local control
California gets most of the attention, but states all over the country are removing some of the vestiges of local control to help spur housing development, require affordable housing, and control the skyrocketing cost of housing.
Pew Stateline
It received a lot of press, but ultimately California's Senate Bill 827 went nowhere. Now, the state senator who introduced the bill is working with advocates who opposed it on another version that just might have better chances.
Curbed Los Angeles
Under a law signed today by Governor Jerry Brown, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) gains the power to rezone its properties. It's a decisive victory for state preemption over local control in the face of California's housing crisis.
San Francisco Chronicle
The American Housing and Economic Mobility Act probably has no chance of passing into law, but it's still the most substantial gesture toward housing policy by a member of Congress since the subprime crisis of 2008.
The Atlantic
A new state law meant to overcome local barriers to development is having its first big test run in Cupertino, California.
The Mercury News
Blog post
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development devoted an entire issue of a quarterly newsletter to land use regulations and the idea that local laws are strangling the nation's supply of affordable housing.
Detroit has been fighting some of the provisions of a statewide voter initiative while trying to control an expected proliferation of pot shops around the city.
Detroit Free Press
The Los Angeles Times editorial board has strong words for the Los Angeles City Council about planning for transit oriented development.
Los Angeles Times
California State Sen. Ben Allen has authored SB 961 to finance optional neighborhood infill TOD districts, with support from fellow legislators. Redondo Beach Mayor Bill Brand is considering an initiative to protect local zoning.
The Planning Report
Though the California housing bill was a high-profile failure for pro-development activists, there are initiatives all over the country that carry its spirit.
CityLab
Blog post
Why local governments can not always be trusted to run housing policy.
Even before the bill was defeated, it exposed a major generational divide between anti-development environmentalists and their pro-density, pro-housing heirs.
San Francisco Magazine
SB 827, the controversial housing bill proposed by State Senator Scott Wiener, had a very brief run in the California State Legislature.
Curbed LA
Earlier this week, the Louisiana State Senate approved SB 462, which preempts local authorities from approving inclusionary zoning.
The New Orleans Advocate
Despite the increasing number and intensity of natural disasters, some vulnerable states are relaxing building regulations and leaving the federal government to pick up the tab when tragedy strikes again.
Bloomberg
Republicans in the Tennessee State Legislature made sure Nashville will never know if its inclusionary zoning policy would have delivered affordable housing in the city.
Tennessean
The effect of SB 35 on development projects in California might be more significant than YIMBYs have imagined, after a second project forges ahead confident in the support of state law for a large development.
The Mercury News
The mission of the National League of Cities is to advocate for cities—and the organization is now gathering evidence to push back on growing amount of state preemption of local control.
CitiesSpeak
Most deployment of 5G "small cells" won't get any resistance from federal regulations.
VentureBeat
Conor Dougherty, a Bay Area-based New York Times economics reporter, and Brad Plumer, a Times climate reporter, team-up to tackle the controversy surrounding SB 827 that has hit a raw nerve with groups that purport to support the bill's goals.
The New York Times
