Both houses of the California Legislature have approved legislation by State Senator Jerry McNerney who represents much of San Joaquin County that will streamline the construction of accessory dwelling units (ADUs), also known as backyard cottages or casitas.

 “California needs to build housing to help make our state more affordable, McNerney said. “And one of the most effective ways to address our housing affordability crisis is to accelerate the construction of low-cost housing, like ADUs and junior ADUs.”

 “SB 543 will make it easier to build ADUs and JADUs and help California meet its goal of building over 2.5 million homes by 2031.

 SB 543 won unanimous approval on Monday in the Senate, after it passed the Assembly last week on a vote of 75-0. The bill now goes to the governor’s desk for consideration.

 According to the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), California must build over 2.5 million homes by 2031, and at least 1 million of those homes need to be affordable for low- and very-low-income residents.

Building more ADUs and JADUs can help the state meet its housing goals quicker, because they’re cheaper and faster to construct. ADUs are detached units on residential property, while JADUs are attached to a home, such as an attached garage or basement converted into living space.

Manteca has been approving an average of 24 ADUs since 2021.

 A decade ago, California was permitting only about 800 ADUs per year. But now, thanks to a series of new ADU laws passed by the Legislature, California is permitting about 25,000 new ADUs and JADUs each year. Nearly one in four new homes in the state is an ADU or JADU.

However, some of California’s recently enacted laws contain provisions that have led to confusion and conflicts among some cities and counties. HCD has circulated guidance on these provisions in an effort to ensure the statutes are applied consistently across municipalities. Yet some local agencies have rejected HCD’s interpretations in favor of their own, resulting in conflicts over permitting timelines and other aspects of the homebuilding process. According to HCD, over 50 local governments have incorrectly applied state laws for ADUs and JADUs.

 SB 543 clarifies existing state laws governing ADUs and JADUs to eliminate confusion and conflicts at the local level. SB 543 codifies multiple HCD permitting guidelines, including clarifying:

*That local governments have 15 business days to conduct an initial review of ADU and JADU permit applications, so homebuilders have time to fix errors in their application.

*Size standards for ADUs and JADUs.

*That permitting guidelines for JADUs are the same as for ADUs.