Legislature enacted transformational new solutions that will build homes faster in our cities, reduce red tape, and provide Californians a pathway to homeownership and more affordable options
- Nick Miller
- Communications Director
- 916-319-2029
- Nick.Miller@asm.ca.gov
SACRAMENTO — The new year will bring major progress on housing affordability in California, as the state continues to implement Speaker Robert Rivas and Assembly Democrats’ landmark housing laws.
The Legislature delivered historic solutions in 2025 that will accelerate home construction, reduce costs for families, eliminate red tape and expand housing options in the communities where Californians want to live.
For years, Californians have spoken loud and clear: building homes faster and lowering the cost of rents and mortgages is their No. 1 priority. The state passed and implemented some of the most significant housing affordability measures in generations — policies designed to fundamentally shift the trajectory of California’s housing crisis.
These new laws will accelerate construction, create more housing near jobs and transit, and help ensure that middle- and working-class families can afford to live in the cities and regions they call home. The policies aim to supercharge construction of new homes in our metro areas and cities. And collectively, these laws represent a major step toward delivering the long-term affordability Californians deserve.
The new laws include landmark updates to CEQA and other outdated regulations that for years slowed housing production and increased costs. These reforms will:
- Streamline environmental review to speed-up housing and infrastructure projects in our central cities
- Expedite permitting and approval processes, especially in higher-cost areas
- Stabilize costs and provide more certainty for homeowners and builders by freezing new residential building standards through 2031
Solutions that Build Homes Faster and Improve Affordability
Speaker Rivas and his Assembly colleagues created several new laws that break down barriers to make it easier and less expensive for Californians to build and achieve more affordable housing. These laws were passed with urgency and will continue to improve affordability for 2026:
- Assembly Bill 253 (Ward, Rivas) significantly speeds up the approval process for building homes. This law improves project approval time by empowering homeowners and developers to use licensed third-party professionals for plan checks when local agencies exceed 30-day review windows, speeding up the building process for small-scale housing.
- Assembly Bill 301 (Schiavo, Rivas) makes sure there is government accountability to hit deadlines and approve new construction on time. The law holds state agencies accountable by requiring state departments reviewing post-entitlement housing permits to meet the same deadlines already imposed on local agencies.
- Assembly Bill 462 (Lowenthal, Rivas) will lead to more “ADU” units in backyards and on properties. This law expedites the development of accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, in the Coastal Zone to increase the availability of housing in high cost areas.
Changing Course on Housing Affordability
The following new laws also make significant progress to build homes faster, cut red tape and increase lower-cost housing options for all Californians:
- Assembly Bill 507 (Haney) incentivizes the conversion of underused non-residential buildings, especially office spaces, into residential and mixed-use housing.
- Assembly Bill 1021 (Wicks) streamlines the process for local educational agencies (LEAs) to build affordable housing on their own property to address teacher and staff shortages.
- Assembly Bill 457 (Soria) streamlines approvals for larger farmworker housing in the Central Valley.
- Assembly Bill 87 (Boerner) ensures that Density Bonus Law is used primarily on building residential units instead of high-rise hotels.
- Assembly Bill 36 (Soria) promotes effective local solutions that streamline the development of prohousing communities.
- Assembly Bill 480 (Quirk-Silva) amends the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program to increase the financial impact of the credits.
- Assembly Bill 610 (Alvarez) prohibits local governments from implementing new or stricter regulatory constraints on housing developments, unless included in the previous constraints analysis.
- Assembly Bill 712 (Wicks) strengthens enforcement of housing laws by empowering courts to impose fines on local agencies that violate them.
- Assembly Bill 893 (Fong) streamlines approval of housing projects within a half-mile radius of public colleges and universities by creating "campus development zones".
- Assembly Bill 920 (Caloza) requires larger cities and counties to implement a centralized online portal for permits.
- Assembly Bill 1007 (Rubio) expedites timelines for approval or disapproval by a public agency acting as the “responsible agency" for residential and mixed-use development projects.
- Assembly Bill 1050 (Schultz) allows commercial properties to include residential units and utilize an existing legal process to remove restrictive covenants.
- Assembly Bill 1061 (Quirk-Silva) allows lot splits and duplexes in historic districts, as long as projects do not demolish existing historic structures.
- Assembly Bill 1154 (Carrillo) brings parity between small Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and Junior Accessory Dwelling Units (JADUs), to increase the state’s housing supply.
- Assembly Bill 1275 (Elhawary) strengthens future housing plans by ensuring housing and transportation systems are working together.
- Assembly Bill 1296 (Bonta) uses underutilized property owned by school districts for affordable housing.
These housing affordability reforms mark a turning point for California. With faster approvals, stronger investments and fewer barriers to building, Democrats in the Assembly are delivering the bold action Californians have been demanding to lower costs and expand housing options.
The Assembly has laid the groundwork for lasting change, and remains committed to advancing policies that make our state more affordable, more livable, and more equitable for all Californians.
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For more information, follow Speaker Robert Rivas at the following social media channels:
Instagram: @caspeakerrivas
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CASpeakerRivas/