News
Biden’s FY23 budget would expand funding for affordable housing
Smart Cities Dive – March 29
The Biden Administration's proposed 2023 fiscal budget, released Monday, dedicates $50 billion to increasing the nation's affordable housing supply through federal grants and loans. The proposed budget also calls for $71.9 billion in discretionary funding for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, a 21% increase from 2021-enacted levels.
New California law extends eviction ban for some renters
U.S. News & World Report – March 31
Tens of thousands of Californians facing eviction last Friday for not paying their rent will get to stay in their homes for at least another three months after Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis signed a law to extend protections just hours before they were scheduled to expire. California will pay off people's unpaid rent if they fell behind on their payments because of the pandemic. Tenants must apply to get the money, and state law says they cannot be evicted while their application is pending.
San Diego moves ahead with no-fault eviction moratorium
KPBS – April 5
The City of San Diego is moving forward with a new moratorium on no-fault evictions until Sept. 30 or 60 days after the end of the local pandemic state of emergency, whichever comes first. City Council members voted 5-1 in favor of the moratorium. Tenants in San Diego who aren’t paying rent due to the COVID-19 pandemic and have proof that they have applied for rental relief remain covered under statewide eviction protections. The City’s moratorium further protects tenants by making it impossible for landlords to evict tenants in order to substantially remodel a property, which advocates say has been a loophole in pandemic protections.
After rejection by S.F. supervisors, a charter amendment to streamline housing could go to voters
San Francisco Chronicle – April 4
After striking out multiple times at the Board of Supervisors, housing advocates plan to go to San Francisco’s voters in November with a charter amendment that would streamline the approval process for some residential development. The initiative, which proponents are calling Affordable Homes Now, would speed up housing production by allowing some qualified projects to circumvent the City’s discretionary review process, cutting several years from the multiyear timeline it takes to get housing approved in San Francisco.
U.S. Energy Department announces new standards for federal buildings
The Hill – March 30
The Energy Department announced last Wednesday that new energy efficiency standards for federal buildings will take effect in 2023. The new requirements will mandate all new federal buildings to comply with the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code. Any major retrofits to existing federal buildings would also be covered under the updated codes.
California transit district operates first, all-electric bus fleet
Government Technology – March 31
A Southern California public transit agency is on its way to operating the most progressive and most sustainable bus fleet in the nation, one made up of entirely electric vehicles. It’s also on the way to charging with 100 percent renewable power. The Antelope Valley Transit Authority is the first all-electric transit agency in the nation, operating 57 full-size battery electric buses, along with 20 commuter coaches and 10 micro-transit vans.
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