California Changes to New Housing Construction Regulations Initiative (2024)
| California Changes to New Housing Construction Regulations Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 5, 2024 | |
| Topic Housing | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
The California Changes to New Housing Construction Regulations Initiative (#23-0025) was not on the ballot in California as an initiated state statute on November 5, 2024.
The initiative would have authorized only district attorneys or the state attorney general to invoke the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) when filing a suit to stop a proposed housing project. It would also have limited development fees charged by local jurisdictions to 3% of the combined construction cost plus the labor of a new home and created a fund to help experienced construction workers with a down payment on a house in the state.[1][2]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[3]
| “ | Limits environmental lawsuits challenging new housing construction. Caps development fees on new housing. Initiative statute.[4] | ” |
Petition summary
The summary provided for inclusion on signature petition sheets was as follows:[3]
| “ | Prohibits private parties from filing lawsuits challenging new housing construction based on alleged non-compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Authorizes only district attorneys to file such lawsuits, as well as the Attorney General if the project is located in multiple counties. Caps fees that local and state agencies may impose on builders for construction of new homes and related infrastructure. Caps do not apply to regulatory costs authorized by statute, school district fees, bond repayments, or costs of providing utility service and roadway access to new homes.[4] | ” |
Fiscal impact
The fiscal impact statement was as follows:[3]
| “ | Reduced local government development fee revenue, likely at least hundreds of millions of dollars per year, and potentially exceeding $1 billion per year. Uncertain, but potentially significant, savings to state and local governments as a result of lower project costs due to fewer CEQA lawsuits being filed against public projects.[4] | ” |
Full text
The full text of the initiative can be read here.
Path to the ballot
The state process
In California, the number of signatures required for an initiated state statute is equal to 5 percent of the votes cast in the preceding gubernatorial election. Petitions are allowed to circulate for 180 days from the date the attorney general prepares the petition language. Signatures need to be certified at least 131 days before the general election. As the verification process can take multiple months, the secretary of state provides suggested deadlines for ballot initiatives.
The requirements to get initiated state statutes certified for the 2024 ballot:
- Signatures: 546,651 were required.
- Deadline: The deadline for signature verification was 131 days before the general election, which was around June 27, 2024. However, the process of verifying signatures can take multiple months and proponents are recommended to file signatures at least two months before the verification deadline.
Signatures are first filed with local election officials, who determine the total number of signatures submitted. If the total number is equal to at least 100 percent of the required signatures, then local election officials perform a random check of signatures submitted in their counties. If the random sample estimates that more than 110 percent of the required number of signatures are valid, the initiative is eligible for the ballot. If the random sample estimates that between 95 and 110 percent of the required number of signatures are valid, a full check of signatures is done to determine the total number of valid signatures. If less than 95 percent are estimated to be valid, the initiative does not make the ballot.
Details about this initiative
- The initiative was filed on September 7, 2023, by Stephen Hilton.[2]
- The initiative was cleared for signature gathering on November 9, 2023.[2]
- The campaign submitted signatures to counties for verification.[2]
- The campaign did not submit the required number of signatures to the counties.[2]
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ California Attorney General's Office, "Full text," accessed September 8, 2023
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 California Secretary of State's Office, "List of petitions," accessed May 12, 2023
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 California Secretary of State, "Initiatives and Referenda Cleared for Circulation," accessed October 20, 2021
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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