California Construction News staff writer
California notched two significant wins last week in its push to force local governments to comply with state housing law, with an appeals court ruling against Huntington Beach and a separate settlement reached with the city of Artesia.
On Friday, a state appeals court ordered Huntington Beach to update its housing plan within 120 days and restricted the city’s permitting authority until it complies. The ruling rejected the city’s argument that it was exempt from state housing mandates.
“Huntington Beach officials have wasted vast sums of taxpayer dollars to defend clearly unlawful NIMBY policies,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement. “They are failing their own citizens — by wasting time and money that could be used to create much-needed housing. No more excuses — every city must follow state law and do its part to build more housing.”
Attorney General Rob Bonta emphasized that the city has been out of compliance since October 2021. “At a time when California is experiencing a housing crisis of epic proportions, the city’s continued reluctance to follow the law is inexcusable,” he said.
The state first sued Huntington Beach in March 2023 for failing to adopt a compliant housing element. A trial court found the city in violation but stopped short of imposing a timeline or penalties. The appeals court decision directs the lower court to issue a new order with enforcement measures.
Separately, Newsom and Bonta announced a settlement with the city of Artesia, which failed to adopt a housing element for the 2021–2029 cycle. If approved by a court, the deal would require Artesia to plan for 1,069 new homes, including 608 affordable units for low- and moderate-income residents.
“Artesia has wasted time and money stalling on their obligations when they could have instead been providing necessary housing for the families in their community,” Newsom said.
Bonta called the settlement a model for other cities still resisting compliance. “Planning for housing is not an abstract exercise,” he said. “Californians need quality homes that they can afford.”
Both actions were backed by the Department of Housing and Community Development’s Housing Accountability Unit, created in 2021 to enforce state housing law. Since then, the unit has supported the development of more than 10,000 homes, including 3,300 affordable units, through enforcement actions and compliance agreements.
“These outcomes reinforce that every locality must do its part to build homes and address this crisis,” said Gustavo Velasquez, the department’s director.
The Huntington Beach decision and the Artesia settlement are the latest in a string of enforcement efforts, including a recent agreement with Norwalk requiring the city to overturn an illegal ban on homeless shelters.
California continues to face a severe housing shortage and high homelessness rates. State officials say stronger enforcement against noncompliant cities is key to expanding affordable housing and addressing the crisis.
