From Permits to Penalties: A Deep Dive Into Coastal Development Law
Navigating Environmental Restrictions on Alternative Project Delivery for Complex Infrastructure Projects
On-Demand Webinar | Charting a Course for Offshore Wind Energy in California
[WEBINAR] Update on the California Environmental Quality Act: What’s New for 2018
[WEBINAR] Building a Solar Energy Project in 2018
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BB&K's Charity Schiller Discusses CEQA Baseline
Acquiring property for public projects typically does not occur until after the project has received environmental approval. In California, complying with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) can sometimes take...more
On June 30, 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed two budget trailer bills—AB 130 and SB 131—that together work major changes both to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and California housing law. Because these bills...more
In a monumental win for pro-housing advocates, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed legislation essentially exempting most housing and mixed-use projects from CEQA....more
Originally enacted in 1970, the objective of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was to review projects to assess potential impacts on the environment, disclose those impacts to the public, and mitigate those...more
Part one of a three-part series - Governor Gavin Newsom signed two sweeping budget trailer bills, Assembly Bill 130 (AB 130) and Senate Bill 131 (SB 131), into law on June 30, 2025, enacting meaningful changes to the...more
Key Takeaways - - AB 130 and SB 131 were recently passed by the California Legislature and signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, enacting the most significant reforms to CEQA in recent years. - AB 130 establishes a new statutory...more
Introduction - Last week, California enacted the most significant reforms to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) since the mid-1970s. On June 30, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 131 and Assembly Bill 130...more
On June 30, 2025, Governor Newsom signed two budget trailer bills into law: Assembly Bill 130 and Senate Bill 131, which reform the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) effective immediately. As explained by the...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—most significantly by introducing a new...more
On June 30, 2025, Governor Newsom signed into law a sweeping set of housing and infrastructure reforms as part of the 2025–2026 State Budget, marking one of the most significant overhauls of the California Environmental...more
In the summer of 2024, the State Assembly Select Committee on Permitting Reform began convening public hearings, interviews, and forums to understand how to reform land use permitting to address California’s ongoing “housing...more
Various state housing bills are currently making their way through the California State Legislature that are expected to benefit mixed-income multifamily housing developers. The following summaries reflect the status of the...more
AB 2243 (Wicks) amended AB 2011 effective January 1, 2025. As explained in our prior legal alert, AB 2011 provides for “by right” streamlined ministerial (i.e., no CEQA) approval of qualifying mixed-income and affordable...more
SB 684 and SB 1123 (Caballero) expand the Starter Home Revitalization Act to further facilitate the construction of “starter” home projects consisting of up to 10 dwelling units (not exceeding an average of 1,750 net...more
This year, over fifty bills were introduced in the Legislature that directly addressed a CEQA issue. Many died in committee, or failed to make it out of their respective houses. The vast majority of those that advanced sought...more
On May 29, 2025, the Supreme Court held that the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) — which requires federal agencies to analyze the environmental impacts of projects that they carry out, fund, or approve — does not...more
“Recent federal actions limiting the Council on Environmental Quality’s (CEQ) authority under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) have created an uncertain regulatory landscape, with less clarity on how agencies will...more
The Trump administration last Wednesday proposed to loosen federal protections for endangered species. A draft rule from the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) would...more
President Trump issued an executive order this Tuesday taking aim at state and local climate change laws and policies, including California’s landmark market program for reducing greenhouse gases. The order directs U.S....more
As part of a continued effort to expedite rebuilding after Los Angeles' devastating firestorms, Governor Gavin Newsom this week suspended California environmental laws for utility providers working to reinstall key...more
In a show of bipartisan and bicameral unity, California lawmakers on Tuesday unveiled a sweeping 20-bill legislative package aimed at overhauling the state’s housing development process. Branded as the “Fast Track Housing”...more
Senator Scott Wiener is back with another bill – SB 79 – to provide for streamlined ministerial (i.e., no CEQA) approval of qualifying housing development projects near transit across California. For qualifying projects...more
In part one of the Housing New Laws series from Best Best & Krieger LLP (BBK), attorneys cover important new housing legislation for 2025 that updates the Housing Accountability Act and relates to housing development fees....more
The “California Assembly Select Committee on Permitting Reform Final Report – March 2025” (the “Report”), published earlier this month, sounds an alarm bell regarding the need to overhaul the state’s “failed approach to...more