November 6, 2019 | Category:
NewsCalifornia, the land of golden dreams, has become America’s worst housing nightmare. Recent wildfires have only heightened the stakes for a state that can’t seem to build enough new homes. The median price for a house now tops $600,000, more than twice the national level. The state has four of the country’s five most expensive […]
October 22, 2019 | Category:
NewsAriel Wittenberg, E&E News reporter, Published: Monday, October 21, 2019 Leaders from the Army Corps of Engineers will appear before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Wednesday as Congress looks to pass another water infrastructure authorization package in 2020. The hearing, titled “Improving American Economic Competitiveness through Water Resources Infrastructure,” will include testimony […]
October 17, 2019 | Category:
NewsThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released a final rule on September 19, 2019, eliminating California’s right to create its own greenhouse gas emission standards for cars and other vehicles. The Trump administration’s decision affects more than just California – 13 other states and the District of Columbia have also adopted California’s more stringent emission rules […]
September 19, 2019 | Category:
NewsThe appellate case Hubbard v. Coastal Commission (Case No. B249835, July 31, 2019) arose from a seemingly small matter. The Coastal Commission granted a coastal development permit (CDP) to the real party, Malibu Valley Farms, to rebuild an equestrian facility following a fire. Opponents, Save Open Space Santa Monica Mountains, challenged the CDP, alleging that […]
September 17, 2019 | Category:
NewsGovernor Gavin Newsom is expected to sign Assembly Bill 1197 which would exempt any Los Angeles shelter or homeless housing project that receives state or local funding from the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”). CEQA calls for environmental review of the environmental impacts of a proposed project that requires agency discretionary approval. Proposals to build […]
September 16, 2019 | Category:
NewsIn the unpublished case, Save the Hill v. City and County of San Francisco (No. A153549), the First District Court of Appeal upheld an environmental impact report (EIR) and project findings for a mixed-use real estate development. In 2008, San Francisco certified an EIR considering various planning alternatives for some of the City’s neighborhoods, including […]
September 7, 2019 | Category:
NewsOn August 12, 2019, the Trump Administration released final regulations bringing addressing the difference between a “threatened” species listing and “endangered” listing. Under the new regulations, species that are categorized as “threatened” will not automatically receive the same protections as those listed as “endangered.” Additionally, instead of drawing attention to climate change, the regulations allows […]
September 6, 2019 | Category:
NewsCalifornia decides to steer into the crazy skid: Sacramento adopts local rent control ordinance just as California makes another run at a statewide rent control policy. Voters handed left-lining tenant groups and politicians a defeat last year with the failure of Proposition 10, a statewide ballot measure that would have allowed cities to expand rent-control […]
September 5, 2019 | Category:
NewsIn Union of Medical Marijuana Patients, Inc. v. City of San Diego (No. S238563), the California Supreme Court determined that the City of San Diego’s adoption of an ordinance authorizing the establishment of marijuana dispensaries constitutes a “project” for the purposes of CEQA. The City of San Diego adopted the ordinance at issue in 2014 […]
September 4, 2019 | Category:
NewsThe California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved the State Wetland Definition and Procedures for Discharges of Dredged or Fill Material to Waters of the State (Procedures) on August 28, 2019. The State Water Board issued a Notice of Decision on August 30, 2019. Pursuant to the Procedures, the effective date is nine months upon […]
