Will California scale back its core environmental protection law to build more housing?

Michael Smolens: New Sierra Club leader faces demographic, regional challenges

Like most environmental groups, the San Diego chapter of the Sierra Club is navigating an increasingly rocky road. There’s concern regarding President Donald Trump rolling back environmental protections and cutting funds. There’s frustration that despite warnings and actions, the world’s nations are still emitting more global-warming greenhouse gases, accelerating the impacts of climate change. There are shifting alliances in California, where s…

Will California scale back its core environmental protection law to build more housing?

Will California scale back its core environmental protection law to build more housing?

Thoughts on AB 131 - Legal Planet

Governor Newsom is pushing for CEQA reform as part of approval of the state budget, and the result is two budget trailer bills, AB 130 and AB 131, that together provide some of the most significant changes to CEQA in many years. Overall, these are good bills.  The changes are focused on facilitating development where it is on net beneficial to the environment, and not in places where it would harm important natural resources.  The facilitation o…

Critics Call New California CEQA Bill a 'Backroom Deal' That Harms Communities - Davis Vanguard

Environmental justice groups and conservation advocates are opposing Senate Bill and Assembly Bill 131, which they say would rollback environmental protections in California, exempting large-scale industrial developments from environmental review, allowing public agencies to withhold critical decision-making documents from the public, and weakening legal protections for endangered species, air and water quality, and community health.