Attorney General Bonta: Court Rightfully Denied Huntington Beach’s Latest Attempt to Exempt Itself from State Housing Laws | State of California – Department of Justice
The court denied the city’s request for TRO in Huntington Beach’s lawsuit against the state alleging state housing laws violate the right to free speech, due process
OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today welcomed the decision of the United States District Court for the Central District of California denying the city of Huntington Beach’s request for a preliminary injunction (TRO). Huntington Beach vs. Newsom, which sought to halt enforcement of state housing laws in the city while litigation rages on. Attorney General Bonta yesterday appealed the Huntington Beach TRO on behalf of the state, arguing that Huntington Beach does not have the right to sue in federal court and that the city’s suit is prima facie without merit. California’s housing laws are not only legally sound, but critical to addressing California’s ongoing housing crisis. Today’s decision rejects Huntington Beach’s request to temporarily block enforcement of the state’s housing laws.
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: local governments don’t get to choose which state laws they want to follow. Huntington Beach’s lawsuit is yet another baseless and obstructionist attempt by the city to flout state housing laws.” said Attorney General Bonta. “Our state housing laws are a critical tool in bringing much-needed affordable housing into our communities. I applaud the court for today’s decision dismissing Huntington Beach’s recent attempt to deny residents of their city access to essential housing opportunities afforded by state law. The California Department of Justice will continue to fight to increase housing supply statewide and hold Huntington Beach accountable for state laws.”
In the lawsuit, filed March 9, Huntington Beach asserted claims in federal court, alleging that the state’s Housing Accountability Act and Housing Element statutes violate federal constitutional law, including the right to free speech and due process. In the state’s opposition brief, Attorney General Bonta defended the state statutes, arguing that not only were the city’s claims unfounded, but that Huntington Beach faced no imminent or irreparable harm and was not eligible to pursue the lawsuit in federal court. California has the express right to monitor and regulate the conduct of its cities and counties. In fact, the Supreme Court has specifically held that local governments have no federal constitutional rights over state governments.
Earlier this month, Attorney General Bonta, Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) filed a lawsuit against the city of Huntington Beach for violating state housing statutes. The lawsuit followed a decision by the Huntington Beach City Council, which declined to reverse its Feb. 21 lawsuit that banned the processing of applications for SB 9 projects and ADU projects in violation of several state housing statutes.
The California lawsuit came after Attorney General Bonta and HCD each issued multiple letters among their respective law enforcement agencies last month, urging the Huntington Beach City Council to reject these unlawful and willful attempts to violate state housing statutes that are affecting the statewide effort to increase housing availability are directly threatening low- to middle-income housing opportunities amid a nationwide housing crisis.
Heads of state stand united in their commitment to defend and improve access to affordable housing in California. In 2021, Attorney General Bonta announced the creation of a Housing Strike Force within the California Department of Justice aimed at increasing access to housing across the state. That same year, Gov. Newsom established a Housing Accountability Unit to improve strict enforcement and oversight at the local level and accelerate the creation of more housing across California. The public is encouraged to visit the California Department of Justice housing portal and HCD’s website for additional resources and information to support access to housing.
A copy of the state’s letter of opposition is available here. A copy of the decision can be found here.