Since Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill 131 (SB 131) and Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) into law on June 30, 2025, California’s legislature has continued to push additional California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) reforms...more
California will continue to set the pace for environmental regulation in 2026, using its rulemaking, enforcement, and market influence to drive requirements that often become de facto national standards for companies doing...more
According to the nonpartisan California Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO), homes in California are about twice as expensive as the typical U.S. home. The LAO found that “[p]ayments for a mid-tier home were over $5,500 a...more
On December 26, 2005, the California Chamber of Commerce received an official Title & Summary from the Attorney General’s office for the Building an Affordable California Act (referred to here as the “Affordable CA”), and...more
This article summarizes changes in California construction law taking effect in 2026. AB 130 and SB 131 - Comprehensive Reforms to California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) Effective January 1, 2026, CEQA undergoes...more
In October 2025, the California Chamber of Commerce filed the Building an Affordable California Act (BACA) voter initiative, a comprehensive reform to modernize California’s project approval process and remove longstanding...more
A new bill introduced in the California Legislature, AB 1083, proposes significant rollbacks to the environmental streamlining provisions for advanced manufacturing projects that SB 131 recently established....more
The California Chamber of Commerce has filed the Building an Affordable California Act (BACA) voter initiative, a comprehensive reform that will modernize California’s project approval process and remove longstanding barriers...more
A new California Ballot initiative titled the Building an Affordable California Act, filed by the California Chamber of Commerce, seeks to streamline the environmental review process under the California Environmental Quality...more
California voters could soon be asked to usher in a major overhaul of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The proposal, introduced this week as a ballot initiative by the California Chamber of Commerce, is aimed...more
On October 11, Governor Newsom signed SB 79 into law. SB 79 is the latest arrow in the quiver of significant reforms to California’s Housing Laws and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), which California has...more
For employers in the construction industry, the need for workers is expected to increase following a significant rollback of parts of the landmark California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Intending to accelerate building...more
“One of the most notable changes is creating a new statutory urban infill CEQA exemption under AB 130, which only applies to defined housing developments. The new AB 130 exemption allows for qualifying housing development...more
On June 30, 2025, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 130 (“AB 130”) and Senate Bill 131 (“SB 131”) into law, making the most significant changes to the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) in decades. Together, AB...more
A roundup of news and multimedia from the Unfamiliar Terrain team: San Francisco - San Francisco Family Zoning Plan Updates (SF Planning): As of late July, the Planning Department has updated the draft zoning height...more
On 30 June 2025, Governor Newsom signed Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131) into law, introducing some of the most significant changes to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in recent history,...more
In an effort to tackle California’s persistent housing shortage and accelerate infrastructure development, California has enacted the most substantial reform to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in decades and...more
The California Legislature took another big swing to promote housing development in battling the continuing housing crisis when it passed Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131) earlier this year. AB 130...more
With the current housing shortage in California, coupled with recent regulatory changes, multifamily development is robust throughout the state. Perhaps the most consequential recent change is the reform of the California...more
As discussed in our earlier post, California's CEQA landscape has rapidly, and potentially seismically, evolved with the passage of AB 130 and SB 131. This post focuses on the immediate creation of a new statutory exemption,...more
Governor Gavin Newsom signed two budget trailer bills on June 30, 2025, enacting the most substantial reforms to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in over five decades....more
Note: This is the sixth update in our series covering AB 130 and SB 131, two bills that work substantive changes to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and California housing law....more
On June 30, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131), legislation that contains significant changes to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) that...more
On June 30, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131), both of which took effect immediately....more
On Monday, June 30, 2025, Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law two bills, AB 130 and SB 131, which provide new exemptions from, and streamlines the process, under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). AB 130...more