Plumas County planning staff on July 15 released a public‑review draft of the county’s 2024–2029 housing element and told the Planning Commission the document will be opened for public comment through July 28 for a statutorily required 30‑day review.

The housing element will then be revised for county submission to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). Staff said its target date to submit the initial draft to HCD is Aug. 11, 2025; HCD then has 90 days to review and issue comments. Staff projected a course that could lead to Board of Supervisors adoption in early 2026 and certification by HCD if back‑and‑forth revisions proceed on schedule.

Why it matters: a certified housing element is a prerequisite for some state housing funds, and staff said the county missed round 3 of PLHA funding because it did not have a certified element. The planning staff emphasized that a certified element also unlocks many grant opportunities for housing and rehabilitation programs.

Key technical points reported to commissioners:

• RHNA and targets: the draft states the county must plan to accommodate a regional housing needs allocation (RHNA) of 154 units for 2024–2029, broken down in the draft as 9 extremely low, 29 very low, 28 low, 29 moderate, and 63 above‑moderate units.

• Vacant and underutilized sites: staff walked the commission through a parcel inventory underpinning the RHNA strategy. Examples included small vacant or underused parcels in Quincy, Greenville and other communities that staff counted toward the realistic capacity. Staff said the county’s vacant‑land inventory alone exceeds the RHNA totals in each affordability band, giving a buffer in case some parcels do not develop as expected.

• ADUs and creditable trends: staff said 21 accessory dwelling units were constructed in the prior planning cycle; under state rules the county may project a similar ADU production rate for the next cycle to count toward very‑low‑income capacity.

• Gaps in Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH): staff repeatedly flagged Appendix C, the AFFH appendix, as the largest gap in the public‑review draft. Staff said Appendix C contains local knowledge sections that remain blank and that planners will interview local housing stakeholders (Plumas Rural Services, Plumas County Community Development Commission, and other providers) to complete the appendix before county submission to HCD.

• Public outreach: staff described a schedule of stakeholder meetings (including disabled‑services, behavioral health, public health and housing providers) and said staff plans night‑time public workshops across the county during the week of Aug. 4 to collect community comment.

Staff emphasized process details required by state law: each program entry in the element must include an objective, a responsible agency, a time frame and likely funding sources so HCD can evaluate the element’s adequacy. Staff said most of the element is complete and that Appendix C (AFFH) and the public‑participation documentation will evolve as staff collects more stakeholder and public comments.

Commission questions focused on operational details: how vacant dwellings are counted (census vacancy metrics vs. developable parcels), how the county will monitor rehabilitation activity, the feasibility of candidate parcels (infrastructure and sewer/water availability), affordability designations in particular subdivisions, and the need to explain technical terms (commissioners asked staff to define “jobs‑housing balance” for the public). Staff agreed to add clear definitions and to flag any items in the document that are “not applicable” rather than leaving blanks.

What comes next: the public‑review period continues through July 28; staff will compile comments, produce an Aug. 11 initial HCD submittal, work through HCD’s comment letter (expected within the statutory review windows) and return to the board for adoption when the element is in a form HCD indicates can be certified.