The City of Hollister has reached a settlement with the State of California over the city’s two-year-plus delay in adopting a General Plan Housing Element that complies with state law.
The city has agreed to adopt a housing element covering the period 2021-29 and approve required property rezonings in the coming weeks; and to dedicate at least $300,000 in local funds toward housing for lower-income and vulnerable residents, according to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office.
The agreement—which includes other provisions—will bring Hollister into compliance with the state’s Housing Element Law, Bonta’s office said in a March 26 announcement. The settlement agreement still requires court approval.
The Housing Element is a long-term plan for a city or county to meet its state-mandated housing growth requirements. Under the state law, all cities in California must periodically update their Housing Element to meet its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), according to state authorities.
The City of Hollister submitted its initial draft housing element in March 2025, long past the state’s deadline of December 2023, Bonta’s office said. During the next two years and multiple rounds of feedback from the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), the city failed to adopt a “substantially compliant” housing element and complete necessary rezoning in accordance with state law.
“We appreciate that Hollister has agreed to a settlement that will bring it into compliance with our state’s Housing Element Law on an expeditious timeline,” Bonta said. “This reflects a commitment to making California a more affordable place for all.
“When cities fail to plan for housing, they are really just planning for rising costs, longer commutes and increased pressure on families struggling to find a place to call home.”
Bonta and HCD Director Gustavo Velasquez jointly announced the completion of the settlement agreement.
“Planning for housing development is essential to addressing California’s ongoing crises of housing affordability and homelessness,” said Velasquez. “Through this action, HCD is reaffirming its partnership with the City of Hollister to ensure the community is urgently planning for and meeting the housing needs of its residents.”
Among other things, a compliant housing element must include an assessment of housing needs, an inventory of resources and constraints relevant to meeting those needs, and a program to implement the policies, goals and objectives of the housing element, Bonta’s press release says. Once the housing element is adopted, it is implemented through zoning ordinances and other actions that put its objectives into effect and facilitate the construction of new homes for Californians at all income levels.
The housing element is a crucial tool for building housing for moderate-, low- and very low-income residents and redressing historical redlining and disinvestment, the AG’s office continued. State income limits for what constitutes moderate-, low-, and very low-income Californians are based on the median area income and vary by county.
In San Benito County, the median income for a one-person household is $98,150. A one-person household that earns less than $74,900 is defined as low-income, and a one-person household that earns less than $46,800 is defined as very-low income.
Under the settlement, the city agrees to hold a council meeting by April 20 to adopt a compliant housing element, and to adopt all the necessary rezoning documents by May 4. The city has agreed to reach compliance with the Housing Element Law by June 19.
Also under the settlement, the city must establish a housing trust fund and deposit $300,000 to support housing for extremely low-, very low-, and low-income households, including migrant, emergency, supportive, single-room occupancy and transitional housing, says the press release. Any funds remaining in the trust fund five years after the date of deposit must be transferred to the State Building Homes and Jobs Trust Fund.
Additional terms of the settlement are:
• The city must notify HCD of any preliminary housing development application it receives for the remainder of the cycle.
• The city must make factual findings, whenever it disapproves a housing development application, that the disapproval is not materially inconsistent with its obligation to affirmatively further fair housing—also for the remainder of the cycle.
• The city agrees that, until the seventh cycle housing element is adopted and certified, the sixth cycle housing element controls in the event of any conflict with other elements, including those adopted later.
“No city is exempt from following state housing law—and Californians do not have the time to wait as cities drag their feet,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom. “I am glad that Hollister has come to agreement and will begin providing their community with the housing access it needs and deserves.”
Hollister Mayor Roxanne Stephens did not return a phone call requesting comment.
A copy of the petition and proposed judgment, which details the settlement terms, can be found here and here, respectively.
