The Homework: June 18, 2025
Welcome to the June 18, 2025 Main edition of The Homework, the official newsletter of California YIMBY — legislative updates, news clips, housing research and analysis, and the latest writings from the California YIMBY team.
News from Sacramento
Committee Season In Full Swing
We’re a little more than halfway through the legislative season for 2025, and all bills that have passed their first chamber are now being heard in the second house. That means all of our Assembly bills are being considered in the Senate, and our Senate bills are now in the Assembly.
Here’s the current status of California YIMBY-sponsored bills:
- SB 79 (Wiener): Will make it faster and easier to build multi-family housing near transit stops, like train and rapid bus lines, by making it legal for more homes to be built in these areas, and streamlining existing permit review processes.
- Tentatively set for the Assembly Housing Committee on July 2nd.
- AB 1061 (Quirk-Silva): Makes it easier to increase the number of homes—including duplexes—in single-family neighborhoods by allowing the California HOME Act (SB 9, 2021) to be used in historic districts.
- Passed the Senate Housing Committee, now heads to the Senate Local Government Committee.
- AB 609 (Wicks): Creates a CEQA exemption for environmentally-friendly housing located in existing urban areas (“infill housing”).
- Still pending a hearing date.
- AB 253 (Ward): Speeds up the approval process for new homes by allowing home builders to hire a licensed and certified third-party reviewer for review of housing permit applications if the local government cannot or does not complete their permit review within 30 days.
- Scheduled to be heard in the Senate Local Government Committee on July 2nd.
- AB 1154 (Juan Carrillo): Removes owner-occupancy requirements for “junior” ADUs (ADUs built within an existing home) that do not share sanitation facilities with the existing structure. It will also exempt small ADUs under 500 square feet from parking requirements, similar to existing exemption for JADUs.
- Still pending a hearing date.
- SB 9 (Arreguín): Ensures that local laws governing the construction of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) align with state law, and provides a pathway to eliminate unlawful local barriers to ADUs.
- Passed the Assembly Housing Committee, now heads to the Assembly Local Government Committee.
- AB 413 (Fong): Requires the California Department of Housing & Community Development (HCD) to translate key state housing guidelines and handbooks into the non-English languages commonly spoken in California.
- Passed the Senate Housing Committee, now heads to the Senate Appropriation Committee.
- AB 1308 (Hoover): Speeds up the post-entitlement process by requiring building departments to provide estimated timeframes for permit inspections and allowing applicants to contract with private professionals for inspections.
- Scheduled to be heard in the Senate Local Government Committee on July 2nd.
To stay current on what housing bills California YIMBY is sponsoring and supporting, you can now use our Abstract link to track with us.
Be sure to stay tuned for future editions of The Homework (and follow California YIMBY’s Twitter and Bluesky channels), to stay current on housing policy research, news, and legislative updates.
Housing Research & Analysis
System Failure: The Hidden Rot in America’s State & Local Governments
New York’s Second Avenue Subway costs 12 times more per mile than similar projects in Paris and Madrid. That astronomical price tag reflects a deeper problem plaguing governments across America, where housing costs spiral out of control and basic infrastructure becomes impossibly expensive.
While the media focuses on federal policy, state and local governments—the ones that control your daily life through building permits, school budgets, and road repairs—are quietly failing at their most basic jobs.
New research from Nicholas Bagley (U. Michigan) and David Schleicher (Yale) reveals the root cause. These governments are trapped in a destructive cycle where voters can’t hold officials accountable, bureaucratic red tape strangles even simple projects, and rigid budget rules force cuts precisely when communities need help most.
Key Takeaways:
- Most voters have too little awareness of local governance to hold state and local officials accountable, and base their votes entirely on national party preference.
- State administrative procedures often exceed federal requirements in complexity; 16 states impose additional environmental review laws.
- State and local governments face constitutional balanced budget requirements that force harmful service cuts during recessions, creating a cycle of deferred maintenance and underinvestment.
Taller Buildings Near Transit Would Cut Austin’s Affordable Housing Costs by $2.5 Billion
Legalizing apartment buildings along Austin’s planned light-rail lines could save the city $2.5 billion in affordable housing subsidies while helping meet urgent housing goals, according to a University of Texas study.
Due to soaring demand, median housing costs in Austin jumped 71% between 2010 and 2022 to $565,000. Meanwhile, as the city builds out its $7.1 billion “Project Connect” transit system, it faces the question of how to meet its ambitious affordable housing goals: 60,000 subsidized homes over 10 years, with 75% built along transit corridors.
In his study “Making TOD Equitable,” UT graduate student Aodhan Hemeon-McMahon found that tax increment financing could cover a significant share of the housing subsidy by capturing increased property values near transit stations.
Key Takeaways:
- Under 2022’s zoning rules, subsidized housing along Austin’s transit corridors would require $8 billion in subsidies ($933,000 per home); available funds fall short by hundreds of homes.
- Allowing denser, mixed-income buildings near transit would cut costs by 53% to $439,000 per affordable home.
- Special financing districts could generate $2.3-$7.6 billion by 2045 and, if combined with zoning changes, could potentially cover the required housing subsidies.
Houser Headlines
- Senate Bill 79 will take L.A. where it needs to go
- Why reforming California’s bedrock environmental law is good for the environment
- California lawmakers push for CEQA reforms to address housing crisis
- Third times the charm: Wiener’s transit housing bill clears Senate for first time
- After half a century, California legislators on the verge of overhauling a landmark environmental law
- New homes with no parking? LA City Council considers ending parking requirements
- Will the Creation of a Historic District in San Francisco Hold Back New Housing?
- Legislators should look to Sacramento as a test case on housing reform
- Should San Diego reduce its minimum size requirement for most residential lots?
- How Trump’s Tariffs and Immigration Policies Could Make Housing Even More Expensive
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