To: Board of Supervisors
From: John Kopchik, Director, Conservation and Development
Report Title: Annual Update on Implementation of the County General Plan for 2024
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. ACCEPT the 2024 Annual Progress Report (APR) prepared by the Department of Conservation and Development (DCD) on implementation of the Contra Costa County General Plan, as required under California Government Code Section 65400.
2. DIRECT DCD staff to forward the General Plan APR to the Governor's Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation (LCI) and the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), as required under California Government Code section 65400.
FISCAL IMPACT:
No impact to the General Fund. The report on the County's annual progress in implementing its General Plan is funded 100% from the Land Development Fund, FY 2024/2025.
BACKGROUND:
California Government Code Section 65400 requires the planning agency for all cities and counties to submit an annual report to their legislative body (city council or board of supervisors, respectively), LCI, and HCD on the status of their General Plan and progress on its implementation. The annual report provides the local legislative body with information regarding the status of its General Plan and gives LCI the opportunity to identify statewide trends in land use decision making, including how local planning and development activities relate to statewide planning goals and policies. Additionally, it enables LCI to track progress on a local jurisdiction's General Plan in terms of its comprehensiveness and consistency with the current LCI General Plan Guidelines and other State mandates.
There is no standardized form or format for preparation of the General Plan APR. LCI allows each jurisdiction to determine which locally relevant issues are important to discuss, though it does “strongly encourage” agencies to follow their recommendations on the general content of the APR. The attached APR covering calendar year 2024 follows LCI’s general guidance for content.
Staff notes that under a separate section of the Government Code, all local jurisdictions are required to submit a report to HCD containing certain housing-related information, including the jurisdiction's progress in meeting its share of regional housing needs and local efforts to remove governmental constraints to development of housing. On March 25, 2025, the Board is scheduled to consider accepting the County's General Plan Housing Element Progress Report for 2024. Information from that report is incorporated into the attached General Plan APR.
Staff calls to the Board's attention the County's progress in meeting its regional housing needs allocation (RHNA). The County’s RHNA for the 6th Cycle is 7,610 units, which includes 2,072 units affordable to very-low-income, 1,194 units affordable to low-income, 1,211 units affordable to moderate-income, and 3,133 units affordable to above-moderate income (i.e., market rate) households. Current data indicates that through calendar year 2024, the second of eight years of the 6th Housing Element Cycle, the County issued zero permits for units affordable to very-low-income households (which includes units affordable to extremely-low-income households), zero units affordable to low-income households, 57 units affordable to moderate-income households, and 209 units affordable to above-moderate-income households, which is approximately 3.5% of its RHNA. Total 6th Cyle production is 802 units, which is approximately 10.5% of the total RHNA allocation. These unit counts represent small percentages of units that need to be approved during this 6th Cycle planning period, and they are all below the annual average percentage needed to keep pace with the target numbers. However, with the adoption and HCD Certification of the County’s Housing Element on January 22, 2024, new policy guidance and land use designation changes are anticipated to facilitate increased development over the next six years of the 6th cycle planning period. Adoption of the updated County General Plan, which occurred November 5, 2024, is also expected to boost housing production, as new policy guidance and expanded opportunities for higher-density housing and mixed-use development should further streamline opportunities for development.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
State law requires DCD to submit the APR to the Board of Supervisors prior to submitting it to LCI and HCD. The purpose of this APR is to provide an update to the Board of Supervisors on implementation of the County General Plan. Negative action by the Board would result in the County becoming noncompliant with California Government Code Section 65400.