AB2005 - Housing developments: urban lot split: owner-occupancy.

Amended IN Senate August 28, 2026 Amended IN Senate August 19, 2026 Amended IN Senate August 11, 2026 Amended IN Senate June 22, 2026 Amended IN Assembly May 07, 2026 Amended IN Assembly April 09, 2026 Amended IN Assembly March 19, 2026 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Assembly Bill No. 2005 Introduced by Assembly Member Ahrens (Coauthors: Senators Arreguín, Cortese, and Wiener) February 17, 2026 An act to add and repeal Section 1102.6l of the Civil Code, and to amend, repeal, and add Section 66411.7 of the Government Code, relating to land use. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2005, as amended, Ahrens. Housing developments: urban lot split: owner-occupancy. (1) Under the Planning and Zoning Law, the legislative body of a city or county may adopt ordinances that, among other things, regulate the use of buildings, structures, and land, as provided. The Subdivision Map Act vests the authority to regulate and control the design and improvement of subdivisions in the legislative body of a local agency and sets forth procedures governing the local agency’s processing, approval, conditional approval or disapproval, and filing of tentative, final, and parcel maps. Existing law requires a local agency to ministerially approve a parcel map for an urban lot split if the development or parcel meets specified requirements. Existing law requires the local agency to require an applicant for an urban lot split to sign an affidavit stating that the applicant intends to occupy one of the housing units as their principal residence for a minimum of 3 years from the date of the approval of the urban lot split. Existing law authorizes a local agency to adopt an ordinance to implement these provisions, as provided. This bill would instead require the local agency to require an applicant to select one of 2 sets of owner-occupancy requirements. The first option would be for the applicant to sign, under penalty of perjury, the above-described affidavit stating that the applicant intends to occupy one of the housing units as their principal residence for a minimum of 3 years. The 2nd option would be for the applicant to sign an affidavit, under penalty of perjury, stating they intend to sell both parcels of an urban lot split after issuance of a certificate of occupancy within 3 years from the date of the approval of the urban lot split and to require, as a condition of sale to a home buyer, require that one of the units on both parcels of an urban lot split remain owner occupied for 3 years, beginning on the date a parcel or unit is conveyed by the applicant to a home buyer. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury and increasing the duties of local agencies, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. This bill would impose prescribed recording and notice requirements on this 2nd owner-occupancy requirement, require the home buyer designated by the applicant to satisfy this 2nd owner-occupancy requirement to provide the applicant with an affidavit or declaration, under penalty of perjury, stating the home buyer intends to occupy the parcel as their primary residence for 3 years, as provided. The bill would provide that, for the purposes of either owner-occupancy requirement, an applicant may be the managing or authorized member, who is a natural person, of a limited liability company or the trustee or beneficiary of a living trust a trustee of a living trust of a natural person or a limited liability company of a natural person, except that a managing or authorized member of a limited liability company shall not be an applicant if the parcel being subdivided is within the boundaries of the 2025 Palisades or Eaton Fires in the County of Los Angeles. The bill would provide that an applicant for an urban lot split who is a managing or authorized member of a that is a limited liability company who that violates these provisions would be liable for civil penalties. This bill would additionally prohibit a local agency from adopting or imposing any requirement, process, practice, or procedure, or undertaking any course of conduct, that applies to a project solely or partially on the basis that the project is an urban lot split, including, but not limited to, restricting the eligibility of an applicant of an urban lot split. (2) Existing law requires that specified disclosures be made upon any transfer by sale, exchange, real property sales contract, lease with an option to purchase, any other option to purchase, or ground lease coupled with improvements, of any single-family residential property. This bill would require the seller of an urban lot split subject to the second owner-occupancy requirement described above to disclose, in writing, any owner-occupancy requirement for three years after the conveyance of an urban lot split unit. This bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2032. (3) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the boundaries of the 2025 Palisades and Eaton Fires in the County of Los Angeles. (4) This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 66411.7 of the Government Code proposed by AB 2601 to be operative only if this bill and AB 2601 are enacted and this bill is enacted last. (5) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. Section 1102.6l is added to the Civil Code, to read: 1102.6l. (a) The seller of an urban lot split unit subject to the requirements of clause (ii) of subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (g) of Section 66411.7 of the Government Code shall disclose, in writing, any owner-occupancy requirement for three years after the conveyance of an urban lot split unit. (b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2032, and as of that date is repealed. SEC. 2. Section 66411.7 of the Government Code, as amended by Section 9 of Chapter 56 of the Statutes of 2026, is amended to read: 66411.7. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this division and any local law, a local agency shall ministerially approve, as set forth in this section, a parcel map for an urban lot split only if the local agency determines that the parcel map for the urban lot split meets all of the following requirements: (1) The parcel map subdivides an existing parcel to create no more than two new parcels of approximately equal lot area provided that one parcel shall not be smaller than 40 percent of the lot area of the original parcel proposed for subdivision. (2) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), both newly created parcels are no smaller than 1,200 square feet. (B) A local agency may by ordinance adopt a smaller minimum lot size subject to ministerial approval under this subdivision. (3) The parcel being subdivided meets all of the following requirements: (A) The parcel is located within a single-family residential zone. (B) The parcel subject to the proposed urban lot split is located within a city, the boundaries of which include some portion of either an urbanized area or urban cluster, as designated by the United States Census Bureau, or, for unincorporated areas, a legal parcel wholly within the boundaries of an urbanized area or urban cluster, as designated by the United States Census Bureau. (C) The parcel satisfies the requirements specified in subparagraphs (B) to (K), inclusive, of