Newsom announces lawsuit against this Southern California city

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Norwalk violating housing requirements: Newsom

Gov. Gavin Newsom declared Norwalk to be in violation of state housing requirements after the City Council enacted a moratorium on building new homeless shelters.

LOS ANGELES - Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday announced California has filed a lawsuit against the city of Norwalk over its ordinance banning new homeless shelters and other housing.

"The Norwalk city council’s failure to reverse this ban, despite knowing it is unlawful, is inexcusable. No community should turn its back on its residents in need," Newsom said in a statement.

The lawsuit comes after repeated warnings that the city's ban violates several state planning and housing laws.

And in addition, the state is accusing the city of failing to meet its housing goals as required by state law.

It all stems from a moratorium that was voted on back in August.

The Norwalk City Council originally approved an ordinance in August putting a 45-day moratorium on emergency shelters, single-room occupancy units, supportive housing and transitional housing. That prompted Newsom last month to warn the city that it was in violation of state law, and he urged the city to reverse direction.

The City Council, however, doubled down on its stance, voting to extend the moratorium for another 10 months.

"Today’s lawsuit should come as no surprise. Despite receiving several warnings, the City of Norwalk has refused to repeal its unlawful ban on new supportive housing for our most vulnerable residents. Enough is enough," said Attorney General Rob Bonta. "Every city and county in California has a legal obligation to help solve our homelessness crisis. We have not, and will not hesitate, to ensure that everyone with the power to approve or disapprove housing takes their duties seriously."

According to Newsom's office, the city of Norwalk has only issued permits for 175 housing units during the current "housing element cycle," which is only 3.5% of its assigned allocation of 5,034 units "required to ensure its community has enough housing."

On Oct. 3, the state announced it was de-certifying Norwalk's housing element in response to the city's homeless shelter ban. This makes the city ineligible for housing and homeless funding.