CEQA
Read about debate over SB 9 and 10
Misguided fear and loathing over relaxed zoning rules
SB 9 essentially eliminated single-family-only zoning by allowing property owners – on a “by right” basis that avoids subjective local reviews – to subdivide their single-family properties and build additional units on the land provided it meets all the pre-existing local setback and land-use conditions. It would allow up to …
Enviro law’s abusers continue to block urban housing
Enviro law’s abusers continue to block urban housing by John Seiler There are many reasons for California’s housing crisis, but a major problem everyone acknowledges, but never comes close to resolving, is the inability to advance reform of the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA (pronounced See-Kwa). It thwarts the …
Hope for WOTUS changes after Supreme Court hearing
Imagine every highway speed limit in the United States changing every few years to a government official’s determination of a “safe” speed. In some ways the interpretation of the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule is similar. When the federal administration changes, the interpretation of the WOTUS changes to …
CAPITAL IDEAS: The ‘Nuclear Option’ To Get Rid of Cars
There are some things in California that never change. It’s almost always sunny in the southern part of the state, and there’s no reason to expect a cease-fire in the war on cars.
New Assembly Bill Seeks to Expand Dysfunctional CEQA
Assembly Bill 1001, a bill that expands upon and brings new, highly subjective standards to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), continues to successfully move through the California State Legislature. California enacted CEQA over five decades ago to reform the public decision-making process to incorporate environmental considerations. A leader in …
Let’s End the Suspense
On Thursday, the Senate and Assembly Appropriations Committees held their “suspense hearings.” For those of you who are not Capitol insiders, every bill that has a fiscal impact greater than $150,000 is sent to the “suspense file”. Every one of these bills is weighed against one another for their fiscal …
To Make California Dream a Reality for All, Remove Homebuilding Roadblocks
California’s median home price set a new record of $849,080 in March, according to the latest figures from the California Association of Realtors. In 35 of California’s 58 counties, 50 percent or more of the homes sold above the asking price in March. Given these continued troubling statistics, encouraging desperately …
Permanent Solutions or Band-Aids: Solving the Decades-Old California Homelessness Crisis
California’s budget last year contained $12 billion, a record number, to address homelessness. Yet, California has the largest homeless population in the nation with, as of January 2020, around 161,500 individuals. California is one of the few states that experienced one of the largest homelessness increases between 2019-2020 with a …
Chris Carr Highlighted For His New Study “The CEQA Gauntlet” and Quoted in Bloomberg
Chris Carr’s new study “The CEQA Gauntlet” was featured and quoted in the Bloomberg piece “Berkeley Housing Battle Revives Debate Over Environmental Law”. Carr discusses the problems CEQA poses today with Bloomberg. “You can be sure the authors of CEQA didn’t think about the Boschian hellscape we have today,” said …
Can California Tackle Zoning Run Amok in 2022?
The numbers are in on the cost of living in California, and it ain’t pretty: According to an analysis by the real estate listing service Zillow, as reported in the New York Times, home prices went up by a startling 12.3 percent between November 2020 and 2021. In suburban areas …
Read about debate over SB 9 and 10
Misguided fear and loathing over relaxed zoning rules
SB 9 essentially eliminated single-family-only zoning by allowing property owners – on a “by right” basis that avoids subjective local reviews – to subdivide their single-family properties and build additional units on the land provided it meets all the pre-existing local setback and land-use conditions. It would allow up to …
Enviro law’s abusers continue to block urban housing
Enviro law’s abusers continue to block urban housing by John Seiler There are many reasons for California’s housing crisis, but a major problem everyone acknowledges, but never comes close to resolving, is the inability to advance reform of the California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA (pronounced See-Kwa). It thwarts the …
Hope for WOTUS changes after Supreme Court hearing
Imagine every highway speed limit in the United States changing every few years to a government official’s determination of a “safe” speed. In some ways the interpretation of the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule is similar. When the federal administration changes, the interpretation of the WOTUS changes to …
CAPITAL IDEAS: The ‘Nuclear Option’ To Get Rid of Cars
There are some things in California that never change. It’s almost always sunny in the southern part of the state, and there’s no reason to expect a cease-fire in the war on cars.
New Assembly Bill Seeks to Expand Dysfunctional CEQA
Assembly Bill 1001, a bill that expands upon and brings new, highly subjective standards to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), continues to successfully move through the California State Legislature. California enacted CEQA over five decades ago to reform the public decision-making process to incorporate environmental considerations. A leader in …
Let’s End the Suspense
On Thursday, the Senate and Assembly Appropriations Committees held their “suspense hearings.” For those of you who are not Capitol insiders, every bill that has a fiscal impact greater than $150,000 is sent to the “suspense file”. Every one of these bills is weighed against one another for their fiscal …
To Make California Dream a Reality for All, Remove Homebuilding Roadblocks
California’s median home price set a new record of $849,080 in March, according to the latest figures from the California Association of Realtors. In 35 of California’s 58 counties, 50 percent or more of the homes sold above the asking price in March. Given these continued troubling statistics, encouraging desperately …
Permanent Solutions or Band-Aids: Solving the Decades-Old California Homelessness Crisis
California’s budget last year contained $12 billion, a record number, to address homelessness. Yet, California has the largest homeless population in the nation with, as of January 2020, around 161,500 individuals. California is one of the few states that experienced one of the largest homelessness increases between 2019-2020 with a …
Chris Carr Highlighted For His New Study “The CEQA Gauntlet” and Quoted in Bloomberg
Chris Carr’s new study “The CEQA Gauntlet” was featured and quoted in the Bloomberg piece “Berkeley Housing Battle Revives Debate Over Environmental Law”. Carr discusses the problems CEQA poses today with Bloomberg. “You can be sure the authors of CEQA didn’t think about the Boschian hellscape we have today,” said …
Can California Tackle Zoning Run Amok in 2022?
The numbers are in on the cost of living in California, and it ain’t pretty: According to an analysis by the real estate listing service Zillow, as reported in the New York Times, home prices went up by a startling 12.3 percent between November 2020 and 2021. In suburban areas …
