Supreme Court won't hear Huntington Beach challenge to state housing laws

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a federal lawsuit brought by the City of Huntington Beach challenging the constitutionality of California's housing laws.

The high court's denial of Huntington Beach's petition for a writ of certiorari ends the city's bid for federal relief and comes as it simultaneously faces mounting pressure in state court, where a San Diego Superior Court judge in December ordered the city to bring its housing planning into compliance. City of Huntington Beach et al. v. Gavin Newsom et al., 8:23-cv-00421FWS-ADS, (C.D. Cal., filed Mar. 09, 2023)

Attorney General Rob Bonta praised the ruling saying it removed any remaining legal cover the city might have claimed.

"Huntington Beach took its fight to the highest court in the country -- and lost. Today, the U.S. Supreme Court officially declined to step in, leaving no doubt that the City must comply with our state housing laws," Bonta said in a statement. "After years of meritless resistance that has wasted taxpayer dollars, Huntington Beach can no longer claim that the U.S. Constitution is on its side. It is not. We look forward to holding the City fully accountable in state court, where we recently secured a decision that requires it to remedy its violations and significantly restricts the City's local control until it does so."

Gov. Gavin Newsom was equally pointed in his criticism of city officials.

"City officials can't use the First Amendment as an excuse to violate state housing law," Newsom said in a statement. "The Huntington Beach officials who wasted taxpayer dollars on this embarrassing approach rather than doing their jobs ought to be ashamed of themselves. Huntington Beach deserves better. What a waste of taxpayers' dollars that could have gone to much-needed housing for their community."

The federal litigation arose in response to a state enforcement action. On March 9, 2023, Bonta, Newsom and California Department of Housing and Community Development Director Gustavo Velasquez filed suit in state court against Huntington Beach, alleging the city failed to timely adopt a compliant housing element as required under state law. The city responded by filing its own federal lawsuit contending that certain California housing statutes were unconstitutional.

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California dismissed the city's federal complaint. A unanimous 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel affirmed, and the full court denied rehearing en banc.

Huntington Beach officials were not immediately available for comment.