A sea change for housing

Presented by Southern California Edison: Inside the Golden State political arena

Aug 17, 2023 View in browser   By Dustin Gardiner, Lara Korte and Sejal Govindarao Presented by Southern California Edison DRIVING THE DAY: Violent crime is down in Los Angeles, but many Angelenos are still anxious due, in part, to high-profile incidents like the recent ransacking of several luxury retailers. Mayor Karen Bass is holding a press conference today to address the smash-and-grabs. Read more on the other ways she’s been tackling crime during her first year, from our colleague Melanie Mason.  Crowds on the beach in Santa Monica, Calif. Many communities near the coast could see denser housing built under a measure proposed by state Sen. Scott Wiener. | AP   SUBSCRIBE TO CALIFORNIA CLIMATE: Climate change isn’t just about the weather. It's also about how we do business and create new policies, especially in California. So we have something cool for you: A brand-new California Climate newsletter. It's not just climate or science chat, it's your daily cheat sheet to understanding how the legislative landscape around climate change is shaking up industries across the Golden State. Cut through the jargon and get the latest developments in California as lawmakers and industry leaders adapt to the changing climate. Subscribe now to California Climate to keep up with the changes.     THE BUZZ — HOME BY THE SEA: The Coastal Commission has long held an almost revered status in state politics, the official manifestation of Californians' deeply-held belief that all 840-miles of the coast should be protected and publicly accessible. But the commission’s power faces an unprecedented challenge as some lawmakers say its special status clashes with another California value: a desire to build more housing. At the center of the debate is Senate Bill 423, which would allow far more apartment and condo towers along the coastline. It could lead to urban areas of the coast looking more like Miami and Fort Lauderdale where high rises proliferate near the sea. The bill’s traction — despite intense pushback from local governments and environmental groups — has illustrated the growing clout of lawmakers aligned with the Yes-in-My-Backyard movement. The bill’s popularity with the wider public remains to be seen. State Sen. Scott Wiener and Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, Bay Area Democrats who each chair the housing committees in their respective chambers, are pushing the bill to streamline development of multi-family buildings in coastal communities where the state determines local governments haven’t built enough new housing. SB 423 would only apply to coastal urban areas zoned for multi-family housing. Property owners would still be required to maintain public access to beaches. The bill has faced a torrent of opposition from groups arguing it strips communities of local control and doesn’t put proper limits on construction in areas prone to sea-level rise or wildfires. They say SB 423 would primarily allow luxury towers in coastal areas, not affordable housing. The coastal zone — a few blocks wide in most urban areas to up to five miles inland in rural parts of the state — has long been exempt from housing streamlining rules. SB 423 would remove that exemption. The bill received a jolt of momentum this month. The coastal commission, which initially opposed the bill, said it would adopt a “neutral” status after Wiener agreed to an amendment to prevent construction in more areas vulnerable to sea-level rise. Wiener also mustered enough votes to get the bill out of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee in July. In the process, he rolled Chair Luz Rivas, a Democrat from Los Angeles who channeled the commission’s objections (a feat he pulled off with the help of three GOP lawmakers). Many Capitol insiders see the bill’s momentum as a bullish moment for the YIMBY movement. Rarely have lawmakers dared to interfere with the commission’s control over what gets built in the coastal zone, a power rooted in a 1972 initiative passed by voters. “It’s indicative of how dramatically housing politics have shifted over the last five, six years,” Wiener told Playbook. “Buffy and I are the tip of the iceberg. There are so many housing champions now in both houses.” HAPPY THURSDAY. Thanks for waking up with Playbook.  PLAYBOOK TIP LINE — What are you keeping an eye on? What do you expect to be the fight of the next few weeks in the California legislature? Let us know. Now you can text us at ‪916-562-0685‬‪ — save it as “CA Playbook” in your contacts now. Or drop us a line at lkorte@politico.com and dgardiner@politico.com, or on Twitter — @DustinGardiner and @Lara_Korte    A message from Southern California Edison: Southern California Edison is taking steps every day to protect the safety of our customers and communities. By installing coated wires, upgrading our electric infrastructure, investing in new technologies and strengthening our partnerships with fire agencies, we can prevent wildfires before they happen, better predict when they may occur and respond quickly if one starts. Protecting 32 million acres in Southern California and the people that live here is how SCE is thinking ahead.   WHERE’S GAVIN? Nothing official announced. PHOTO OF THE DAY: California Labor Federation leader Lorena Gonzalez being escorted out of the Capitol swing space by law enforcement after she and other members of SEIU Local 1000 blocked the doors during a protest over contract negotiations with the state. Sacramento City Councilmembers Katie Valenzuela and Caity Maple were also detained.  