CEQA Reform, the 'Third Rail' of California Politics, Moving Fast Through State Legislature

West Coast Land Use and Environment attorneys Daniel Golub and Ryan Leaderman were interviewed by Bisnow about California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) reform bills currently making their way through the California State Legislature. The bills represent some of the most significant amendments to the law since it was enacted more than 50 years ago, changing what types of projects are eligible for CEQA and exempting infill multifamily projects. Although the future of both bills remains uncertain, their progress thus far indicates shifting attitudes toward what has been called the "third rail" of state development politics. Mr. Golub commented that increased attention on California's housing affordability crisis has contributed to this trend.

"I think that the game has really changed in a lot of ways when you have people within the Democratic coalition looking at themselves and saying, 'To govern, we need to be able to show that we can govern effectively and we can move projects forward and that we can not elevate process over substance,'" he said.

Mr. Leaderman added that passing the bill would send an encouraging message to developers, who have cited CEQA as a reason to avoid projects.

"I've got clients and former clients who've basically told me that they just won't develop in the city of Los Angeles because of the uncertainty, and a large part of that uncertainty has to do with CEQA," he shared. "If these bills do get passed, especially [AB 609], it really takes away a lot of the risk for these projects and a lot of that uncertainty."

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