Attachment 1CITIES ASSOCIATION
OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY
Board of Directors Meeting — Agenda Report
Meeting Date: June 14, 2018
Subject: 3c RHNA Subregion Task Force (action)
Initiated by: Board Priority
Previous Consideration: none
Fiscal Impact: n/a
Attachments RHNA Subregion Overview
Pros/Cons
Guiding Principles
Resolution
By-laws
Summary:
Recommendation:
As an effort to improve the implementation of housing across the region,
the Cities Association continues to address and consider the Regional
Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) subregion option and providing our
cities and the county more flexibility to ensure that the state mandated
housing allocations make sense regionally.
The board adopted RHNA subregion as a priority to continue exploration
for the next cycle (2023-2031) in which our region can own the
responsibility of preparing a sub -regional housing need allocation for the
geographic area of Santa Clara County. RHNA is the state mandated
process used to identify the total number of housing units that each
jurisdiction must accommodate in its Housing Element. For the current
cycle (2014-2022) the counties of San Mateo, Napa, and Solano have
formed sub -regions. A subregion is required to meet its statutory
requirements in the regional allocation process but it can develop its own
methodology, issue draft allocations to member jurisdictions, conduct the
revision and appeals processes, and issue final allocations. Generally, the
cities and the county within the sub region have more flexibility to ensure
that the allocations make sense.
Per the Board's approval in 2015, a Regional Housing Task
Force/Subcommittee was formed. Subcommittee is tasked with: a)
Developing the framework and process needed to form and implement a
subregion in Santa Clara County in the next RHNA cycle (2023-2031); and
b) Reviewing potential options for further regional response.
The Committee would like board members to take the topic of a subregion
back to their individual councils for discussion prior to voting on formation
of a subregion.
ATTACHMENT 1
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
Santa Clara County
Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Subregion Overview
What is a RHNA subregion? (Government Code Section 65584.03)
In recognition of the common interests and mutual challenges and opportunities associated with
providing housing, two or more contiguous cities and a county may form a subregional entity for
the purpose of allocation of the subregion's existing and projected need for housing among its
members in accordance with the allocation methodology established pursuant to Government
Code Section 65584.04.
All decisions of the subregion shall be approved by vote as provided for in the rules adopted by the
local governments comprising the subregion, or shall be approved by vote of the county and the
majority of the cities with the majority of population within the county.
What are the steps to create a subregion, following the prescribed timelines in State law?
1. Each participating jurisdiction adopts a resolution indicating its commitment to participating in
the subregional entity.
2. For Santa Clara County, the subregional entity could be a committee of the Cities Association
with participating cities and the County.
3. The Cities Association (or other entity) would enter into an agreement with the Council of
Governments (COG, in our case ABAG/MTC) that sets forth the process, timing, and other
terms and conditions of the delegation of responsibility by the COG to the subregion.
What does the subregion do, following the prescribe timelines in State law?
1. The subregion determines the methodology for allocating housing need to its participating
jurisdictions according to State law (or accepts the methodology factors from the COG as a
starting point for further distribution), providing opportunity for public comment and
modification prior to adoption of the methodology.
2. The COG allocates a share to the subregion based on a proportion consistent with the
distribution of households assumed for the comparable time period of the applicable regional
transportation plan.
3. The subregion allocates the distribution of the RHNA to the participating jurisdictions
according to the adopted methodology, providing an opportunity for public comment and
modification prior to finalizing the distribution.
What is the estimated cost of a subregion versus typical participation in the RHNA process?
Assuming that the subregion does not hire a consultant to create a separate methodology, the
costs would be:
1. Administrating and documenting the subregion meetings and decisions;
2. Conducting the required outreach prior to the subregion making its decisions;
3. Communicating with ABAG/MTC as needed; and
4. Publishing the required notices.
The Planning Departments of the participating jurisdictions typically absorb the RHNA evaluation
without additional staffing or consultant assistance.
