The state's Department of Housing and Community Development said Tuesday that it would focus on San Francisco in its first "housing policy and practice review."
The process is intended to dissect why the city has the state's longest timelines for housing projects. It also receives the most complaints to the state's Housing Accountability Unit, which was created last year to combat California's housing shortage by working with cities to make sure they follow state laws in permitting new housing.
Tuesday's announcement came a day after state housing officials informed the city that the department had rejected the first draft of San Francisco's Housing Element. The document is legally required once every eight years by the state to lay out how and where California cities will construct housing, and calls on San Francisco to build more than 82-thousand new housing units by 2031.
The city must revise the Housing Element plans based on the state Department of Housing and Community Development's feedback.
On Tuesday, state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said he supported the state’s decision, saying, “It's time for San Francisco to follow state law and create a system that actually prioritizes building enough housing."
