AB 2556 Summary

• Revises density bonus requirements for housing developments by establishing a rebuttable presumption using federal HUD data to determine the income category of existing tenants when occupancy information is unknown.

• Allows local governments to require replacement affordable units at low-income levels for properties subject to rent or price control that were occupied by above-lower-income households, or alternatively to require replacement in compliance with existing rent control ordinances.

• Makes density bonus law applicable to three housing types: transitional foster youth housing, disabled veterans housing, and homeless person housing (10 percent of units required), each with 20 percent density bonus and 55-year affordability restrictions.

• Incorporates conditional operative provisions allowing this bill to merge with amendments from AB 2442 or AB 2501 if all three bills are enacted by January 1, 2017, creating alternative versions of the statute depending on which bills pass.

• Specifies that no state reimbursement is required because local agencies have authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments to cover mandated program costs.