Region: California
Congress to Intervene in the PACE Saga?
California Attorney General Jerry Brown’s lawsuit against the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) for its stance on the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program may be moot if Congress can act to force FHFA to back down. Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) has now introduced legislation in the House of Representatives that would bar FHFA and …
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CONTINUE READINGBreaking News: Jerry Brown Sues FHFA and Fannie & Freddie over PACE
As I suspected, we’ve got a lawsuit over the Federal Housing Finance Administration (FHFA) and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac’s position on Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE). (Background on PACE and the controversy here.) California Attorney General Jerry Brown announced today that his agency is suing these entities in federal court over their unwillingness to …
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CONTINUE READINGClassic Villaraigosan Environmental Policy
EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson was in Los Angeles today, announcing an official EPA finding that Compton Creek, a portion of the Los Angeles River, is a “navigable water” of the United States. This finding means that Compton Creek can receive the protection of the Clean Water Act: most prominently, it means that any attempts to …
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CONTINUE READINGAnti-AB 32 Campaign Should Be Interesting
The ballot initiative to suspend the implementation of California’s landmark greenhouse gas legislation — which qualified for the ballot last week — should garner huge amounts of attention and spur job growth at least in the world of ballot campaigns. The California Public Policy Institute is predicting that proponents and opponents of the initiative (which …
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CONTINUE READINGDeath of a water bond?
In an about-face, Arnold Schwarzenegger and California legislative leaders have called for removal of the $11.1 billion water bond from the November ballot and trying again in 2012. The legislature agreed last fall to put the measure on the ballot as part of what was billed as a comprehensive water reform package. Now, faced with …
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CONTINUE READINGHow Green is High-Speed Rail?
Life cycle costs can be a buzz kill. Just when you think you’ve got a great environmental solution, such as going paperless and doing everything digitally, or installing double-paned windows to make a home more energy efficient, you find out that manufacturing these supposedly environmentally-friendly technologies can create waste that offsets some of their “green” …
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CONTINUE READINGWhy the San Fernando Valley Ruined Everything
Jonathan is right that the San Fernando Valley is trying its best to maximize the land use around its two subway stations, considering the slow pace of legalizing these developments. But part of my problem with the extension of the subway to the San Fernando Valley is not just the land use around the two …
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CONTINUE READINGDon’t Give Up on the San Fernando Valley!
Ethan is surely right when he notes that MetroRail ridership in the San Fernando Valley: 1) isn’t as high as it should be; and 2) this results in part from a lack of leadership on land use. But I wouldn’t write the Valley off just yet. First, recall that there are only two Valley stations …
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CONTINUE READINGThe Environment and the California AG Race
My original plan was to do four posts, each covering a major party candidate for Governor or Senator. But the California Attorney General race is also significant in environmental terms. Under Jerry Brown and his predecessor Bill Lockyer, the AG has been a major player on environmental issues — in particular, providing national leadership on …
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CONTINUE READINGBarbara Boxer and the Environment
This is the fourth and final installment in a series about the environmental views of candidates for major office in California. (The others covered Meg Whitman, Jerry Brown, and Boxer’s opponent Carly Fiorina.) Boxer’s environmental views are easy to summarize: she’s very green. Her campaign site lists a long list of environmental accomplishments. It’s also …
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