Legislation
Streetsblog California
A State Legislator Is Really Proposing to Slash Fines for Running a Red Light to Turn Right
State Senator Jerry Hill (D-Millbrae) has been earning a lot of attention recently for a proposal to slash the fine for drivers turning right at a red light without stopping. This move seems particularly heartless considering California's streak of leading the country in traffic fatalities, nearly a quarter of which were pedestrians. Failure to yield is one of the top five causes of traffic crashes.
January 28, 2016
Governor Signs Bill to Ease Parking Requirements for Affordable Housing
Governor Jerry Brown had a Sunday deadline to sign legislation or veto it. Late in the day on Friday he signed Assembly Bill 744, which allows affordable housing developers to build less parking than many local zoning regulations currently permit.
October 12, 2015
The Next Step in Getting Rid of Level of Service: Coming Soon
After several years of work, the Governor's Office of Planning and Research (OPR) is almost ready to release draft guidelines on replacing vehicle Level of Service measures under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The shift was called for by Senate Bill 743, which passed late in the 2013 legislative session.
October 9, 2015
Dems, Repubs Far Apart on Solving CA Transportation Funding
The California legislature held its first joint special session on transportation funding just before the holiday weekend. The session was called by Governor Jerry Brown when he and the legislature punted some big decisions so they could sign a budget before the June 30 deadline.
July 6, 2015
Amended Hit-and-Run Alert System Bill Sails Through Committee
After last week's warning that Assemblymember Mike Gatto's legislation to create a "Yellow Alert" system was imperiled by Senate Transportation and Housing Committee staff and the California Highway Patrol's (CHP) objections, there was a feeling of a looming showdown before today's committee hearing. Assembly Bill 8 would create a system to use electronic road signs and the emergency alert system to notify people when a deadly hit-and-run crash occurred to help apprehend suspects. A similar system has proven effective in Colorado.
June 30, 2015
CA Budget Revision Shows No Increase for Active Transportation
Governor Jerry Brown's “May revise” of his January budget plan, released yesterday, did not include any increases in funding for the Active Transportation Program (ATP), the main source of funds for building bicycling and pedestrian infrastructure in California.
May 15, 2015
Assembly Committee Moves Bill to Delay Level Of Service Phase-Out
Buried in a five-hour long meeting of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee yesterday, a short discussion ended in a vote to move legislation that will delay the state's shift away from car-centric planning.
April 29, 2015
Interview: Mike Gatto Talks Hit and Runs and Why Jerry Brown Will Get Behind a “Yellow Alert” System
Last week, I conducted a phone interview with Assemblyman Mike Gatto, best known to Streetsblog readers for his tireless work fighting for tougher laws to prevent hit and run drivers. While Gatto's efforts have proven popular with safety advocates, his center piece legislation to create a statewide hit and run alert system was vetoed last session by Governor Jerry Brown after sailing through the Assembly and Senate.
April 22, 2015
Bill Asking for Delay in CEQA Reform Guidelines Amended But Alive
An attempt by large developers to undermine promised reforms to the state's landmark environmental review law (CEQA) is winding its way through the Assembly.
April 21, 2015