paragraph (6) of subdivision (a) of Section 65913.4, as that section read on September 16, 2021. (D) The proposed urban lot split would not require demolition or alteration of any of the following types of housing: (i) Housing that is subject to a recorded covenant, ordinance, or law that restricts rents to levels affordable to persons and families of moderate, low, or very low income. (ii) Housing that is subject to any form of rent or price control through a public entity’s valid exercise of its police power. (iii) A parcel or parcels on which an owner of residential real property has exercised the owner’s rights under Chapter 12.75 (commencing with Section 7060) of Division 7 of Title 1 to withdraw accommodations from rent or lease within 15 years before the date that the development proponent submits an application. (iv) Housing that has been occupied by a tenant in the last three years. (E) The parcel is not located within a historical landmark property included on the State Historic Resources Inventory, as defined in Section 5020.1 of the Public Resources Code, or within a site that is designated or listed as a city or county landmark pursuant to a city or county ordinance. (F) The proposed urban lot split does not require demolition or alteration of either of the following: (i) A contributing structure located within either a historic district that is included on the California Register of Historical Resources or within a historic district listed or designated pursuant to a city or county ordinance. (ii) An existing exterior structural wall of a structure located within either a historic district that is included on the California Register of Historical Resources or within a historic district listed or designated pursuant to a city or county ordinance. (G) The parcel has not been established through prior exercise of an urban lot split as provided for in this section. (H) Neither the owner of the parcel being subdivided nor any person acting in concert with the owner has previously subdivided an adjacent parcel using an urban lot split as provided for in this section. (b) An application for a parcel map for an urban lot split shall be approved in accordance with the following requirements: (1) (A) A local agency shall approve or deny an application for a parcel map for an urban lot split ministerially without discretionary review. (B) An application for an urban lot split shall be considered and approved or denied within 60 days from the date the local agency receives a completed application. If the local agency has not approved or denied the completed application within 60 days, the application shall be deemed approved. (C) If a permitting agency denies an application for an urban lot split pursuant to subparagraph (B), the permitting agency shall, within the time period described in subparagraph (B), return in writing a full set of comments to the applicant with a list of items that are defective or deficient and a description of how the application can be remedied by the applicant. (2) A local agency shall approve an urban lot split only if it conforms to all applicable objective requirements of the Subdivision Map Act (Division 2 (commencing with Section 66410)), except as otherwise expressly provided in this section. (3) Notwithstanding Section 66411.1, a local agency shall not impose regulations that require dedications of rights-of-way or the construction of offsite improvements for the parcels being created as a condition of issuing a parcel map for an urban lot split pursuant to this section. (c) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), notwithstanding any local law, a local agency may impose objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, and objective design review standards that are related to the design or to improvements of a parcel, consistent with paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) and with subdivision (e), and are applicable to a parcel created by an urban lot split that do not conflict with this section. (2) A local agency shall not impose objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, and objective design review standards that would have the effect of physically precluding the construction of two units on either of the resulting parcels or that would result in a unit size of less than 800 square feet. (3) (A) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), no setback shall be required for an existing structure or a structure constructed in the same location and to the same dimensions as an existing structure. (B) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), in all other circumstances not described in subparagraph (A), a local agency may require a setback of up to four feet from the side and rear lot lines. (d) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), a local agency may deny an urban lot split if the building official makes a written finding, based upon a preponderance of the evidence, that the proposed housing development project would have a specific, adverse impact, as defined and determined in paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 65589.5, upon public health and safety for which there is no feasible method to satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the specific, adverse impact. (e) In addition to any conditions established in accordance with this section, a local agency may require any of the following conditions when considering an application for a parcel map for an urban lot split: (1) Easements required for the provision of public services and facilities. (2) A requirement that the parcels have access to, provide access to, or adjoin the public right-of-way. (3) Offstreet parking of up to one space per unit, except that a local agency shall not impose parking requirements in either of the following instances: (A) The parcel is located within one-half mile walking distance of either a high-quality transit corridor as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 21155 of the Public Resources Code, or a major transit stop as defined in Section 21064.3 of the Public Resources Code. (B) There is a car share vehicle located within one block of the parcel. (f) A local agency shall require that the uses allowed on a lot created by this section be limited to residential uses. (g) (1) (A) A local agency shall require the applicant to select one of the following occupancy requirements for an urban lot split, which shall be imposed as a condition of approval of a parcel map for an urban lot split: (i) An applicant for an urban lot split shall sign an affidavit, under penalty of perjury, stating that the applicant applicant, which may also include a trustee of a living trust of a natural person or a limited liability company of a natural person, intends to occupy one of the housing units as their principal residence for a minimum of three years from the date of the approval of the urban lot split. (ii) An applicant for an urban lot split shall sign an affidavit, under penalty of perjury, stating that the applicant intends to sell both parcels of an urban lot split after issuance of a certificate of occupancy within three years from the date of the approval of the urban lot split and shall require, as a condition of sale to a home buyer, require that one of the units on both parcels of an ur [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]