SACRAMENTO — Desperate for more housing in the nation's most populous state, the leader of the California Senate committed Thursday to passing a law this year to add more housing in a state facing a shortage of 3.5 million homes. Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins' comments came moments after...
Heated Anti-Trump SB 1 Environmental Bill Could Hold to 2020
A controversial state bill impacting water and agriculture could be held over to the Legislature's next session. Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, a San Diego Democrat, said Wednesday that Senate Bill 1 might be converted to a two-year bill. The California Chamber of Commerce calls the bill a "job...
Walters: Hot Politics in the Cul-De-Sac of California
Spanish explorer Juan Cabrillo claimed California 477 years ago this month when his three-ship armada sailed into a bay he named “San Miguel,” which we know today as San Diego. Nearly a half-millennium later, San Diego is California’s second-largest city, but in a sense remains an isolated, almost self-contained, outpost....
Feinstein Joins Effort for SB1 Changes Protecting Valley Water
Five federal legislators have submitted a letter to Gov. Gavin Newsom asking for amendments to a proposed state law that would empower state agencies to adopt rules and regulations more stringent than their federal counterparts set after Jan. 19, 2017. Listen to this article: That is one day before Donald Trump...
Editorial: SB 1 Is the Same Bad Legislation in a New Dress
Bad legislation is bad legislation. It doesn't matter how many times you try to dress it up. Or bring it back with a new number. We're talking about Senate Bill 1, which is officially titled the California Environmental, Public Health, and Workers Defense Act of 2019. Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins...
'Job Killer' Bill Nears Final Vote. Who Supports, Who's Opposed.
The California Chamber of Commerce calls it a "job killer" bill. State water and agriculture interests have lined up solidly against it. Still, Senate Bill 1 is moving through the California Legislature despite concerns that it threatens water supplies and will result in a flurry of lawsuits. It passed the Senate in...
Cities, Counties Could be Punished for Dragging Feet on Housing
SACRAMENTO — Faced with a crippling housing shortage that is driving prices up while putting more people on the streets, Gov. Gavin Newsom and California legislative leaders agreed Thursday on a plan to reward local governments that make it easier to build more housing faster and punish those that don't....
SB 1: Insurance Policy Against Trump Rollbacks or Job Killer?
The state Legislature wants to hedge its bets against the Trump administration rolling back environmental and labor laws. Called an “insurance policy against the exploitation of our natural resources and our people” by Senate Leader Toni Atkins (D-San Diego), SB 1 would strengthen state environmental and workplace regulations in case...
Legislature Must Act to Protect Environment From Trump’s Assaults
California is facing an unprecedented and reckless assault by the federal government on our water quality, air quality, worker safety, fish and wildlife, and public lands. Existing federal protections in those areas keep California a special place and keep Californians healthy. But those protections are threatened. Our state government is...