By now most of us have been here ourselves: Gavin Newsom鈥檚 press team texted reporters last night to say that the governor has COVID 鈥� describing his symptoms as mild and later saying he鈥檒l isolate for at least five days.
He鈥檇 better rest up, given the number of political battles on his to-do list. Among them: another .
On Tuesday, the city council in the Orange County city, a regular fount of anti-Newsom sentiment, followed through on its pledge to pass an ordinance .
The as-yet untested law, known as 鈥�,鈥� allows developers to construct what they like where they like 鈥� so long as 20% of the new units are affordable 鈥攊n any city that鈥檚 defying state-set housing production goals.
Defiers such as Huntington Beach.
- : 鈥淭here are currently approximately 280 cities out of housing compliance鈥et Huntington Beach is being picked on鈥�. We鈥檙e the focus of enforcement while the other 280 cities aren鈥檛.鈥�
- Councilmember Natalie Moser, who voted no: 鈥淲ell, we鈥檙e passing an ordinance that goes against state law. That would be a reason to pick on us.鈥�
Gates is right that hundreds of cities and counties across the state have yet to provide housing plans that pass muster with state regulators 鈥� .
But Moser is also correct in noting that Huntington Beach has been uniquely bold-faced about it.
- A subtler approach: Though the Marin County city of Sausalito is known for its houseboats, its housing plan 鈥� which listed among the local sites for possible development dozens of parcels that were, in the words of one developer, 鈥溾�� 鈥� has raised the eyebrows of pro-housing advocates. While the state reviews the city鈥檚 plan,
For its more flagrant approach, Huntington Beach is all but certain to wind up in court too. That will be a return to form: In one of his first actions as governor, for failing to permit enough housing in 2019.
Just a few weeks ago, Attorney General Rob Bonta warned the city to abandon its planned ban, warning that his office was 鈥�.鈥� After Tuesday鈥檚 vote, the governor鈥檚 office struck a similarly ominous tone:
The leaders of Huntington Beach refuse to build their fair share of housing and are flagrantly breaking state law.
— Office of the Governor of California (@CAgovernor)
These actions are selfish and make our homeless crisis worse.
The city has tried these antics before. They lost then and they will lose now.
From Alejandro Lazo, a reporter with CalMatters鈥� California Divide project:
Should the state with the and some of the country鈥檚 most expensive housing markets enshrine ?
And what would that even mean?
San Francisco , backed by a coalition of civil rights groups and anti-poverty activists, including the American Civil Liberties Union, is hoping to spark that debate this year in California.
Haney is reintroducing a proposed originally introduced by former Assemblymember Rob Bonta, now the state鈥檚 attorney general. That measure went nowhere in the midst of the pandemic but Haney hopes it will gain traction now.
- Haney: 鈥淭he right to privacy, the right to pursue liberty and happiness. None of that is possible if you don鈥檛 have access to housing.鈥�
No other state has enshrined a right to a home in its constitution, though 鈥� which state courts have interpreted to mean that anyone who does not have a place to sleep can at least get a bed in a shelter.
The California proposal could be a tough sell: It would need to be passed by two-thirds of the Legislature before it is put on the statewide ballot.
It would not guarantee that the government would provide free housing for all Californians, Haney said, nor would it require the state budget to spend all of its resources on housing.
What it would do: Give housing advocates more leverage in the courts. It could also give the state attorney general another stick with which to jab local governments that are failing to meet their .
- A page from history: After courts ruled that New Yorkers had a right to shelter, the city to build out a multi-billion dollar shelter network.
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