Housing policies and programs are the strategies and laws that cities and counties legally have at their disposal to produce more and preserve existing affordable housing, as well as protect existing residents from getting displaced from their homes and communities.
Local housing policies and programs, as part of a housing element, have significant impacts on a city or county reaching its affordable housing goals. Each additional housing policy has a significant impact on the residents who are most in need of affordable housing. However, the number of policies or programs that a jurisdiction includes in their housing element is not meant to imply how well a city or county is addressing local housing needs since the quality and impact of each will need to be determined as well. Policies and programs listed here from jurisdictions’ Housing Elements are intended to allow readers to review the text themselves and see if a city or county is doing all they can to reach their affordable housing goals.
To further policy innovation and local action, the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) contacted all of the region's jurisdictions to track the adoption of key housing policies throughout the nine county Bay Area in four major categories Protect, Preserve, Produce, and Prevent. This data is from ABAG’s Policies and Program list and was last updated in 2018/2019.
The California Department of Housing and Community Development tracks all of the ongoing and completed programs from 2018 onward and can be seen in the table below.
YEAR | PROGRAM NAME | PROGRAM OBJECTIVE | STATUS | ACCOMPLISHED DATE | HOUSING CYCLE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 2-F Development and Replacement Unit Requirements | Protection of existing housing. | Ongoing | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 4-F Utilize and Support Available Rental Assistance Programs | Utilization and financial support of rental housing programs. | Coordiante with the county and local marin jurisdictions. | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 4-H Provide Information on Reasonable Accommodation | Provide information and ensure compliance. | Coordiante with the county and local marin jurisdictions. | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 3-O Home Sharing and Tenant Matching | 10 home sharing matches over the planning period | Underway | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 5-B Ensure Adequate Sites Available to Meet RHNA | Adequate Sites Available for Town Share of RHNA. | Confirmed during the preparation of the 2023 APR. | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 1-D Respond to Fair Housing Complaints | There were no reported cases of housing discrimination in Ross in 2023; however, the objective of this program is to increase awareness of fair housing rights and available programs for Ross
residents. | Planning staff will contact Fair Housing Advoctes of Marin and create flyers and provide information to educate residents. | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 2-B SB-9 Housing | 20 above moderate income units in the planning period. | Planning staff is preparing for a community workshop with outreach efforts for the summer of 2024. | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 2-D Enforce Zoning and Building Codes | Protection of existing housing. | No inspections or enforcement actions to report. | Ongoing | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 3-I ADU Ordinance Update | Update Ordinance | Underway | 2024 Q2 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 4-A Zoning for Transitional and Supportive Housing | Update Ordinance | Underway | 2024 Q2 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 1-C Disseminate Fair Housing Information | There were no reported cases of housing discrimination in Ross in 2023; however, the objective of this program is to increase awareness of fair housing rights and available programs for Ross
residents. | Planning staff will contact Fair Housing Advoctes of Marin and create flyers and provide information to educate residents. | 2024,2025,2026,2027,2028,2029,2030,2031 ALL Q3 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 4-I Housing for Special Needs Populations and ELI Households | Facilitate development of 6 units for special needs populations and extremely low income households over the planning period. | Underway | 2024,2025,2026,2027,2028,2029,2030,2031 ALL Q4 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | H-5: Proactive energy conservation and waste reduction activities in all residential neighborhoods. | See cells 59-61 | See cells 59-61 | See cells 59-61 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 1-E Affirmative Marketing of Affordable Housing Opportunities | 34 Very Low and 20 Low income units by 2031. | Town staff will reach our to affordable houding developers to discuss Civic Center Master Plan workforce housing. | 2024,2025,2026,2027,2028,2029,2030,2031 ALL Q1 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 2-A Streamlining the Design Review Process | Reduction in average time for project approval. | Study session with the Town's Advisory Design Review tentatively slated for September 2023. | 2024 Q4 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 3-F Technical Assistance | 80 new ADUs or JADUs in the planning period. | Underway | CONTINUATION | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 3-N Impact Fee Relief for Deed Restricted ADUs/JADUs | 48 ADUs for lower income households in the planning period | Underway | 2026 Q4 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 3-B Parking Requirements for Multi-family Development and Caretaker Units | Update Ordinance | Underway | 2024 Q2 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 4-B Objective Standards for Emergency Shelters | Update Ordinance | Underway | 2024 Q2 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |
| 2023 | 1-B Inter-Jurisdictional Planning for Housing | In coordination with other Central Marin County jurisdictions,secure funding for preservation or construction 250 lower income units
regionally by 2031. | Participation in ongoing meetings with the Planning Directors in Marin and the Marin Housing Working Group. | 2025 Q1 | 6th cycle, 2023 to 2031 |