Key facts
- The California Housing Defense Fund sent at least five letters that day, four on projects of 17 to 146 units and one on an ADU ordinance.
- James Lloyd, the organization's director of planning and investigations, told HousingWire the group sends about 100 such letters a year.
- The Rancho Cucamonga project by Warmington Residential Homes includes seven units for very-low-income households.
- Under Senate Bill 1037, penalties can reach $50,000 per unit for willful Housing Accountability Act violations.
- La Cañada Flintridge paid CalHDF $1,262,500 in fees and costs last year after dropping its appeal rather than post a $14 million bond.
- An appeals court in December 2025 vacated a nearly $1.3 million fee award against neighbors of an eight-townhome project in Pacifica.
The California Housing Defense Fund sent a three-page letter to Rancho Cucamonga citing the Housing Accountability Act, the state Density Bonus Law and last year's California Environmental Quality Act reform, warning that rejecting or cutting the size of a 135-townhome project would require written findings of a specific health or safety hazard. The Rancho Cucamonga Planning Commission approved the Warmington Residential Homes project on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, on the planning department's recommendation. The project includes seven units for very-low-income households.
The Rancho Cucamonga letter was one of at least five CalHDF sent that day, along with letters to Santa Clarita, Whittier, Escondido and Twentynine Palms. Four concerned projects of 17 to 146 units, and one addressed an ADU ordinance. James Lloyd, the organization's director of planning and investigations, told HousingWire the number reaches about 100 a year.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 130 to reform CEQA and SB 131 in 2025, exempting qualifying infill housing from environmental review and narrowing review for projects that nearly qualify. Legislators also tightened the Housing Accountability Act, which limits when cities can deny or shrink projects that meet zoning. Attorneys at the legal publisher CEB expect litigation to focus on whether a project qualifies for a CEQA exemption at all, rather than on the adequacy of an environmental report.