Contact your representatives to protect the Surplus Land Act:
For nearly a decade, East Bay Housing Organizations has worked to strengthen the Surplus Land Act (SLA), a critical piece of legislation that mandates cities give affordable housing developers “first right of refusal” before selling or leasing public land.
The SLA results in a lot of affordable housing production! Since January 2021, the California Department of Housing and Community Development reports that over 5,800 affordable homes have been built on surplus land.
This year, EBHO is in strong support and is a proud co-sponsor of AB 480, a California bill currently in front of the State Senate that would close loopholes in the SLA and strengthen key provisions.
But we are strongly opposed to SB 747, which threatens to undermine all of our progress. SB 747 threatens affordable housing production by allowing cities to avoid the Surplus Land Act so long as they pass a resolution that transferring land to another “will assist in the creation of economic opportunity.”
Will you contact your representatives today?