California takes five cities to court over housing plan failures

California sued five cities—Calexico, Costa Mesa, Half Moon Bay, Ridgecrest, and Turlock—for failing to comply with the Housing Element Law, which mandates housing plans to address affordable housing shortages and homelessness. The state requires the cities to adopt compliant plans and complete rezoning within 120 days, citing delays of at least 2 1/2 years. Noncompliant cities face legal penalties and restrictions on rejecting low- to moderate-income housing projects.