Summary of SB 79 – Overriding Local Zoning Laws for Transit-Oriented Housing Development
On October 10, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed the Scott Weiner sponsored Senate Bill 79 (“SB 79”) into law. Effective July 1, 2026, SB 79 will generally require qualifying cities and counties to approve residential projects that meet the requirements of “transit-oriented housing development,” unless the local agency can demonstrate that there is an actual, identifiable “health, life or safety reason” for denying the project.
What Makes a Project “Transit-Oriented Housing Development”?
A residential project will be considered “Transit-Oriented Housing Development” if it meets all the following requirements:
Site Requirements
- The nearest edge of the parcel a project sits on is within one-half mile of a pedestrian access point to a qualifying transit stop.
- The project is on a site zoned residential, mixed use or commercial.
- The project is not on a site where within the last seven years, two or more units of rent or price controlled housing were occupied by tenants or demolished
Use Requirements
- Does not include a hotel of any kind
- At least two-thirds of the project’s square footage is used for residential purposes.
- The project includes at least five “dwelling units”
- Average total area of floor space does not exceed 1750 square feet per unit.
- If the project is 10 or more units, the project includes one of the following:
- At least 7% of units are restricted to “extremely low income households”
- At least 10% of units are restricted to “very low income households”
- At least 13% for units are restricted to “lower income households”[1]
SB79 Imposes New Height and Density Limits for Transit-Oriented Housing Development
SB79 includes new sets of height and density limits for transit-oriented housing development, which overrides all applicable local zoning laws. Bill proponents estimate that there are currently only eight counties that qualify as “urban transit counties”: Los Angeles, Orange, San Francisco, Alameda, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Sacramento and San Diego.
Tier 1 vs Tier 2 Transit-Oriented Development Stops
A Tier 1 transit-oriented development stop is served by heavy rail transit or very high frequency commuter rail with 72 or more trains per day. Transit Oriented Housing Development in close proximity to Tier 1 stops benefit from the following, least restrictive height and density limits:
| Distance to Stop Access Point | Maximum Height | Maximum Density (Dwelling Units/Acre) | Maximum Residential Floor Area Ratio |
| Within 200 feet | 95[2] | 160 | 4.5 |
| Within .25 miles | 75 | 120 | 3.5 |
| Within .5 miles (and City Population is >35,000) | 65 | 100 | 3 |
A Tier 2 transit-oriented development stop is served by high frequency commuter rail with at least 48 trains per day, light rail or Bus Rapid Transit lines.
Transit-Oriented Housing Development in close proximity to Tier 2 stops also benefit from the following height and density limits:
| Distance to Stop Access Point | Maximum Height | Maximum Density (Dwelling Units/Acre) | Maximum Residential Floor Area Ratio |
| Within 200 feet | 85 | 140 | 4 |
| Within .25 miles | 65 | 100 | 3 |
| Within .5 miles (and City Population is >35,000) | 55 | 80 | 2.5 |
SB79 Also Creates Additional Density Bonus Concessions for Some Transit-Oriented Housing Development
For a transit-oriented housing development to be eligible for additional density bonus concessions it must have at least 10 units and meet the following density minimums:
| Classification | Minimum Density Needed for Additional Density Bonus Eligibility (Dwelling Units/Acre) |
| Within .25 Miles of Tier 1 | 90 |
| Within .5 Miles of Tier 1 & Within .25 Miles of Tier 2 | 75 |
| Within .5 Miles of Tier 2 | 60 |
The additional concessions consist of one additional concession for low-income households, two additional concessions for “very low income” households, and three additional concessions for “extremely low income” households.
While SB 79 does not provide an exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA),[3] an additional result of SB 79 is that a project may qualify for CEQA-exempt ministerial processing under SB 35 with only 10 percent very low income units (for rental projects) or 10 percent low income units (for-sale projects). This is in effect a significant reduction from SB 35’s affordable obligations in most contexts.
SB79 Requires Local Governments to Plan for Transit-Oriented Development
Local governments are eventually expected to develop a local transit-oriented development alternative plan. In general, such plans must: (1) maintain at least the same total net zoned capacity (in terms of total units and residential floor area) as provided for in SB 79 across all transit-oriented development zones, (2) not reduce the maximum allowed density for any individual site on which the plan allows residential use by more than 50 percent below that permitted by SB 79, and (3) not reduce the capacity in any transit-oriented development zone in total units or residential floor area by more than 50 percent. Once the plan has been approved by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, the above provisions of SB 79 shall not apply.
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Should you have any questions regarding the potential impacts of SB 79, please contact Alan Fenstermacher, Matt Francois, Garret Hoff or your Rutan & Tucker attorney.
[1] If a local inclusionary housing requirement mandates a higher percentage of affordable units or a deeper level of affordability, then the local inclusionary housing requirement applies.
[2] Transit-Oriented Housing Development over 85 feet must meet heightened labor requirements as described in Cal. Gov. Code §65913.4(a)(8).
[3] The State did create a new major statutory exemption from CEQA earlier this year through its adoption of AB 130. See https://www.rutan.com/ceqa-reform-governor-newsom-signs-pro-housing-ceqa-exemption-into-law/