EXHIBIT 1
1
Santa Clara County
Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Subregion Overview
What are other activities that the subregion could assume outside of the RHNA process and State
law?
• Foster collaboration between cities within Santa Clara County
o Focus on Measure A implementation
o Facilitate an open dialogue between the jurisdictions, public, and interested
organizations on housing issues and opportunities
o Share best practices regarding rehabilitating existing housing stock, addressing
gentrification/displacement, etc.
• Work together to obtain and commit more financial resources to affordable housing
production
o Support for 2018 ballot measure for affordable housing funding
o Consider potential legislative efforts to seek meaningful tax credits and other
mechanisms
2
SANTA CLARA COUNTY RHNA SUBREGION TASK FORCE
PROS & CONS OF RHNA SUBREGION FORMATION
Pros
Cons
Example
Creates flexibility & allows
cities to trade
Distribute the subregion's
numbers or can use ABAG's
distribution
Empowers cities to have a
say in the regional planning
process
Self-determination: a city is
able to accept or not accept
allocation from another city.
Allows better alignment
between local and regional
needs
Ability to plan along on
transit corridors and near
employment.
Can find innovative solutions
Collective problem -solving
which may include
negotiating credits and
creative financing
May facilitate the production
of more housing
Utilizes economies of scale
and eliminates duplication.
Siting housing near
supportive services.
Creates a forum for
collaboration that leads to
innovative solutions
San Mateo County Trade
Woodside/Redwood City &
Daly City/Colma/County
Creates awareness (and
healthy competition)
Creates a forum to share
knowledge and success.
When one city is doing the
heavy lifting, may encourage
other jurisdictions to step up
to the plate.
If success, may create
additional opportunities for
collaborative work
Success may be housing or
spill over to other technical
areas (transportation). May
use collaboration for
legislative advocacy.
Better development
Cities can work together to
build near transit and not
EXHIBIT 2
SANTA CLARA COUNTY RHNA SUBREGION TASK FORCE
PROS & CONS OF RHNA SUBREGION FORMATION
necessarily confined by a city
boundary.
Creates a forum to discuss
sharing of planning resources
Share resources - - may share
in cost to pay consultants for
housing element preparation
or program ideas (for those
who want to share).
Time, effort & resources
which may end in same
result.
What if subregion fails to
produce a different
allocation?
Lack of trust for fair and
equitable process.
Some cities may shirk their
responsibility to step up and
accept housing.
Increases local control
Ability to control own
numbers and improve
county -wide performance.
Loss of political distance from
MTC and ABAG
Pressure on community to
produce additional housing.
Lack of clarity of the benefits
to accept someone's
numbers/housing
City worried about allocation
dumping
Still need to plan for housing for all income levels
Can't go to zero. Every
jurisdiction still has an
allocation in every income
level.
No role model
No other subregion has such
large population variances.
Increased use of ADUs
ADUs more feasible with
cities with large residential
Tots.
SANTA CLARA COUNTY RHNA SUBREGION TASK FORCE
GUIDING PRINCIPLES - May 2018
Vision
For Santa Clara County and its cities to work collaboratively to produce more housing in the Region.
have a unified voice in responding to the area's housing needs-- a problem that transcends
jurisdictional barriers.
Benefits
1. By working together to plan for housing growth, the stage is set for implementing housing, and
more housing will ultimately be built.
2. Housing will be planned in the right places, near transportation, jobs, and services.
3. Santa Clara County jurisdictions can work together to share resources.
4. Collaboration enables collective advocacy on regional and Statewide issues.
5. Partnership sets the stage for other cooperation, including sharing Housing Element consultants,
sharing expertise, analyses, and policies, and potentially enabling a shared review by the
California Housing and Community Development (HCD) Department.
6. Collective agreement is reached on strategies and tools to meet the region's housing
need, including the potential for trading RHNA numbers.
7. Greater flexibility.
Guiding Principles
1. Conform with all State objectives included in Section 66584(d), including ensuring that the
allocation of affordable homes is allocated to all jurisdictions in the region in an equitable
manner.
