San Bernardino County
Housing Element, Consolidated Plan, and Analysis of Impediments
Does your neighborhood have access to good housing, schools, jobs, healthcare, and other resources?
The County of San Bernardino is updating its Housing Element based on analysis and public input received during the preparation of the Consolidated Plan and Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice. These plans were updated in 2020.
The Housing Element is one of 11 elements of the County Policy Plan. While the other 10 elements of the Policy Plan were updated in 2020, the Housing Element is updated on a separate 8-year cycle and is subject to detailed statutory requirements and mandatory review by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). Each 8-year period (2013-2021 for currently adopted, 2021-2029 for this update) is referred to as either a planning period or a RHNA (Regional Housing Needs Assessment) cycle.
The Housing Element contains information on the housing needs of the community, including the needs of lower-income households, people experiencing homelessness, people with disabilities, and seniors, among other groups. The Element also considers the need for new housing determined through the Regional Housing Needs Assessment (or RHNA, pronounced REE-NAH, see below) and contains an inventory of potential development sites within the county that could accommodate the RHNA allocation. Finally, the Housing Element establishes and refines the County’s goals, policies, programs, and objectives to create a comprehensive housing strategy to address existing and future housing needs.
As required by state law, the County’s 2021-2029 Housing Element will contain several key components:
• Housing Needs Assessment: Demographic, economic, and housing information that identifies current and future housing needs in the community.
• Constraints Analysis: Governmental, nongovernmental, and environmental constraints to the development, improvement, and maintenance of housing.
• Housing Resources: Sites available for housing development to accommodate the County’s RHNA and the financial and other resources available to support the development, maintenance, and improvement of housing for all income levels.
• Goals, Policies and Programs: Policies and programs to address the housing needs based on an assessment of existing programs and community outreach and direction.
The Consolidated Plan was updated in 2020 and assesses the current housing market, discusses characteristics of the county’s population, identifies community improvement priorities, and outlines a five-year plan to fund and implement them. This document is required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the County to receive federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds.
Consolidated Plan Topics:
• Citizen Participation and Consultation
• Affordable Housing
• Public and Assisted Housing
• Homeless and Other Special Needs
• Public Facilities and Services
• Barriers to Affordable Housing
The Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice (AI) was updated in 2020 and identifies barriers to equal access to housing and neighborhood opportunities and proposes strategies to overcome those barriers. This document is required by HUD for the County to receive federal CDBG funds. Per state law passed in 2018 (AB 686), the Housing Element will incorporate the AI by reference and augment analysis based on guidance from HCD.
AI Topics of Discussion:
• Public Investment
• Access to Opportunity
• Land Use & Zoning
• Housing
• Housing Discrimination and Hate Crimes
• Home Mortgage Disclosure Act
The community’s opinions and perceptions have been and continue to be an important part of these planning efforts, and everyone is invited to participate. Your input will provide essential information to local policymakers, staff, housing providers, lenders, and affordable housing advocates.
Resources
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Housing Element Adoption and Certification
Updated Draft Housing Element- September
The revised draft Housing Element based on the HCD Comments from August is now available for public review and comment! The draft Housing Element will be heard before the Board of Supervisors on September 27, 2022. The Draft Housing Element and technical report can be found on our website (Housing Plans – Land Use Services (sbcounty.gov)) . Please submit your comments for consideration by Monday, September 26, 2022 . You may submit your comments via e-mail at PlanningCommissionComments@lus.sbcounty.gov or via mail to Land Use Services 385 N. Arrowhead Avenue, 1st floor, San Bernardino CA, 92415.
This September 2022 version of the draft Housing Element replaces the previous June 2022 version. To facilitate public review, changes from the June 2022 version are tracked, with new content marked with underlines and deleted content shown as strikethrough. Minor grammatical corrections or other superficial or minor nonsubstantive changes may not be marked.
Letter from HCD dated 8/19/2022
Housing Element Policy Plan – No changes
Draft Technical Report – Revised
Updated Draft Housing Element- June 20, 2022
The following drafts are provided for HCD review after incorporating changes in response to HCD’s comment letter dated February 7, 2022, and in response to comments and questions from the general public received during the two‐week public review period between May 22 and June 6, 2022. Changes from the November 2021 version are shown as tracked changes, with new text shown in blue underline and deleted text shown in red strikethrough.
HCD Comment Letter with responses
Countywide Plan Policy Plan- Revised Draft Housing Element- June 2022
Countywide Plan – Housing Element Revised Draft Technical Report – June 2022
Revised Draft Housing Element- May 23.2022
The revised draft Housing Element is now available for public review and comment! The draft Housing Element will be submitted to the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) after the 14-day review period closes. The Draft Housing Element and technical report can be found below. Please submit your comments for consideration by Monday, June 6, 2022 . You may submit your comments via e-mail at PlanningCommissionComments@lus.sbcounty.gov or via mail to Land Use Services 385 N. Arrowhead Avenue, 1st floor, San Bernardino CA, 92415.
While state law requires the draft Housing Element to be made available for public review for 7 days, the County is extending the public review time to 14 days to give interested residents and stakeholders additional time to review and submit comments and questions. This May 2022 version of the draft Housing Element replaces the previous December 2021 version. To facilitate public review, changes from the December 2021 version are tracked, with new content marked with underlines and deleted content shown as strikethrough. Minor grammatical corrections or other superficial or minor nonsubstantive changes may not be marked.
Countywide Plan Policy Plan- Revised Draft Housing Element- May 2022
Countywide Plan – Housing Element Revised Draft Technical Report – May 2022
County of San Bernardino, is pleased to submit the draft 2021–2029 Housing Element update for review. Due to the document’s size, the document can be best viewed through the following links. The first link is the Policy portion of the draft Housing Element and the second link provides the bulk of the element as a Technical report (that is identified as part of the County’s Policy Plan and part of the County’s legal Housing Element).
Countywide Plan Policy Plan- Draft Housing Element – November 2021
Countywide Plan- Housing Element- Draft Technical Report November 2021
