:
• The recommendation has been implemented, with a summary describing the implemented action.
• The recommendation has not yet been implemented but will be implemented in the future, with a timeframe for implementation.
• The recommendation requires further analysis. This response should explain the scope and parameters of the analysis or study, and a timeframe for the matter to be prepared for discussion. This timeframe shall not exceed six months from the date of the publication of the Grand Jury Report.
• The recommendation will not be implemented because it is not warranted or is not reasonable, with an explanation thereof. The response must be provided to the Grand Jury no later than September 13, 2023.
Staff collaborated with other Contra Costa County jurisdictions in drafting responses to the findings and recommendations. Accordingly, the attached draft responses are presented for the Board of Supervisors consideration to transmit to the presiding judge.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
Should the Board not adopt a response today, the County will miss the response deadline.
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I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown. |
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ATTESTED: |
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Monica Nino, County Administrator and Clerk of the Board of Supervisors |
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By: |