Roll Back of California Environmental Quality Act- (CEQA)

Photo by Josh Withers on Unsplash

California just stripped environmental reviews from many housing, infrastructure, and industrial projects—aiming to speed up construction and lower costs. Backers say it's needed to ease the housing crisis; critics say it guts public accountability and risks harm to vulnerable communities.

This law, California Environmental Quality Act, (CEQA) has been in affect for nearly 50 years and has allowed environmentalists to slow suburban growth as well as given neighbors and disaffected parties a powerful tool to stop projects they found objectionable.

Governor Newsom signed into law two new bills AB130 and SB 131 that will scale back the scope of this historic law with the hope that it will help create more housing by limiting the beaucratic hurdles to help build more housing and help address homelessness.

Who is affected?

Photo by Joe Holland on Unsplash

1. Infill housing in cities (AB130)  – Apartment projects built in already-developed neighborhoods (under 20 acres) no longer must go through CEQA reviews.

2. Other projects (SB131) – Also exempted are things like child-care centers, health clinics, food banks, farmworker housing, broadband, wildfire prevention work, water infrastructure, parks/trails, and high-tech factory construction in industrial zones.

3. Legal strategy: They also narrowed what courts can review and limited internal agency records in lawsuits, making challenges harder.

Comparison of CEQA Before & After

Category	Before (Old CEQA)	After (New CEQA Changes)
Urban Housing Projects	Required full CEQA review	Exempt if under 20 acres and follow zoning
Infrastructure (e.g., broadband)	Full CEQA required	Many projects now exempt
Industrial/Manufacturing Projects	Full review + possible lawsuits	Exempt in some zones with wage/labor rules
Lawsuit Power	Public could sue broadly	Lawsuits are harder to win, records access limited
Review Time & Cost	Could take years, cost millions	Aimed to be much faster and cheaper
Environmental Oversight	Broad and mandatory	Narrower, fewer projects under review

• Supporters say this balances smart development with responsible oversight, helping solve the housing crisis and speed up key infrastructure.

  
  

• Critics argue this weakens environmental protection and limits public voice—especially in vulnerable communities.

Much remains to be seen how how the impacts of the changes and does it really help to increase housing. This is definitely a set back for the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) groups that are trying to limit high density growth outside of urban centers.