Student Homes Protection Act

SB 916 will accelerate the construction of new student housing by requiring housing opponents who file lawsuits to post bonds with the court. The bonds will help ensure that litigants only file lawsuits with legitimate legal claims, and help eliminate costly, frivolous lawsuits designed to delay housing. 

California’s acute housing shortage is having a profound impact on our undergraduate and graduate students. More than 30,000 students in the University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) systems are on waiting lists for student housing. 

But student housing projects have been frequent targets of lawsuits under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), delaying construction and driving up costs. While courts may require a bond for bad-faith litigation in affordable housing projects, student housing is not covered, leaving it vulnerable.

SB 916 helps safeguard student housing development by allowing courts to require the filer to put down a bond – in essence a security deposit – in lawsuits challenging student housing projects.

Updates

  • SB 916 was introduced on January 27, 2026. It was amended in the Senate on March 18, 2026.

Author

  • Angelique Ashby (SD 8)

Sponsors

  • Student Homes Coalition

Resources