Gov. Code § 65912.158
Transit-Oriented Development (SB 79)

Gov. Code § 65912.158

Transit agency zoning for agency-owned landTITLE 7. PLANNING AND LAND USE › DIVISION 1. PLANNING AND ZONING › CHAPTER 4.1.5. Transit-Oriented Development

Key provisions · Claude summary, not statute text

Lets a transit agency adopt zoning standards for its own land near transit-oriented development stops and defines the agency projects those standards serve.

  • Qualifying project. A housing or mixed-use residential project with at least 50 percent of square footage residential, at least 20 percent of units restricted for lower income households for 55 years (rental) or 45 years (owner-occupied) unless a longer period is required, and an average of no more than 1,750 net habitable square feet per unit. (a)(1)–(3)
  • Site requirements. The site is an infill site under Pub. Resources Code § 21061.3, was not acquired through eminent domain on or after July 1, 2025, and is owned by the agency and either adjacent to a stop it serves or at least 75 percent within one-half mile of a stop it serves or plans to serve and owned by the agency on or before January 1, 2026. (a)(4)–(6)
  • Agency zoning standards. The board may adopt by resolution, for district-owned property in a transit-oriented development zone, minimum zoning requirements for height, density, residential floor area ratio, and uses, consistent with § 65912.157. For each station they set the lowest permissible maximums and approved uses, may not go below § 65912.157 levels or prohibit residential use, and may not exceed 200 percent of its maximum density. (b)
  • Adoption process. The agency holds a public hearing, conducts outreach to local governments and communities of concern, and consults each local government on housing needs, recent transit-oriented development, agency projects, and obstacles. Notice and the draft are released at least 30 days before the hearing, and the board acts at a noticed meeting at least 30 days after it. (c)
  • Local zoning conformance. A local jurisdiction may adopt conforming zoning and need not approve height above the § 65912.157 adjacency standard. If the agency finds local zoning still nonconforming two years after adoption, the agency standards become the local zoning for eligible district-owned parcels; until an exclusive negotiating agreement is signed, the jurisdiction may update its zoning. A transit agency may not set maximum height, density, or residential floor area ratio below what the chapter allows. (e)–(f), (k)
  • Environmental review. Adoption of the standards is subject to CEQA with the district as lead agency, and later review of conforming rezoning and eligible projects on district land incorporates that document; no EIR or mitigated negative declaration may be prepared unless substantial evidence shows a new significant effect not analyzed and mitigated or avoided. (g)
  • Controlling standards. Local agencies may adopt objective standards for district-owned property consistent with the agency standards; where standards conflict, the agency standards control, then the general plan. Resulting zoning is treated as locally approved zoning, including for the Density Bonus Law and the Housing Accountability Act. (h)–(i)
  • Transient lodging. The objective standards do not preempt or displace local discretionary standards for hotel, motel, bed and breakfast, or other transient lodging, including short-term lodging; residential hotels are not “other transient lodging.” (d)
  • Displacement, phasing, and labor. Projects must comply with § 66300.6. If nonresidential space is included, at least 25 percent of planned lower income units must be made available with each 25 percent of nonresidential space. The applicant certifies the § 65913.4(a)(8)–(9) labor standards unless a qualifying project labor agreement entered into before July 1, 2026, applies. (j), (l)–(m)

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§ 65912.15813 subdivisions

Source. California Code text from the Legislature's bulk download (the same data as leginfo), reproduced character for character (spacing normalized). Current page on leginfo ↗

History. (Added by Stats. 2025, Ch. 512, Sec. 1. (SB 79) Effective January 1, 2026.)

Cites, in this navigator. Gov. Code § 65913.4, Gov. Code § 66300.6, Gov. Code § 65912.157, Pub. Resources Code § 21094

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