Appellate Court Rejects Challenge to Resi Blueprint

A federal appellate court has refused to rehear a lawsuit by Huntington Beach seeking to dodge a state requirement that the city plan for more homes.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied a request from Surf City to rehear its federal lawsuit challenging the state’s ability to force it to adopt an official housing plan, Commercial Observer reported.

The lawsuit, filed two years ago, has resulted in competing complaints between the city and Gov. Gavin Newsom over its required housing element, or blueprint for development.

In October, a three-judge panel for the Ninth Circuit unanimously rejected the city’s complaint, nearly a year after its initial rejection by a district court judge in November 2023.

Huntington Beach had hoped the entire Ninth Circuit court would rehear its appeal. Its next option is to petition the U.S. Supreme Court.

In state court, the conservative-leaning city has hit a wall. Last May, San Diego Superior Court Judge Katherine Bacal ruled the city must create a new housing plan, which it also appealed.

“We are pleased that Huntington Beach’s latest attempt to exempt itself from our state’s housing laws has failed,” Rob Bonta, California attorney general, said in a statement. “All along, Gov. Newsom and I have asserted that the city’s federal lawsuit is meritless and a waste of the public’s money.”

Newsom’s response to the Ninth Circuit refusal was more blunt.

“In response to another court loss, do Huntington Beach city leaders need a hug?” Newsom posted to X. “Maybe that will help them do their job in building much-needed housing and stop wasting taxpayer dollars on this frivolous lawsuit.”

For the last 56 years, cities and counties across the state have been required to draw up housing plans every eight years, to be certified by state housing regulators. For years, wealthier cities that failed to meet their housing element goals faced few consequences.

That has changed, with penalties that range from a loss of transportation funding to the more recent use by developers of a three-decade provision in state housing law known as the builder’s remedy.

The builder’s remedy allows developers to bypass local zoning laws in cities or counties that fail to certify their housing plans, provided they include at least 20 percent affordable housing.

The state has since passed a law reforming the builder’s remedy, and many of the formerly out-of-compliance cities such as Beverly Hills and Santa Monica have adopted state-approved plans.

But Huntington Beach is one of the few holdouts.

The city’s then-attorney, Michael Gates, claimed in his federal lawsuit that charter cities like Huntington Beach were not bound by typical state law — a claim the appellate panel denied in October.

“No matter how California categorizes charter cities, they remain subordinate political bodies, not sovereign entities,” the judges wrote.

City officials already agreed to petition the U.S. Supreme Court, saying the city would take it to the country’s highest court, if necessary. Michael Vigliotta, the new city attorney, indicated that Huntington Beach could indeed move forward with another appeal.

“We are confident the recent Ninth Circuit decision merits a closer look and rectification by the nation’s highest court,” Vigliotta told CO in an email. “I will be discussing this latest ruling with the City Council regarding filing a petition to the U.S. Supreme Court.

“We remain determined to challenge Sacramento’s unconstitutional stronghold on cities. We will not be deterred or intimidated and will continue to fight for Huntington Beach.”

— Dana Bartholomew