County Board of Supervisors Suspends Affordable Housing Impact Fee

Last year, the County Board of Supervisors, recognizing the severe shortage of affordable housing for workers within the county, unanimously passed the Affordable Housing Impact Fee ordinance. The fee is used to fund workforce housing in Marin, and is levied on all new single-family homes greater than 2,000 square feet, teardowns, and major remodels that would result in over 500 square feet of new space and a floor area of greater than 2,000 square feet.

Just 5 days prior to the August 4 meeting, the Board placed on its agenda another ordinance that contains a provision to suspend the Affordable Housing Impact Fee "from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010 for projects where the conditioned floor space, inclusive of all structures, does not exceed 4,000 square feet." By the staff's own estimates, the revenue lost to the afforable housing trust would be $78,000.

The League of Women Voters of Marin County joined affordable housing advocates throughout the county in opposing the new ordinance on the basis that suspending the fee would NOT stimulate the housing market or construction (as the fee would be a fraction of a percent of the cost of construction) but WOULD greatly damage progress toward providing affordable housing in the county. LWVMC cosigned a letter to the Board of Supervisors explaining legitimate objections to the ordinance. At the August 12 meeting, the Board passed the ordinance, but allocated $80,000 in discretionary funds to compensate for the revenue that the affordable housing trust would have received from the fees.

Supervisors suspend Marin affordable housing impact fee (Marin IJ, 08/12/2009)

 

What Is a Housing Element?

According to state law, local governments must plan for the existing and future housing needs of all economic segments of the community in their general plans. This portion of each community's general plan is called its housing element.

Housing elements must be updated every 5 years and are reviewed by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). If local governments do not comply, they become ineligible for certain sources of grant funding and may be sued. These updates are occurring right now, throughout the county.

The League of Women Voters has developed positions on housing at the local, state, and national levels. These positions guide our advocacy. Our local position is, in part, "support of local programs to increase supply of decent housing affordable to families and individuals at below median income." Please click on the Affordable Housing tab above for more information on such housing.

HCD page on Housing Elements

Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) housing page

 

What Kind of Housing Will Be Planned for My Community?

Each of the twelve jurisdictions in Marin has been allocated housing requirements for various income levels within their communities by HCD and the regional land-use planning agency. (See the specific numbers for your community in the "Housing Element Overview" of the Marin Countywide Housing Element Workbook.) It is now up to each community to plan how to achieve those goals. Part of their plan must include a list of sites that are available for housing at very low, low, and moderate income levels, as well as for market-rate housing.

The League of Women Voters of Marin County has been monitoring the Housing Element updates by attending planning meetings in the various municipalities.
We encourage you to get involved, too! Check your local city or town web site for planning meetings.

What Is Affordable Housing?

Affordable housing is housing that costs a household no more than 33% of their gross income. This standard was established by the federal government and reflects the fact that the costs of taxes, social security, insurance, food, transportation, education, retirement, etc., require the vast majority of the remaining income. However, in nearly 70% of Bay Area cities, residents spend more than the federal standard on housing. This means that some other aspect of their wellbeing (retirement or health insurance, for example) is likely being shortchanged.

As the 12 jurisdictions within Marin (including the unincorporated Marin County) plan their Housing Elements for the next five years, they use income levels as a gauge of affordability. These income level designations are based on a percentage of the median household income in the county. In Marin, the median income for a four-person household is $95,000. Following are the income level designations with respect to that median amount:

Extremely low income households earn less than 30% of median income for the same size household (less than $33,950 in 2008 for a 4-person household).

Very low income households earn less than 50% of median income for the same size household (less than $56,550 in 2008 for a 4-person household).

Low income households earn less than 80% of median income for the same size household (less than $90,500 in 2008 for a 4-person household).

Moderate income households earn 80% - 120% of median income for the same size household ($90,500 to $114,000 in 2008 for a 4-person household.

 

Why Is It Important?

The people who need affordable housing are people you know and see every day. They are our retired parents, now on fixed incomes. They are our children, longing to stay in the communities they grew up in. They are nurses, teachers, librarians, social workers, restaurant staff, mechanics, retail clerks, and the people we trust to take care of our aging parents and our young children. They are people who enrich our lives and make them more manageable.

Most of the people who need affordable housing already work and live in our communities. In order to do so, they may be foregoing health insurance or may be accruing credit card debt. Some may be a paycheck away from crisis.

Establishing affordable housing in mixed-use developments, near to transportation and jobs, improves the quality of life for the entire community. It reduces commute times and eliminates millions of tons of the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. Mixed-use development can bring a community to life with well-designed streets, paths, and sidewalks, enabling residents to walk most anywhere they need to go.