RHTA Program Delivers Innovative Technical Assistance

The Regional Housing Technical Assistance (RHTA) Program provides one-of-a-kind technical assistance to support local governments in complying with rapidly evolving laws and adopting and implementing compliant Housing Elements. 

The program launched in 2020 and has delivered more than 25 trainings and more than 150 pieces of technical assistance. The program’s components include shared consultant services, tools and resources, and they work together to provide holistic support for the region’s 101 cities and towns and nine counties and their elected officials and planning staff as jurisdictions update their housing plans. Work products are shared statewide through the Technical Assistance Portal. Download the full index of resources. 

Technical assistance is being delivered through: 

• Interactive trainings 
• County-based planning collaboratives that share consultant support 
• Suballocations of REAP funding to all jurisdictions in the nine-county Bay Area
• Work Groups and Peer Cohorts for in-depth, targeted technical assistance.
• Data tools, products and resources tailored to assist in meeting state requirements.
   

New Products

View our newest products and services available to jurisdictions in the Bay Area:

• The Regional Housing Technical Assistance (RHTA) Program has created CommentBot (C-Bot), a tool to help Bay Area jurisdictions address HCD's comments in their next draft housing element. C-Bot provides suggestions and links to RHTA and HCD resources to help jurisdictions address common concerns that HCD has raised in past comment letters. 

  C-Bot can be found here: https://c-bot.info/

• RHTA is offering up to seven free, one-year licenses to Bay Area jurisdictions to pilot an innovative online tool from Symbium Corp. called Plancheck that streamlines residential site plan review for applicants and planners by incorporating the participating jurisdiction’s residential municipal code regulations into the tool for a customized plan review experience. Learn more and apply here. The application deadline is December 16.

• Staff are tracking the submission of Bay Area draft Housing Elements and the comments jurisdictions receive from HCD. Copies of the drafts and HCD comment letters are available in this folder. 

• The RHTA Photo Catalog provides photos illustrating neighborhoods with varied types of housing. All photos are available for use by Bay Area jurisdictions working on their Housing Element.

• Overview of AB 2011 and SB 6

• The "Builder's Remedy" and Housing Elements Fact Sheet

• Section 508 document and website accessibility resources
• Learning from Southern California and Sacramento: Analysis of HCD comment letters and lessons for Bay Area jurisdictions as they prepare their 6th cycle Housing Elements. 

The RHTA program is funded by a $24 million state Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) grant from the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and has saved each jurisdiction more than $30,000 by providing shared consultant services, tools and resources. Additionally, sub-grants to each jurisdiction provided $10.88 million in support of local housing planning priorities.