Bill Talk: Major proposals paused, Cap-and-Trade talks begin (kind of)

A weekly update from Cal Cities, sorting through the state bill buzz

By Cal Cities Staff

This Friday, July 18, lawmakers and Sacramento’s cadre of staffers, lobbyists, and politicos will officially break for summer recess. The Legislature will reconvene on Aug. 18 to shepherd any remaining bills to appropriations, cross their fingers, and prepare for floor votes. As a reminder: The vast majority of bills that make it to the floor pass. Gov. Gavin Newsom usually vetoes around one in five bills on average.

Speaking of appropriations: State officials have assigned high costs to Cal Cities’ sponsored sober living and housing planning bills. The latest estimate for AB 650 (Papan) is at $11.1 million annually. Cal Cities is monitoring how the state’s Medicaid-sized budget hole could impact Cal Cities’ remaining sponsored bills.

Sen. Catherine Blakespear also pressed pause on two key measures aimed at addressing homelessness this legislative session. The outcome is a mixed result for Cal Cities, which will work closely with the senator to address cities’ concerns before the bills resurface next year for consideration.

Like last year, Cal Cities will break down the biggest pending bills by issue area in the newsletter over the summer. If you want to get the low down on all those bills in a rapid-fire format, be sure to sign up for the July 29 briefing, when Cal Cities’ legislative team will cover the bills in 90(ish) minutes.

-Brian Hendershot, Cal Cities Advocate managing editor

Homeless planning and encampment bills shelved for the year

Sen. Catherine Blakespear parked SB 16 for the year after opposition from Cal Cities and other homeless and affordable housing advocates. Over 50 organizations came out in opposition to SB 16 after Blakespear changed it to impose significant, new requirements to access the Homeless Housing, Assistance, and Prevention (HHAP) Grant Program. The senator decided to make SB 16 a two-year bill, meaning it could still move forward next year.  

Cal Cities opposed SB 16 because it was introduced at the tail end of the legislative session and created new long-term planning goals without reliable, long-term HHAP money to carry out these plans.

Another Blakespear bill — this one co-sponsored by Cal Cities — is also now a two-year bill. SB 569 would increase communication between the Department of Transportation and local governments to address encampments on state property. Caltrans suggested amendments that would undermine the intent of the proposal. Cal Cities is working with the committee and Caltrans to determine a path forward next year.

 - Caroline Grinder, legislative advocate

Key housing bills likely headed to appropriations

The Senate Appropriations Committee placed AB 650 (Papan) on the suspense file. Sponsored by Cal Cities, the bill would allow cities to begin the housing element review process six months earlier than existing law and provide further clarity in the housing element review process. The Department of Housing and Community Development would need to provide specific text and analysis in its feedback to help cities bring their housing elements in line with state law. This additional clarity would likely result in a reduction in long-term costs for both the state and local governments.

The Assembly Local Government is currently reviewing SB 79 (Wiener). Opposed by Cal Cities, the bill would force cities to approve by-right tall, dense residential housing near specific transit stops without public engagement, environmental review, or consideration for state-certified housing elements. The measure evolves daily, as several stakeholders are heavily engaged on the bill: Sen. Scott Wiener has adopted 10 rounds of amendments so far. Should the measure pass this week, it will head to the Assembly Appropriations Committee next. 

- Brady Guertin, legislative advocate

Cap-and-Trade bills set for next week, but full debate still to come

Although the Legislature will hear two Cap-and-Trade bills, AB 1207 (Irwin) and SB 840 (Limón), this week, the proposals are expected to advance as simple accountability and reporting measures. The full Cap-and-Trade reauthorization negotiations will likely start when the Legislature returns from summer recess in mid-August. Cities can help bring valuable Cap-and-Trade dollars back to their communities back to their communities by submitting a support letter to their legislators.

- Melissa Sparks-Kranz, legislative advocate

Cal Cities-sponsored bill to boost enforcement of unlawful sober living homes

The Assembly Health Committee approved the Cal Cities-sponsored SB 35 (Umberg) on Tuesday. The measure would enhance the Department of Health Care Services' (DHCS) oversight of sober living homes that violate licensing laws. SB 35 would require DHCS to meet specific timelines for investigating allegations of unlicensed treatment services, enable counties to work with the department to conduct site visits to enforce licensure laws themselves, and require follow-up site visits to ensure unlawful activity has stopped.

 - Caroline Grinder, legislative advocate

Members encouraged to act on warehouse clean-up bills

Two bills that would revise the controversial warehouse standards law from last session had their final committee hearings this week. The law creates restrictions on new or expanding warehouses and requires all cities to update their circulation elements to account for these changes — including truck movement. Cities that fail to do so could face $50,000 fines every six months from the Attorney General. The Senate Judiciary heard AB 735 (Carrillo) on July 15. SB 415 (Reyes) is awaiting a hearing in Assembly Local Government today.

Cal Cities secured important revisions to both bills earlier this session and is urging the authors to  adopt further changes. Cal Cities is asking lawmakers to let cities develop a plan or ordinance rather than a circulation element update, which would trigger additional general plan updates under the same timelines. Cal Cities is also urging lawmakers to exempt cities from the circulation element update if they are not approving new or expanded logistics use projects and to address the now problematic expansion in fees that the Attorney General thrust onto local governments. Cities should submit letters to both committees in advance of the hearings expressing concerns about the continued need for clean-up legislation.

- Melissa Sparks-Kranz, legislative advocate

A quick reminder

Bill Talk is a weekly breakdown of the biggest bills, policy committee hearings, and legislative deadlines that city leaders need to know about. To get this list on Monday morning, contact your regional public affairs manager. To access old Bill Talks, visit the archive page. Cal Cities also maintains a live list of all sponsored/hot measures. Lists of all tracked bills are available on individual policy pages.