AB-610 • 2026

Housing element: governmental constraints: disclosure statement.

Education Housing Land

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor: Alvarez
Last action: 2025-10-10
Official status: Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 494, Statutes of 2025.
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The bill does not explicitly mention that it applies to all cities, including charter cities. This is inferred from the findings and declarations section but needs verification against official sources.

Housing Element: Governmental Constraints Disclosure

AB-610 requires cities and counties to include a disclosure statement in their housing elements that identifies new or changed governmental constraints affecting housing development since the last update.

What This Bill Does

Requires cities and counties to add a disclosure statement about new or updated government rules that affect housing when they revise their housing plans.
The disclosure must list any changes made after the due date of the previous plan but before submitting the current draft to the Department of Housing and Community Development.

Who It Names or Affects

Cities and counties in California
The Department of Housing and Community Development

Terms To Know

Housing Element Law: A set of rules that cities and counties must follow when planning for housing needs.
Governmental Constraints: Rules or policies made by local governments that can make it harder to build new homes or improve existing ones.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not specify a date when the changes will start.
It is unclear how much extra work this will add for cities and counties.

Bill History

2025-10-10 California Legislative Information
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 494, Statutes of 2025.
2025-10-10 California Legislative Information
Approved by the Governor.
2025-09-23 California Legislative Information
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
2025-09-11 California Legislative Information
Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 73. Noes 1. Page 3295.).
2025-09-10 California Legislative Information
In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
2025-09-10 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 39. Noes 0. Page 2811.).
2025-09-08 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-09-05 California Legislative Information
Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
2025-09-04 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-09-03 California Legislative Information
Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
2025-08-29 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-08-29 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 29).
2025-08-18 California Legislative Information
In committee: Referred to suspense file.
2025-07-17 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-07-16 California Legislative Information
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 5. Noes 0.) (July 16).
2025-07-03 California Legislative Information
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on L. GOV.
2025-07-02 California Legislative Information
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on L. GOV. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 1).
2025-06-18 California Legislative Information
Referred to Coms. on HOUSING and L. GOV.
2025-06-09 California Legislative Information
In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
2025-06-05 California Legislative Information
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 72. Noes 1. Page 2109.)
2025-05-27 California Legislative Information
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
2025-05-23 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.) (May 23).
2025-05-14 California Legislative Information
In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to suspense file.
2025-05-01 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (April 30). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
2025-04-28 California Legislative Information
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on L. GOV. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (April 24). Re-referred to Com. on L. GOV.
2025-04-24 California Legislative Information
(Pending re-refer to Com. on L. GOV.)
2025-04-24 California Legislative Information
Assembly Rule 56 suspended. (Page 1265.)
2025-04-21 California Legislative Information
Re-referred to Com. on H. & C.D.
2025-04-10 California Legislative Information
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on H. & C.D. Read second time and amended.
2025-03-18 California Legislative Information
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
2025-03-03 California Legislative Information
Referred to Coms. on H. & C.D. and L. GOV.
2025-02-14 California Legislative Information
From printer. May be heard in committee March 16.
2025-02-13 California Legislative Information
Read first time. To print.

Official Summary Text

AB 610, Alvarez.
Housing element: governmental constraints: disclosure statement.
The Planning and Zoning Law requires a city or county to adopt a general plan for land use development that includes, among other things, a housing element. Existing law, commonly referred to as the Housing Element Law, prescribes requirements for a city’s or county’s preparation of, and compliance with, its housing element, and requires the Department of Housing and Community Development to review and determine whether the housing element substantially complies with the Housing Element Law, as specified.
Existing law requires the housing element to include an analysis of potential and actual governmental constraints upon the maintenance, improvement, or development of housing for all income levels, including, among others, locally adopted ordinances that directly impact the cost and supply of residential development. Existing law also
requires the analysis to demonstrate local efforts to remove governmental constraints that hinder the locality from meeting its share of the regional housing need.
For adoption of the 7th and all subsequent revisions of the housing element, this bill would require the housing element to include, in addition to the above-described analysis, a potential and actual governmental constraints disclosure statement that contains, among other things, an identification of each new or amended potential or actual governmental constraint, or revision increasing the stringency of a governmental constraint, that was adopted after the due date of the previous housing element and before submittal of the current draft housing element to the department. By imposing new requirements upon local governments submitting a housing element, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
This bill would make related findings and
declarations.
The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 65583 of the Government Code proposed by SB 340 and AB 650, to be operative only if this bill and either or both of those bills are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would
provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Current Bill Text

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