On 30 June 2025, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131) into law, introducing some of the most significant changes to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in recent history,...more
The California Legislature took another big swing to promote housing development in battling the continuing housing crisis when it passed Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131) earlier this year. AB 130...more
With the current housing shortage in California, coupled with recent regulatory changes, multifamily development is robust throughout the state. Perhaps the most consequential recent change is the reform of the California...more
Senate Bill (SB) 131 includes reforms to litigation procedure under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) intended to relieve the burden on CEQA litigants when preparing the CEQA administrative record and speed up...more
The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) has long shaped the state’s development landscape, often entangling projects in lengthy permitting and litigation processes. That landscape has now shifted dramatically. ...more
Introduction - Last week, California enacted the most significant reforms to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) since the mid-1970s. On June 30, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 131 and Assembly Bill 130...more
On February 20, 2025, Senator Scott Wiener introduced Senate Bill No. 607 (SB 607), a proposed law that is relatively short in text length, but which would engender major CEQA reforms if enacted as currently drafted. The...more
Effective July 1, 2023, a new chapter in the California Government Code provides for qualifying multifamily housing developments of five or more units to be a “by right” use and subject only to a streamlined ministerial...more
The California Legislature has enacted new Public Resources Code § 21159.25, effective as of January 1, 2019 (Stats. 2018, c. 670 (A.B. 1804)), which extends much of the substance of the existing CEQA Guidelines’ Class 32...more
SB 743 was enacted in 2013 to further California’s efforts to reduce GHG emissions by encouraging transit-oriented, infill development – a strategy announced in SB 375, the “Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act...more
Great news for the Arizona infill development industry, as the long awaited “fix” to the three-quarters vote/supermajority statute (i.e. A.R.S. Section 9-462.04(G)) has finally made its way through the State Legislature and...more
We reported in December that State Senator Scott Wiener marked his first day in state office by introducing legislation (SB 35) to address barriers to housing production. Senator Wiener has introduced amendments to SB 35 that...more
This is the first edition in an ongoing series of "Corner Briefings" highlighting urban infill legal tools and opportunities. These updates will identify new legal cases, legislative updates, grant opportunities and other...more
A 138-page report, including 371 footnotes and a 30-page appendix listing all properly documented CEQA lawsuits filed in California over its 3-year study period (2010-2012), has been posted by its authors, Holland & Knight...more