2. Allocate housing growth strategically around major transportation corridors and near
employment and services, while respecting infrastructure constraints and the unique natural
resources of Santa Clara County.
3. Foster collaboration between jurisdictions and develop collective strategies that provide a
framework for addressing housing need, including the potential for resource / housing
allocation trade-offs.
4. Facilitate an open dialogue between jurisdictions, the general public, and interested
organizations, including transportation agencies and land use bodies.
5. Utilize existing forums for discussion (e.g., Cities Association, City Managers' Association,
SCCAPO, etc.).
Keys to Success
1. Taking responsibility for the process and the resulting housing shares.
2. Taking into consideration other communities' interests as well as your own.
3. Being willing to accept a reasonable housing share, not just the lowest.
4. Being willing to consider negotiating trades.
5. Recognizing that working together locally is better than abdicating the responsibility to the region
and the state.
6. Elected leaders in all jurisdictions willing to compromise for regional benefit.
EXHIBIT 3
THIS PAGE
INTENTIONALLY
LEFT BLANK
RESOLUTION NO.
RESOLUTION OF INTENT TO SUPPORT FORMATION OF A HOUSING SUBREGION OF
SANTA CLARA COUNTY LOCAL AND COUNTY GOVERNMENTS TO FACILITATE AND
IMPLEMENT COUNTYWIDE HOUSING PRODUCTION CONSISTENT WITH THE
REGIONAL HOUSING NEEDS ALLOCATION (RHNA) FORMULA CURRENTLY
ASSIGNED BY THE ASSOCIATION OF BAY AREA GOVERNMENTS (ABAG)
WHEREAS, Housing Element Law (Gov. Code Sections 65580— 65589.8) provides for a Regional Housing
Need Allocation process (RHNA); and
WHEREAS, to implement such RHNA process in the San Francisco Bay Area, the State of California has
delegated to the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) responsibility to adopt an allocation
methodology, then use the adopted methodology to assign to each jurisdiction in the Bay Area the
obligation to zone enough housing development capacity to accommodate production of a specific
number of housing units during the period from 2021 through 2029; and
WHEREAS, Government Code Section 65584.03 provides that certain combinations of local
governments may form a subregion to perform RHNA for themselves in order to allocate among
themselves the total number of housing units assigned to them collectively by ABAG; and
WHEREAS, the City/County of is interested in exploring the formation of a Regional
Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) subregion consistent with the California Government Code Section
65584 et seq and acceptable to the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) and the California
Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) to facilitate collaboration with the county
and all cities in the County of Santa Clara, to efficiently and effectively deliver housing production goals;
a nd
WHEREAS, the Board of the Cities Association of Santa Clara County has directed the review of the
benefits of such a subregion and subsequently representatives of the Cities Association of Santa Clara
County (CASCC) have formed a committee to evaluate and make recommendations regarding the
importance of and opportunities for success through shared housing strategies which could be facilitated
by a subregional effort; and
WHEREAS, housing is a countywide challenge, and housing production types, numbers, density,
appropriateness and affordability levels can vary in different communities, and the Cities' recognize all
production types are important to the housing supply of the County and its related economic and social
health; and
EXHIBIT 4
WHEREAS, Cities are individually accountable for, and retain full local authority for, identifying sites for
housing development and for adopting and implementing housing policies intended to facilitate
production of housing to meet local, regional and state policy objectives embodied in the numbers
prescribed by ABAG the Sustainable Community Strategy that will be adopted by ABAG and the
Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) in 2021; and
WHEREAS; through mutual cooperation and planning, the production of these housing units may be
enhanced through collective efforts and resources, therefore creating a forum for developing countywide
policy consensus on matters related to the Sustainable Community Strategy;
NOW, THEREFORE the City of does hereby find, determine, resolve and order as follows:
Section 1: That it is in the best interest of the City to join with other cities in Santa Clara County to
explore creation of the RHNA subregion and that by working together to plan for housing growth, the
stage is set for implementing housing and more housing will ultimately be built to meet the needs of
the entire County and its residents.
