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ATTACHMENT 1 October 7, 2014 Honorable State Capitol Sacramento, CA 95814-4900 • Dear As elected representatives of the City of Pleasanton, we are writing to seek your support to amend existing Housing Element law to provide for greater flexibility in achieving Regional Housing Needs in the face of the severe drought impacting the State's water supply. We understand and support the goals of the Housing Element law to achieve an adequate supply of safe, affordable housing for all economic segments of the community. Housing Element law recognizes that in order for the private market to adequately address housing needs and demand, local governments must adopt zoning and regulatory mechanisms that provide opportunities for, and do not unduly constrain,housing production. Housing Element statutes also require the State Department of Housing and Community Development(HCD)to review local housing elements for compliance with State law and report their findings back to the local government. A key aspect of a community's housing element is the identification of adequately zoned sites and establishment of local housing programs to meet the jurisdiction's "fair share"of future housing needs for all income groups, the Regional Housing Needs Assessment(RHNA). In Pleasanton,we have done our part to comply with these laws. However, recently these requirements have been shown to be lacking in that they fail to take into account the State's ability to provide sufficient water to meet the demands of existing, and future, California residents and businesses. The current RHNA procedure encourages and directs development by requiring local municipalities to limit constraints on growth and to provide requisite zoning for different housing types and densities. The problem with this approach is that it essentially ignores very real and present water supply constraints cities now face, exacerbated by the fact the control and management of water supplies fall outside the jurisdiction of many California cities. For example, like other cities and counties, since February of this year Pleasanton has been under a local emergency drought declaration; all residents and businesses have been required to reduce their consumption by 25%. This requirement is generally consistent with the State's water emergency declaration. Yet, RHNA requires local governments to demonstrate their ability to accommodate RHNA within an 8-year planning cycle, regardless of the drought. The problem lies with the State's inability to accommodate this growth at this time; simply put, in some jurisdictions water supplies are not available. How can cities like Pleasanton demand residents and businesses conserve water, when cities, complying with State law, continue to incentivize additional water-dependent development during a drought?