FRESH INK Republican state Sen. Shannon Grove, center, speaks to reporters in Sacramento, Calif., on Thursday, July 13, 2023. Her bill on trafficking of minors is winding its way through the Assembly’s appropriations committee. | AP TRAFFIC UPDATE — Republican Sen. Shannon Grove’s controversial human trafficking bill overcame another hurdle Wednesday, but could still be blocked before the entire body gets a chance to vote on it. Grove’s bill, SB 14, would add sex trafficking of minors to the list of crimes that are defined as serious under California law, making the offense a strike under the Three Strikes law. The bill passed unanimously in the Senate, but hit several snags in the lower chamber. Prior to the summer recess, some Democratic members of the Assembly Public Safety Committee voted it down, raising concerns that the bill could inadvertently punish victims and expand a law that criminal justice reform advocates called “deeply flawed.” Republicans and some Democrats — including, critically, Gov. Gavin Newsom — decried the committee’s decision. Chair Reggie Jones-Sawyer then brought it back before his members, who passed it upon reconsideration. The bill went before members of the Assembly Appropriations committee on Wednesday and, despite requests from Grove and other Republicans to pass it outright, was placed on suspense file — the typical procedure for a bill with a price tag over $150,000. We’ll now have to wait a few weeks to see if SB 14 makes it out of appropriations on suspense, a rapid-fire hearing where members decide the fate of hundreds of bills in a single day. Grove, in a statement following the hearing, said she hopes members will take into account “the basic services associated with the life-long rehabilitation of victims and survivors of this brutal crime.” “There is no price tag that can be placed on a victim of human trafficking, especially a child,” she said. TRY AGAIN — GOP consultant Carl DeMaio is again proposing a ballot initiative to create a stringent statewide voter ID law. The measure is all but certain to fail in Democratic-dominated California. But how much money could DeMaio’s Reform California raise in the process of trying to collect more than 546,651 signatures?   A message from Southern California Edison:   WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY — “8 months after storms, California disaster relief slowly flows to undocumented workers who lost homes, income,” by CalMatters’ Nicole Foy: “Gov. Gavin Newsom promised $95 million would help undocumented workers rebuild after winter storms and floods. Months later, $18 million is being doled out and there are translation issues with the state’s website.” — “Hydrogen fuel cell cars are here. But good luck trying to fill one up,” by the Los Angeles Times’ Russ Mitchell: “Fuel station reliability remains a big problem. Not so much the mechanics, but the supply. Stations are often completely out of fuel, and sometimes sit that way for days.” — “8 detained during California union protest over state worker contract standoff in Sacramento,” by The Sacramento Bee’s Maya Miller: “Officers were seen moving in to handcuff at least eight demonstrators, including Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, a former lawmaker who leads the California Labor Federation, and Sacramento Councilwomen Katie Valenzuela and Caity Maple.   GROWING IN THE GOLDEN STATE: POLITICO California is growing, reinforcing our role as the indispensable insider source for reporting on politics, policy and power. From the corridors of power in Sacramento and Los Angeles to the players and innovation hubs in Silicon Valley, we're your go-to for navigating the political landscape across the state. Exclusive scoops, essential daily newsletters, unmatched policy reporting and insights — POLITICO California is your key to unlocking Golden State politics. LEARN MORE.     Playbookers TRANSITIONS — Brian Garcia will join the Congressional Hispanic Caucus as comms director. He most recently has been comms director for Rep. Juan Vargas (D-Calif.). BIRTHDAYS — (was Wednesday): AP's Martha Mendoza (was Tuesday): Rachel Sterne Haot … Debra Messing   A message from Southern California Edison: Evolving climate conditions throughout California have made wildfires a year-round concern to many communities. With safety as our number one priority, we are working to protect our customers and communities. Our engineers, field crews and fire science experts are developing and implementing industry-leading technologies and operational practices to reduce the risk of electrical equipment igniting wildfires. We’ve invested $1.3 billion in 2020 and are on track to spend an additional $3.5 billion in 2021-2022 to continue to prevent wildfires and act quickly when they occur. This includes installing coated wires, strengthening situational awareness capabilities, and expanding operational practices like enhanced overhead inspections and vegetation management. We’re also improving fire agencies’ ability to detect and respond to emerging fires using satellite imagery and providing aerial fire suppression resources. That’s how SCE is thinking ahead.   CALIFORNIA POLICY IS ALWAYS CHANGING: Know your next move. From Sacramento to Silicon Valley, POLITICO California Pro provides policy professionals with the in-depth reporting and tools they need to get ahead of policy trends and political developments shaping the Golden State. To learn more about the exclusive insight and analysis this subscriber-only service offers, click here. Want to make an impact? POLITICO California has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Golden State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause you’re promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness amongst this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: jshapiro@politico.com.   Follow us on Twitter Dustin Gardiner @dustingardiner Lara Korte @lara_korte POLITICO California @politicoca   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Ottawa Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

To change your alert settings, please log in at https://www.politico.com/_login?base=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.politico.com/settings This email was sent to rouf@idiot.cloudns.cc by: POLITICO, LLC 1000 Wilson Blvd. Arlington, VA, 22209, USA Please click here and follow the steps to unsubscribe.