Section 2: That the City Manager is hereby authorized and directed to enter into discussions regarding
the formation of a RHNA subregion and the development of a workplan and budget, and schedule of
actions leading to the countywide, self -administration of the housing needs allocation process,
allocating the countywide total housing needs allocation among all the Cities and unincorporated
County by consensus; and to bring back a recommendation and resolution for action to join a RHNA
subregion, or in the alternative, an explanation detailing the decision not to participate in the RHNA
subregion.
By-laws of the Santa Clara County Subregional RHNA Process
PURPOSE & BYLAWS
The cities within the County of Santa Clara, and the County of Santa Clara, have adopted
resolutions to participate as a Subregion (hereinafter referred to as "Subregion") in the
Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) Process. The Cities Association of Santa Clara
County (hereinafter referred to as "CASCC") will act as the representative for the Subregion.
The Subregion hereby adopts the following bylaws for the purpose of providing for the orderly
conduct of its affairs.
ARTICLE I NAME
The name of the separate entity established by the resolutions is the "Santa Clara County Sub -
Regional RHNA Process" and may be referred to as "Subregion".
ARTICLE II PURPOSES
Section 1. Subregion shall have the following purposes:
(a) Plan, organize, and maintain the work of the Subregion and be responsible for its overall
operation;
(b) Advise City Managers, City Councils and the Board of Supervisors of all significant
activities of the Subregion;
(c) Prepare, review, monitor, present to the cities and the County, and facilitate a
consensus on the Regional Housing Needs Allocation housing shares for all the cities and
the County for the 2021 Housing Element;
(d) Submit to the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) for approval the housing
shares for Santa Clara County (cities and County).
(e) Provide a forum for developing a countywide policy consensus, to the greatest extent
possible, on matters related the Sustainable Communities Strategy process of which the
Regional Housing Needs Allocation is a part; and a channel for communicating such
consensus to the Joint Policy Committee of the Metropolitan Transportation
Commission and the Association of Bay Area Governments overseeing the Sustainable
Communities Strategy process from time to time when such a consensus is requested or
required by the Joint Policy Committee.
EXHIBIT 5
Section 2. Subregion shall not participate in or endorse any political activity involving any
individual candidate for public office. The selection of officers within Article IV herein shall not
be considered a political activity subject to this section.
ARTICLE III MEMBERS
Section 1. The County of Santa Clara and each city which has adopted a resolution of
participation shall be members of the Subregion.
Section 2. The RHNA Policy Committee (PC) of the Subregion shall consist of a member of the
City Council of each participating city to be selected by that city, and one member of the Board
of Supervisors to be selected by the Board of Supervisors.
Section 3. Each member City Council and the Board of Supervisors may select one alternate
member from its body who shall participate when the regular member is absent.
Section 4. If both the member and the alternate will be absent, the City or County, respectively,
may designate a substitute for that meeting and notify CASCC, in writing, of the designation.
Section 5. Any member may withdraw from the Subregion by adopting a resolution and
providing a written notice of intention to do so to the chairperson of the PC. The rights and
obligations of any such member shall terminate 30 days after acceptance by the PC.
Section 6. If any member, or designated representative, fails to attend two consecutive
meetings, without notification of the Chairperson or the Executive Director, the Chairperson
will notify the City Council or Board of Supervisors to encourage future participation.
ARTICLE IV- OFFICERS
Section 1. The officers of the PC shall consist of a chairperson and vice chairperson.
Section 2. The chairperson and vice chairperson shall be elected by the PC and shall serve at the
will of the PC.
Section 3. Nomination for officers of the PC shall be made from the floor. Nominations shall be
made by voting members of the PC only.
Section 4. The chairperson and vice chairperson must be voting members of the PC.
Section 5. Nominations and election of the chairperson shall precede nominations and election
of the vice chairperson. Voting shall be public.
