The California State Supreme Court recently upheld the eradication of the state's roughly 400 redevelopment agencies, and now officials from those groups are trying to convince legislators to give back some of their spending powers.
One specific desire is to regain the ability to build low-income housing.
"Some local officials predict that if the Legislature doesn't act within the next month, there will be a flurry of lawsuits, as well as layoffs and further economic stagnation. The court's decision could affect everything from police services in Oakland to a planned walkway to the ocean in Santa Monica.
But there is no simple political path to saving redevelopment and the $5 billion in property tax revenues it generates each year for local coffers, much of which is used to stimulate private development.
A spokesman for Gov. Jerry Brown, who sought the money to plug a gaping hole in the state budget, described redevelopment as something the state can no longer afford and dismissed local officials' gloomy rhetoric as 'exaggerated and often untrue.'"
Thanks to Nate Berg
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