Senate Bill (SB) 35
Background
Senate Bill 35 (SB 35) went into effect on January 1, 2018. The bill adds Government Code section 65913.4, commonly referred to as the Streamlined Ministerial Approval Process, which requires local jurisdictions to provide a ministerial review process for affordable housing developments which meet the law's eligibility requirements. The bill disallows discretionary review (but allows ministerial review by a public body, at a public hearing) for eligible projects; only existing objective standards may be applied to project review.
A local ordinance to adopt and implement SB 35 is not required and has not been adopted. Instead, the City of Lafayette is implementing state law directly, and will use a combination of local and state forms to collect information from applicants for review. The application process consists of four main steps:
- Use the Eligibility Checklist to determine if your project is eligible for streamlining under SB 35.
- If eligible, submit a Preliminary Application and Eligibility Checklist to the City as notice of intent to apply.
- The City will provide the submitted Preliminary Application to all Native American tribes that are traditionally and culturally affiliated with the geographic area of the development in order to initiate a scoping consultation with all interested tribes.
- If the scoping consultation results in the City being able to accept an SB 35 application, the applicant will then submit a complete application for multifamily development, which will be processed ministerially using the timeframes required.
Handouts & Application Forms
- SB 35 FAQs and Process
- SB 35 Eligibility Checklist
- SB 35 Preliminary Application Form - Provided by HCD. Please note that this link leads to an HCD form labeled “Housing Crisis Act of 2019 – SB 330: Preliminary Application Form,” but is also the correct form to use for an SB 35 Preliminary Application.
- SB 35 Application Submittal Requirements
- Standard Application Form
- HCD's Updated Streamlined Ministerial Approval Process Guidelines - Provides additional background information and guidance on eligibility, approval process, timing requirements, and reporting.