New California Law Aims to Fast-Track Affordable Housing by Exempting Some Projects From Environmental Lawsuits

A new California law co-authored by South Bay Assemblymember David Alvarez, D-San Diego, is intended to speed up construction of certain affordable housing developments by shielding them from the California Environmental Quality Act, known as CEQA.

The measure, AB 1449, adds a CEQA exemption for affordable housing projects in dense urban areas where rents are capped at just under a quarter of the Area Median Income. In San Diego County, that works out to roughly $2,300. Housing experts describe the law as part of a growing push by state lawmakers to accelerate homebuilding across California.

"We are trying to support cities that want to do the right thing," Alvarez said. "That want to build affordable housing, that want to do it quickly, that want to do it cheaper. And this law would help them do that."

The speed of construction lies at the center of the state's housing shortage. Development has failed to keep pace with population growth, deepening inequality and pushing more people into homelessness. The San Diego region is feeling some of the sharpest effects: this month, Zillow put the median rent in the city of San Diego at just under $3,200, almost $1,200 above the national median. Valerie Stahl, a professor of urban planning at San Diego State University, said the local situation "really embodies the housing crisis that we're seeing across the state of California, and across the country writ large."

Some lawmakers increasingly assign part of the blame to CEQA. Enacted in 1970 as the environmental movement emerged, the law requires state and local agencies to study the potential environmental effects of proposed projects, share their findings with the public and work out ways to prevent or offset any harm. It also lets residents enforce the law by asking a court to order developers to carry out a more thorough environmental review.

That provision has given communities facing environmental hazards some legal leverage, but it has also let some opponents of housing delay new homes around the state. This year, several San Diego groups used it in an attempt to block a city effort to add housing near public transit. Stahl said accounts differ on how common such challenges are, but developers often cite even the possibility of a CEQA lawsuit as a deterrent.

Michael Massie, chief development officer of Southern California-based Jamboree Housing, said his company does not view CEQA as a primary obstacle. "But sometimes the processes of it and really more the threat of legal action to defer (development projects) are the real problems," he said. Major affordable housing developers statewide have voiced support for AB 1449, arguing it could expedite many projects. "The more that we can reduce the number of challenges, the less friction there is in developing affordable housing, the more housing we're going to get built," Massie said.

Some environmental advocates have warned against broad changes to CEQA. In a memo, the California Environmental Justice Alliance argued that speeding up or scaling back environmental reviews would disproportionately harm poor residents and communities of color. Even so, AB 1449 drew little opposition. The one organization that argued against it was the State Building and Construction Trades Council of California, which said the law should include stronger worker protections.

Alvarez said he hopes the law will bring relief to the state and to the San Diego region. "As a father, someone who wants to see my kids have a place to live in California, we need to address this crisis," he said.