By Reuben Duarte, Vice President for Policy and Legislation Lauren De Valencia, APA California Lobbyist
Bills, Bills, Bills!
The Legislature introduced over 2,350 bills for the 2025 Legislative Session, and we are now off to the races! APA California has identified 300 of interest to planners, with several rising to the top. Proposals to address the housing and homelessness crisis continue to be a focus, along with proposals to assist LA County on fire recovery efforts, and a broader look at land use and fire- related issues. There are several permit streamlining related proposals on the table and many related to CEQA. APA California continues to engage with legislators, staff and other organizations sponsoring bills to gather more information and provide initial feedback. To help inform these discussions, the Chapter’s Legislative Team continues to meet with Section Legislative Representatives monthly to review legislation, focusing on those proposals we anticipate engaging on and are likely to have broad impact on planners statewide.
As we develop positions on bills moving in the Legislature, APA California will share position letters on important bills, so stay tuned. Note that even if you don’t see a position letter on a particular bill, that doesn’t mean we aren’t working on it. We often work in advance of taking a position to try and address concerns where possible. In fact, we are doing this as we speak!
APA California Participates in Assembly Informational Hearings
One of APA California’s Technical Advisors, Tom Pace, participated in the Assembly Local Government Committee’s informational hearing on an “Introduction to the General Plan”, where Tom discussed roles, responsibilities and challenges to updating the General Plan and what the state can do to help. This was a great opportunity to highlight challenges planners are facing at the local level with capacity and resources to implement laws passed year over year, and point out that not everything belongs in the General Plan. A recording of this hearing is available here.
APA California was also invited to participate in a joint hearing of the Assembly Committees on Emergency Management, Housing and Community Development and Economic Development, Growth, and Household Impact. This hearing was focused on “Recovering and Rebuilding after the Los Angeles Wildfires”. A recording of this hearing is available here.
Stay Connected on Legislation
If you’re interested in receiving updates on legislative and regulatory issues from the Chapter’s Policy and Legislation Team, please join here. Have questions on policy and legislative related issues, including bills and regulations? APA California members are welcome to reach out to the VP for Policy and Legislation at policy@apacalifornia.org.
APA California’s Work in the Legislature
APA California has a robust legislative program at the Chapter level that engages with the California Legislature. The Policy and Legislation team includes an elected VP for Policy and Legislation, two appointed Legislative Technical Advisors, and a Lobbyist retained by the Chapter. The team engages directly with APA California Section Legislative Representatives from each of the 8 Sections within the Chapter to discuss feedback on legislation and other relevant issues regularly throughout the year. To view the Policy and Legislation team, visit the Board of Directors page.
APA California actively engages in many bills throughout the year. In fact, we work closely with legislative and committee staff on amendments and clarifications to bills before taking a position. As an organization, APA California is often asked to provide feedback on planning related bills and provide technical expertise, giving a voice to planners and an opportunity to help shape legislation. This is a valuable role that the Chapter works hard to maintain. More broadly, we will continue to discuss the work planners are doing at the local level to implement and keep up with all the planning related bills that pass year over year and how that relates to the cumulative impact of bills on the table this year. We also continue seek opportunities to suggest tangible ways, absent fiscal resources at the state level, that the Legislature can help to make implementation more successful and support the planning community.