Under State law, every city and county in California must adopt a Housing Element or plan, as part of its General Plan. An updated Element allows a City to access critical local, state and federal funds.
The Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) is a State rule that requires all California cities to plan enough regional housing to meet housing needs for all income levels. Oakland must plan for 26,251 new housing units between 2023 and 2031. The Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) makes RHNA “assignments” for each city.
The Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act improves coordination between regional housing and transportation planning to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
To meet the objectives of the RHNA and the Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act, ABAG developed “Plan Bay Area.” The objectives are:
- Increase supply, diversity and affordability of housing
- Promote infill development (development of vacant or under-used parcels within existing urban areas)
- Promote intraregional relationship between jobs and housing
- Protect environmental resources
- Promote socioeconomic equity