Local educational agencies: reserve funds.

Assembly Member Bonta, joined by Coauthors Haney and Lee, advances a measure to unlock housing opportunities on local educational agency land by creating an online notice mechanism and a structured advisory role for the Department of Housing and Community Development. The core change centers on LEAs signaling interest in using land they own for housing, with the department obligated to make a public form available and to publish submitted information, alongside a program of advisory technical assistance to support predevelopment activities.

Under the proposal, a local educational agency would submit a notice via the department’s online form to express interest in using LEA-owned real property for a housing project. The department would review the submissions and make the information publicly accessible on its website. Separately, the bill authorizes advisory technical assistance to LEAs that submit a notice and request help, with the department potentially delivering services directly or through contracts with qualified third-party entities such as legal firms, financial advisors, housing development consultants, and nonprofit technical assistance providers.

The advisory assistance is described as non-binding and advisory in nature, covering topics including statutory requirements, surplus land procedures, and local land use regulations; guidance on funding sources and timeline; feasibility analysis and potential partnership models; clarification of planning, zoning, and environmental processes; review of draft development agreements with developers; and referrals to specialized experts. The department would require acknowledging that such assistance does not establish an attorney–client relationship and would not render the department liable for obligations incurred by the LEA. Priority for assistance would be given to LEAs serving high-need student populations or situated in areas with high housing-cost burdens or educator-staffing shortages.

Implementation would involve the department developing and maintaining the online form by early 2027, reviewing and publishing LEA submissions, and delivering or coordinating advisory services, potentially through procurement of third-party contractors. The bill carries no explicit appropriation and requires fiscal committee consideration; it contemplates cost categories related to form development, data management, and advisory services but does not designate a dedicated funding stream. The measure envisions coordination with other state actors on regulatory and planning processes and raises questions about data governance, definitions of “high-need” or “high-cost” areas, and the precise scope of “predevelopment activities.”

In context, the proposal expands the department’s existing authorities by extending technical assistance and data-sharing practices to LEA-owned property used for housing, complementing prior work on housing reports and university-related housing. It creates a formal channel for LEAs to engage with state guidance on land-use and financing, while maintaining a clearly advisory posture and limiting the department’s liability. The approach emphasizes targeted support for districts facing housing affordability or staffing pressures and seeks to anchor housing activity on school property within a centralized, publicly accessible framework.