California Justice Center attorney Julie Hamill compares Governor Newsom's leadership style with the list of grievances against King George outlined in the Declaration of Independence.

California Justice Center attorney Julie Hamill examines the existential question: What is the point of government?

California Justice Center attorney Julie Hamill explains the need for her substack, A Republic If You Can Keep It.

Community development staff at public agencies throughout California have had the rug pulled out from under them repeatedly over the last few years. Long standing norms and laws are now subject to constant changes - from small tweaks to sweeping reforms. Just as cities were settling in to the latest standards and requirements, our legislators in Sacramento are once again changing the rules of the game.

This post addresses only a handful of new bills - it is not exhaustive by any means. Through these bills, the legislature wants to prohibit local agencies from allowing owner-occupancy requirements for ADUs, shorten the time period a local agency has to approve or deny a JADU, and require property owners to give a right of first refusal to residential tenants (among other things).

Californians have good reason to be concerned about infringement of their constitutional rights, and should take action to ensure they are not further limited. Governor Newsom declared a state of emergency in March 2020, and nearly two years later, Governor Newsom continues to unilaterally extend the state of emergency with no end in sight. Governor Newsom and his public health director Dr. Mark Ghaly proclaimed the California Department of Public Health has the authority to continue issuing lockdown, mask and vaccination orders indefinitely regardless of any state of emergency declaration.[35] Newsom and Democratic legislators have even expressed an interest in revising the recall powers of the people after his embarrassing recall election in September 2021.[36] The recall power is included in the same Article of the California Constitution as the referendum and initiative – these are critical powers reserved to the people, and we need to guard them and protect ourselves from losing complete control over the institutions that we allow to exist.

Why am I writing about this, at the risk of alienating clients over what has become a hot-button political topic? I write because under the sensational polarized madness we see in the media, there are millions of rightfully concerned parents spanning the full political spectrum who want to help their children, but have no idea what to do or how to start. Every time I speak at a meeting, parents I’ve never met reach out to me to show me pictures of their children’s facial rashes, to cry about the institutionalization of their children for anxiety, depression, and eating disorders, to express fear over the financial burden they’ve taken on because they had to send their kids to private school, to vent frustration over the cruel and nonsensical rules that have essentially turned our schools into sterile, prison-like environments. I want to help you.

This week, housing advocates challenged SB 10 in court, and the Ninth Circuit struck down a sweeping District Court injunction against the City and County of Los Angeles relating to the homelessness crisis.

Less than 48 hours after surviving the recall, Governor Newsom signed SB 9 and SB 10 into law. YIMBYs rejoice. Local government staff, local elected officials, affordable housing advocates, and people who fled dense neighborhoods for more open space and comfortable living conditions panic.

This week, SB 9 and SB 10 passed both houses of the State Legislature and made it to Governor Newsom’s desk. A couple of interesting new decisions came down regarding evidence in support of wrongful eviction and violation of a rent stabilization ordinance, and federal grazing laws.

Big news this week. SB 10 passed on the Assembly Floor August 23, and SB 9 passed on the Assembly Floor on August 26. Both SB 9 and SB 10 need a final vote in the Senate, at which point the Governor has a month to decide whether to sign or veto the bills. Also on August 26, the United States Supreme Court ended the CDC eviction moratorium.

SB 9 goes to another committee vote this week, the CEC adopted new building standards, the Tournament of Roses filed a notice of appeal, the Oakland A’s will get expedited review for the Howard Terminal ballpark project, and the CDC eviction moratorium lives on (for now).

This week we talk about the Hyperion sewage spill, LA’s anti-camping ordinance, and the LA County Assessor’s plea to get you to shut up and accept your excessive tax assessment.

This was a quiet week for land law. It brought us an appellate decision upholding the Coastal Commission’s setback requirements and basement prohibitions on a blufftop property, a 9th Circuit rejection of an environmental challenge to immigration policies, and an announcement from PG&E that the company plans to underground 10,000 miles of power lines in high fire areas.

This week we have more federal case law relating to the CDC’s eviction moratorium, a dismissal by the District Court of the Tournament of Roses Association’s case against the City of Pasadena, and the death of AB889.

There are a few new updates this week, one of the biggest being President Biden’s selection of LA Mayor Eric Garcetti to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to India. Not directly land law related, but certainly of interest to those in the business of real estate in Los Angeles. If Garcetti is confirmed by the Senate, LA will have to find a new mayor. City Council President Nury Martinez would automatically assume the role of acting mayor. The City Council would then need to call a special election or appoint someone to the position. The mayoral primary will take place in June 2022, and the council is unlikely to schedule a special election before then.

We’ve survived another wild week in California. Here’s what happened in land law: