State Capitol Updates
Streetsblog California
Governor’s Budget Revision: Nothing New for Transportation
Governor Brown issued his May revision of the state budget proposal, and in terms of transportation, it's pretty much the same story we told in January. That is, he proposes a variety of new revenues, including a “road improvement charge” and higher gas taxes, to fix California's transportation infrastructure.
May 13, 2016
Beall Proposal Tries To End California Transportation Funding Stalemate
Last year, Governor Brown called a “Special Session” to prod the California legislature to find solutions to what seemed an intractable problem: how to fund transportation needs in the state. Some bills were introduced, some hearings were held, but the biggest result of all the ballyhoo is a confirmation that the problem is, indeed, intractable.
April 28, 2016
California Legislative Update: Bikes, Transit, Environmental Justice, More
Today is the deadline to pass any policy bills that have a fiscal impact out of all California legislative committees, so the last two weeks have seen a flurry of long hearings. Here's a quick recap of pertinent bills.
April 22, 2016
Transportation Equity Bills Defeated in Assembly Transpo Committee
Two bills that had the potential to increase equity in transportation planning died yesterday for lack of support.
April 19, 2016
Bill to Eliminate Free Parking Could Help Disabled People Find a Spot
Assemblymember Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles) has introduced a bill that would require some people with disabled parking permits to pay, rather than park for free as long as they want. If it works, A.B. 2602 could free up parking spots for every driver, including disabled people who most need them. It could also potentially discourage some driving by people who now park free for as long as they like.
April 14, 2016
Transportation Committee Hears Bills: Active Transpo, High-Speed Rail, More
A marathon hearing in the Assembly Transportation Committee yesterday was a sign of looming deadlines in the California legislature. It was also an illustration of the strange and sometimes surreal world in which California's laws are debated and created.
April 12, 2016
CA Transportation Funding Should Reflect State Goals
Transportation funding in California has, as SBCA readers must know by now, reached a “crisis.” Shrinking gas tax revenues, combined with an increasing reliance on local sales taxes limited to specific transportation projects, have left our overbuilt and under-maintained highways, roads, and bridges without enough funds to keep them in a basic state of good repair.
April 7, 2016
A Few Good Bills
Continuing our coverage of bills making their way through the California legislative session, today we're highlighting some bills that we like. Some of these will likely be heard first at the Assembly Transportation Committee this Monday, April 11.
April 5, 2016
A Few Bad Bills
The California legislature is back from spring recess and the process of hearing and arguing about bills is beginning in earnest. In the next few days, Streetsblog California will talk about some exciting bills coming up that may need your support.
March 31, 2016
Santa Monica Lawmaker Takes Aim at California’s Housing Shortage
California State Assemblymember Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica) has set his sights on tackling the dire shortage of homes—and the resulting affordability crisis—currently facing the state.
March 16, 2016