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7 MODEL LOCAL ADU ORDINANCE This Model Local ADU Ordinance is designed for communities in states where state law allows for local ordinances authorizing and governing ADUs but does not impose any constraints on local governments. In states where local governments do not have the discretionary authority to approve ADUs (Dillon Rule states) state legislation giving them that authority must be adopted first. AARP's "Minimal Version" of the Model State ADU Act would give local governments that authority along with complete discretion over the content of theirADU ordinances. If there is a state ADU statute that limits local government discretion (as is proposed in the AARP Model State ADUAct) then the local ordinance will need to conform to those requirements. Many provisions and notes related to standards and procedures forADUs are duplicates, or near duplicates, of provisions and notes in the Model State ADU Act. Rather than referring readers back to those sections, which can be tiresome and confusing, this guide reproduces them as parts of the Model Local ADU Ordinance. I. General Provisions A. Purpose and Intent In this section of the ordinance, a community states its purposes in adopting the ordinance. This information may help in defending the ordinance when informing residents of how the ordinance will benefit and protect their interests and in responding to legal challenges. If a community has no purposes that differ from those of the Model State ADU Act, it may choose to reference that act's findings and its purposes and intent, but it is recommended that at a minimum the minutes of the meeting at which the ordinance is adopted include a discussion of those benefits and a statement that they are the basis for the local ordinance. If a community has public purposes that are different from those in the Model State ADU Act, those purposes should be specified in the ordinance (after consulting legal counsel on whether they are inconsistent with any state ADU legislation). (1) The [local governing body] finds and declares: (a) Our community faces a severe housing crisis, with home prices and rents unaffordable by families and households of middle and moderate incomes. (b) The community is falling far short of meeting current and future housing demand with serious consequences for the state's economy and the well-being of our residents, particularly lower - income and middle -income earners. (c) The [local government] can play an important role in reducing the barriers that prevent homeowners from building accessory dwellings. 30 1 HARP - Accessory Dwelling Units: Model State Act and Local Ordinance