Center for Community Solutions

II. Overview of AB 98 

With the expansion of California's logistics and warehousing industries, concerns over environmental degradation and public health have shifted from local land use matters to comprehensive statewide issues. Although signed into law almost 20 years after the enactment of California’s first good neighbor guideline, Assembly Bill No. 98 aimed to regulate the design, siting, and operation of logistics use developments at the state level. Unlike local ordinances and guidelines that vary by municipality or county, AB 98 establishes standardized truck route planning policies, industrial setback and design specifications, and landscaping requirements for the state. This section provides an overview of some of AB 98’s subcomponents including, design standards, public participation mechanisms, and a discussion of the special requirements for the Inland Region.

1. Building + Design Standards

AB 98, as of January 1st, 2026, will establish design and building standards aimed at reducing environmental impacts from logistics developments and promoting sustainable building practices. These standards apply to new and expanded logistics facilities in California, particularly those with over 250,000 sq. ft. of floor area with loading bays less than 900 feet from a sensitive receptor. Specific building standards enforced by AB 98 include, requirements for energy efficiency, electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure, zero-emission equipment, and high-efficiency and HVAC systems. AB 98 additionally includes a 300 foot setback from “the property line of the nearest sensitive receptor to the nearest truck loading bay opening”, placing large zoning restrictions on industrial facilities throughout the state (Assembly Bill No. 98, 2024). Additional design standards, like truck routing and buffering, are detailed elsewhere in this case study. 

2. Buffering + Landscaping Requirements

AB 98 mandates specific buffering and landscaping requirements for logistics developments to reduce the impact of noise, emissions, and light pollution on nearby sensitive receptors, especially in areas where these facilities are close to residences, schools, or healthcare facilities or other sensitive receptors. Across California, logistics facilities within 900 feet of sensitive receptors must establish buffer zones ranging from 50 to 100 feet in width, depending on the development’s location and the proximity to sensitive receptors. These buffer areas must include a solid decorative wall, landscaped berm, or a combination of both at least 10 feet high, accompanied by drought-tolerant ground landscaping and proper irrigation to maintain plant health. Additionally, the buffer zones must feature solid-screen, drought tolerant evergreen trees planted in two rows.

3. Signage Requirements

Similar to the local level guidelines, AB 98 includes detailed signage requirements to manage truck traffic, reduce idling, and clearly direct logistics facility operations within and around the site, especially near sensitive receptors. Facilities must post anti-idling signs at entrances and at truck loading bays, indicating a strict three-minute idling limit for heavy-duty trucks, which is intended to minimize diesel emissions in surrounding neighborhoods. At exit points, facilities are required to display signs directing drivers to designated truck routes, as specified in the facility’s truck routing plan, ensuring that trucks follow planned routes that avoid residential and sensitive areas. Additionally, AB 98 requires local jurisdictions to post visible signage for established truck routes and truck parking locations to streamline logistics traffic and prevent congestion in non-industrial areas. Jurisdictions must also make truck route maps publicly available in GIS format and share them with logistics operators, fleet operators, and drivers to support compliance and consistent use of designated paths. 

4. Housing: Replacement for Displacement

AB 98 includes specific provisions to address housing displacement caused by warehousing or industrial developments, aiming to mitigate the social impact on communities near logistics projects. If a logistics development requires the demolition of occupied housing units, the bill mandates a two-to-one replacement ratio for each unit demolished, ensuring that two units of affordable housing for low- and moderate-income residents are constructed for every demolished unit. These replacement units must be deed-restricted to maintain affordability, helping to ensure the housing remains accessible to vulnerable community members affected by logistics expansion. This targeted provision is likely a response to the overtly accommodating manner in which some localities have zoned warehousing within the warehousing concentration region. For example, both residential neighborhoods and school properties have been rezoned to accommodate the demand for warehousing in recent years (Whitehead, 2018; Mayorquin, 2022). 

In addition to housing replacement, AB 98 provides compensation for displaced tenants. Developers must compensate each displaced tenant with a sum equivalent to 12 months of rent at the current rate, helping residents to secure alternative housing without immediate financial burden. To further support these housing provisions, any fees collected from developers for housing replacement are allocated to a housing-specific set-aside account, designated for use within three years of collection to fund local affordable housing projects. Through these housing displacement provisions, AB 98 seeks to balance the state’s economic growth with protections for community stability and housing security near expanding logistics hubs​.

5. Updates to Relevant General Plans + Circulation Elements + Truck Routes

AB 98 requires that local jurisdictions update their General Plans, specifically the Circulation Element, to manage and minimize the impact of increased truck traffic from logistics developments on local communities. By January 1, 2028 (or January 1, 2026 in the warehouse concentration region), each city and county must establish and publicly designate truck routes for the transport of goods to and from logistics facilities. These truck routes must prioritize interstate highways, arterial roads, major thoroughfares, and commercial roads, ensuring that trucks avoid residential neighborhoods and areas near sensitive receptors. Further, the bill empowers the California Attorney General to enforce compliance with these updates, with fines of up to $50,000 every six months for non-compliance, ensuring that jurisdictions prioritize effective and timely implementation of the updated circulation elements and truck routes. These updates aim to improve transportation efficiency and protect public health by directing logistics traffic along routes that limit community disruption

6. Public Participation

Finally, AB 98 has a novel and specific public participation requirement relating to the funds produced by the Warehouse Indirect Source Rule #2305. The Warehouse Indirect Source Rule, enacted by SCAQMD applies to warehouses larger than 100,000 sq. ft., and similarly to AB 98, regulates warehouse facilities to reduce emissions from the goods movement industry. As part of their Indirect Source Rule, SCAQMD collects penalties for violations; AB 98 requires that SCAQMD establish a process for receiving community input on how those penalties are spent. Specifically, the bill states, “The south coast district shall ensure a wide range of community groups are included in the process and that groups represent the geographic areas where there are high numbers of warehouse facilities” §40522.7. This provision functions as a limited public engagement mechanism within AB 98. Although included to varying degrees and in different contexts, two local-level good neighbor guidelines also have community engagement requirements. 

7. Special Requirements for Warehouses within the Warehousing Concentration Region (Riverside + San Bernardino County)

AB 98 introduces stricter requirements for logistics facilities located within the warehousing concentration region, defined as, “the combined area of the Counties of Riverside and San Bernardino, including the entirety of the Cities of Chino, Colton, Fontana, Jurupa Valley, Moreno Valley, Ontario, Perris, Rancho Cucamonga, Redlands, Rialto, Riverside and San Bernardino” (Assembly Bill No. 98, 2024). These areas face high levels of industrial activity, and AB 98 implements more stringent standards to address the environmental and health risks unique to these regions. The warehousing concentration region has more stringent requirements in three key areas: 

1) Accelerated compliance to update circulation elements and establish designated truck routes. The warehousing concentration subregion must update their circulation elements by January of 2026, two years ahead of the AB 98’s timeline for the rest of the state. 

2) Increased buffering for landscaping + setback from loading bay requirements. For example, in the warehousing concentration subregion, truck loading bays must be located a minimum of 500 feet from the property line of the nearest sensitive receptor. The remainder of the state only has to comply with a 300 foot setback standard. 

3) Specialized air quality monitoring by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD).

AB 98 – Warehousing Concentration Region Summary Table