Builders of affordable homes, like this complex seen in 2025 in the Sunnydale area of San Francisco, are eligible for streamlined approvals under the state’s density bonus law.

In recent years, the California Legislature has passed numerous bills to increase the state’s housing production. Unfortunately, the number of new homes built still lags what economists and policymakers say we need. Some have expressed disappointment that high-profile legislation to streamline housing approvals, like Assembly Bill 2011 and Senate Bill 423, has been used infrequently.

Fortunately, at least one statewide policy is being used at scale. Recent research shows that California’s density bonus law has become a flagship policy, producing the most housing approvals statewide.

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The law works by providing a package of benefits to builders of multifamily homes when they agree to include permanently affordable homes. These projects get streamlined approvals and can opt out of a variety of local restrictions. This can offset costs from well-intentioned but expensive policies like inclusionary mandates and land transfer taxes.

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First adopted in 1979, the Density Bonus Law was amended in 2020 and 2023 through legislation authored by two successive San Diego Assembly members, Lorena Gonzalez and David Alvarez. My organization, Circulate Planning & Policy, sponsored both bills, and we recently........

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