California Senate Bill 50 (2019)

California Senate Bill 50 (2019)
California State Legislature
Full namePlanning and zoning: housing development: streamlined approval: incentives[1]
IntroducedDecember 3, 2018
Senate voted18–15–6
WebsiteBill Information
Status: Not passed
(Defeated in the California Senate on January 31, 2020)

California Senate Bill 50 (SB 50) was a proposed California bill that would have preempted local government control of land zoning near public transit stations and jobs centers. The bill would have also required, at minimum, four-plex residential zoning statewide. The bill was the successor to a similar bill introduced by state senator Scott Wiener in January 2018 as Senate Bill 827 (SB 827); both would have applied to areas within one-half-mile (0.8 km) of frequent transit corridors, including rail stations and bus routes. The bills were sponsored by California YIMBY, a pro-housing lobbying group[2][3] while they were opposed by local governments, anti-gentrification activists, and suburban homeowners. The bills were written in response to an ongoing housing affordability crisis in California's largest urban areas.[4]

Senate Bill 827 failed to advance from the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee in April 2018, effectively killing it.[5]

In 2019 and 2020, Senator Wiener attempted to pass Senate Bill 50 multiple times both in committee and on the senate floor, culminating in an unsuccessful floor vote on January 31, 2020, which resulted in the bill's demise.[6] However, the 2021 California HOME Act (drafted by Weiner) and 2023 AB 2097 (drafted by Laura Friedman), both signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom, accomplished many of the same aims as SB 50.

  1. ^ "Bill Text - SB-50 Planning and zoning: Housing development: Streamlined approval: Incentives".
  2. ^ Dillon, Liam (January 4, 2018). "Get ready for a lot more housing near the Expo Line and other California transit stations if new legislation passes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  3. ^ Murphy, Katy; Baldassari, Erin (March 3, 2018). "California gears up for a battle over single-family zoning near transit". The Mercury News. Retrieved April 29, 2018.
  4. ^ Matt Levin (January 31, 2020). "California's Most Controversial Homebuilding Bill, SB50, Just Died. What's Next?". LAist. Archived from the original on February 1, 2020. Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT-Apr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Sheyner, Gennady. "Contentious housing bill SB 50 dies on the Senate floor". www.paloaltoonline.com. Retrieved February 14, 2020.