Late last month, Gov. Gavin Newsom made an unusually substantial legislative push by unveiling a plan to help speed up infrastructure projects by, among other things, finally taking on the California Environmental Quality Act.
Business groups have responded favorably to the governor’s plan to expedite certain construction projects and expedite judicial reviews.
“For too long, special interest groups have weaponized CEQA to delay, scale back or stop projects for non-environmental reasons,” said Jennifer Barrera, CEO of the California Chamber of Commerce. “CEQA streamlining for clean energy, water, and transportation infrastructure, as well as more directly for new housing construction, can be accomplished with environmental protections that help restore the statute’s original intent.”
But lawmakers haven’t been particularly moved to act on the governor’s proposals, and environmental groups are pressing lawmakers to halt any action on the proposals for now.
In a June 3 letter from a coalition of environmental groups critical of Newsom’s plan, the governor is criticized for “short-circuiting the regular legislative process for significant new policy proposals” by trying to carry out his plan through bills budget trailer
By the way, these groups are right to point out the abuse of the trailer billing process. From a simple good governance perspective, it has been troubling that the state has often preferred to use state budget process bills to introduce proposals that would have to go through the legislative process for public vetting.
To be clear, it is a positive development that the governor is showing interest in streamlining slow permitting processes and reforming CEQA. It appears to be doing so in a politically defiant way, although it doesn’t actually go far enough to combat abuse of CEQA.
The fact is that CEQA reform is not only necessary but politically popular among ordinary people.
Recent polls from the Public Policy Institute of California show that 59% of Californians support CEQA reform “as a way to make housing more affordable” in California.
Whatever the success or failure of the current push, CEQA reform is necessary.
