Board of Directors

Hina Gupta is an attorney with Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP, where she focuses her practice on land use, environmental, real estate, CEQA, and NEPA compliance matters. For APA California and APA California–Northern planning professionals, Hina offers a distinctive blend of planner insight, environmental review experience, and practical legal judgment. Her preparation for this work includes a J.D., with honors, from The George Washington University Law School; a Master of Planning from the University of Southern California; and a B.A., with distinction, in Urban Planning from the School of Planning and Architecture in New Delhi, India. She was also a Dean’s Merit Scholar at USC’s Sol Price School of Public Policy and served as Managing Editor of The George Washington University Law School’s Journal of Energy and Environmental Law.

With a foundation in urban planning and prior experience preparing CEQA and NEPA documents for infrastructure and transit projects, Hina understands the real-world pressures planners face when balancing community goals, environmental stewardship, public process, housing and economic development, and legally defensible decision-making. Today, she advises public agencies, private developers, institutions, and project teams on land use entitlements, zoning, CEQA, NEPA, the California Coastal Act, municipal governance, brownfield redevelopment, renewable energy and energy storage siting, permitting, administrative proceedings, and litigation risk. Her professional standing is reflected in recognitions including Best Lawyers in America©, Ones to Watch, Land Use and Zoning Law, and Super Lawyers Northern California Rising Star, Land Use/Zoning; as well as her service through the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Fellows Program and environmental, land use, real estate, energy, and climate-focused professional organizations.

Hina is especially well suited to serve on the Board of Directors as Legislative Director because she sits at the intersection of planning practice, public agency governance, environmental law, and development implementation. She understands how proposed legislation and regulatory changes affect planners on the ground—from CEQA streamlining and housing production to infrastructure delivery, climate resilience, energy siting, public process, and defensible local decision-making. Her education, recognitions, writing, and leadership experience demonstrate both subject-matter depth and a commitment to professional service. As Legislative Director, Hina would bring a collaborative, solutions-oriented voice to the board, helping planners stay informed, engaged, and represented in conversations that shape the future of planning in California.

Hina would be honored to support Northern members by helping elevate planners’ voices in legislative and policy discussions, strengthening connections between law and planning practice, and advancing thoughtful, equitable, and implementable planning solutions across California.