Section 6. The chairperson shall preside at all meetings and may call special meetings when
necessary.
Section 7. The vice chairperson shall perform the duties of the chairperson in the absence of the
chairperson.
Section 8. A special election shall be called by the Board of Directors if the chairperson and/or
vice chairperson is unable to serve.
Section 9. All officers shall serve without compensation.
Section 10. The chairperson or vice chairperson may be removed from office at any time by a
majority vote of those members present.
ARTICLE V STAFF SUPPORT
Section 1. The CASCC Executive Director, CASCC staff and contractors shall provide support to
the Subregion and all the established committees.
Section 2. The PC shall have dealings with staff and contractors through the CASCC Executive
Director.
Section 3. All participating jurisdictions will share in the cost.
ARTICLE VI COMMITTEES/ STAKEHOLDER REVIEW
Section 1. The following standing committees shall assist in accomplishing the goals of the
SANTA CLARA COUNTY SUB REGIONAL RHNA PROCESS:
• RHNA Policy Committee
• RHNA Technical Advisory Committee
• City Managers Association
• City Councils and Board of Supervisors
• Association of Bay Area Governments
Section 2. RHNA Policy Committee (PC) - 16 Members, one member from each city and the
county, composed of elected officials. The primary role is to provide initial policy input to the
process, review the RHNA TAC recommendations and adopt a policy consensus for transmittal
to the cities and the County for ratification.
Section 3. RHNA Technical Advisory Committee (RHNA TAC) - 16 Members - One member from
each city and the county. Composed of senior staff technical experts in the field of housing and
land use. Member agencies may flexibly assign different technical experts as a function of the
subject being discussed. However, it is important that there be good communications between
the different representatives such that issues do not need to be repeated or there are no
conflicting positions from the representatives. Primary role is technical development of the
issues and solutions.
Section 4. City Managers Association - Monthly reports will be provided to the City Managers
through the City Managers Association. This will allow ongoing input by the City Managers in
the process. The final product will be presented to the City Managers for their recommendation
to the RHNA PAC for approval of the final product. Primary role of the City Managers is
practical assessment of the issues and solutions.
Section 5. City Councils/ Board of Supervisors - Primary role is ratification of the RHNA Final
Allocation prior to submittal to Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG).
Section 6. Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) - Final approval of RHNA Final
Allocation.
Section 7. An appeals process will be established by the PC in conjunction with ABAG to hear
appeals by any cities or the County that disagree with their housing share as allocated by the
Subregion.
ARTICLE VII MEETINGS
Section 1. The PC shall establish by resolution the date, time, and place for regular PC meetings.
Section 2. The PC may hold special meetings called in accordance with Article IV, Section 6.
Section 3. All meetings of the PC shall be held in accordance with the Brown Act, Government
Code section 54950 Ct seq.
ARTICLE VIII CONDUCT OF BUSINESS
Section 1. A quorum shall consist of at least a majority of the members and shall be required for
all meetings of the PC.
Section 2. Except as state otherwise in these by-laws, all decisions of the PC shall be by majority
vote of those present.
Section 3. Adoption of the Final Regional Housing Needs Allocation shall require:
1. consent of a majority of all cities and the County participating in the Subregion, and
2. consent of each jurisdiction that has been allocated a greater share of housing than
the ABAG default allocation.
Section 4. Upon adoption of the final regional housing numbers, the subregion will
share support for outcome and support each other, for example the subregaion releasing a
resolution, annual report, and press event.
Section 5. Except as provided in these bylaws, or by a majority vote of those present, Roberts
Rule of Order Revised shall constitute the parliamentary authority for the PC.
Section 6. These by-laws may be amended by a two-thirds majority vote of members present
and who represent a majority of all cities and the County.
ARTICLE IX OTHER MATTERS
Section 1. No member shall receive compensation or reimbursement from PC or CASCC for
expenses incurred in attending any meeting or other function.