On June 30, 2025, Governor Newsom signed two budget trailer bills into law: Assembly Bill 130 and Senate Bill 131, which reform the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) effective immediately. As explained by the...more
California stands at a pivotal juncture in 2025, confronting an array of environmental and housing challenges. As usual, the California State Legislature is considering numerous strategies to address these issues. This year’s...more
6/24/2025
/ Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) ,
Affordable Housing ,
California ,
California Coastal Commission ,
California Endangered Species Act ,
CEQA ,
Citizen Suits ,
Clean Energy ,
Demolition ,
Density Bonus ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Environmental Policies ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Housing Developers ,
Housing Market ,
Impact Fees ,
Natural Disasters ,
Natural Resources ,
New Legislation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Sackett v EPA ,
Water Conservation ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands ,
Wildfires
California’s housing crisis has necessitated innovative legislative solutions at the state and local level to increase the supply of affordable housing across the state. Cities are required by state law to plan for a...more
6/20/2025
/ Affordable Housing ,
California ,
CEQA ,
City Councils ,
City of Los Angeles ,
Density Bonus ,
Housing Developers ,
Incentives ,
Local Ordinance ,
New Legislation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Zoning Laws
Governor Gavin Newsom on March 14 praised Assemblymember Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) and Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) for sponsoring two bills (SB 607 and AB 609) that would streamline housing development in urban...more
The California Legislature and Governor approved three key housing bills in 2021, to facilitate housing production in California. SB 8 (Senator Skinner) extends and expands the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 (SB 330). SB 9...more
As the State of California battles through a housing crisis, lawmakers are seeking creative ways to enable local governments to meet their long-term housing needs and produce housing more quickly. On September 16, 2021,...more
With the end of the first quarter of 2021 approaching, we thought it timely to issue an update on selected recent developments and proposed changes in law and policy touching environmental, land use, and natural resource...more