Sacramento Report: Ballot Measures Take on Housing Crunch
Two initiatives would pave the way for home construction by easing the threshold to fund new public housing and infrastructure, and deleting part of the state constitution that requires a vote on low-income housing. The post Sacramento Report: Ballot Measures Take on Housing Crunch appeared first on Voice of San Diego.
As California grapples with a crushing housing shortage, two ballot measures would change the way local governments authorize or pay for affordable housing and other public infrastructure projects.
One of the measures would lower the threshold for local governments to pass new taxes to support infrastructure and affordable housing. Another one would eliminate a provision of the state constitution requiring voter approval for “low-rent housing.”
California initiatives can come to a vote in two ways: proponents can gather signatures, or lawmakers can pass bills to place them on the ballot. Both of these measures were proposed by the legislature.
Assembly Constitutional Amendment 1, introduced by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, D-Winters, would lower the threshold to raise local taxes for projects such as roads, water facilities and affordable housing. Under current law it takes two-thirds of voters to pass that kind of tax increase. The ballot measure would drop that to 55 percent: the same standard required for local school bonds.
The measure specifies that the money can only be used to construct new facilities and not to pay public salaries or operating costs. It also requires annual performance and financial audits, and mandates citizens’ oversight committees to make sure funds are used properly.
If it passes, it could pave the way for local measures including a proposed San Diego City Council measure to drum up funds for stormwater improvements in the wake of January’s catastrophic floods.
Senate Constitutional Amendment 2, proposed by state Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, would scratch Article 34 of the state constitution, which requires a majority of voters to authorize a city or county government to build or buy a publicly funded “low-rent housing project.”
“The history of Article 34 is a dark history,” Allen told me. “And it was all about trying to make it harder for construction of low-income housing for GIs.”
Article 34 passed in 1950, in response to President Harry Truman’s Fair Deal to help lower-income families move into better homes. It allowed communities to put the brakes on housing developments they feared would bring undesirable neighbors. The Los Angeles Times reports that it was driven by fears of racial integration and discrimination against poor people.
Think of it as the original “NIMBY” clause in the state constitution.
“Today, Article 34 stands as an antiquated and expensive constitutional barrier that subjects local governments to a web of regulations and costly elections,” a FAQ sheet on the measure states.
California has affordable rental homes for only about one in five extremely low-income households, it adds, and most renters in the state spend more than 30 percent of their income on housing.
At the time Article 34 passed, California lacked many of the public transparency laws that allow residents to weigh in on projects in their communities. Now, the California Environmental Quality Act allows ample opportunity for public comment on new construction. And the Brown Act requires governments to make those decisions publicly.
So residents have other options to air their views on new housing projects, aside from voting on them. In practice, the constitutional amendment is rarely invoked; many affordable housing projects are funded through tax credits instead of direct public funding, so they’re not subject to a vote.
But the amendment remains on the books, and could still be deployed to scuttle badly needed housing projects, Allen said.
“The current inclusion in the state constitution is a bit of a stain on the constitution,” Allen said.
Oceanside Pier Fire: San Diego Calls for Aid; Will Newsom Answer?
A group of San Diego lawmakers are pleading with Gov. Gavin Newsom to help rebuild the fire-damaged Oceanside pier, saying they are “devastated” by the blaze.
The pier was badly damaged after a fire erupted on the historic structure last week. On Wednesday the city of Oceanside declared a local emergency, arguing that could speed funding for repairs.
The same day San Diego state Senators Catherine Blakespear, Steve Padilla and Brian Jones, and Assembly members David Alvarez, Brian Maienschein, Laurie Davies and Tasha Boerner, called on Newsom to step in.
“Since the late 19th century, the Oceanside Pier has served as a landmark of our
coastal identity and maritime heritage in Southern California,” they wrote. “Rebuilding the historic pier as quickly as possible is paramount and will likely require financial support from the State of California.”
Gaza Protests Test Limits of Free Speech on Campus
Campus protests over the war in Gaza have heated up around the county, forcing lawmakers and other leaders to thread the needle between free speech and campus safety.
In San Diego, protestors with Students for Justice in Palestine organized a walkout at San Diego State University Tuesday, calling for the university to divest from companies involved with Israel’s war efforts. And on Wednesday pro-Palestinian demonstrators set up an encampment at UC San Diego to protest the war.
Actions at UCLA and Columbia University have led to fierce clashes between protestors, counter-protestors and police, but so far similar conflicts haven’t been reported in San Diego.
Senate Minority Leader Jones, R-San Diego, and Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, called for revoking state funding to universities that don’t prevent violent conflicts on campus, and said the state should cut aid to students suspended for their involvement.
“Violence and illegal activity of any kind is NOT protected by the First Amendment,” Jones said in a statement.
I couldn’t find any statements from local Democrats about campus protests, but Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur, D-Hollywood, said university leaders and security staff in Los Angeles failed miserably at preventing violence between pro-Palestinian protestors and counter-protestors.
The Sacramento Report runs every Friday and is part of a partnership with CalMatters. Do you have tips, ideas or questions? Send them to me at deborah@voiceofsandiego.org.
The post Sacramento Report: Ballot Measures Take on Housing Crunch appeared first on Voice of San Diego.