Land Use Archives - Legal Planet

Land Use

By Our Powers Combined, We Are Captain Planet

Facing climate disasters, the GCF Task Force is putting the network theory of governance into practice.

I don’t need to tell you that the last several months have seen an increasing number of climate-related disasters, including severe heatwaves throughout Europe and droughts that are impacting water supply and reducing ship passages through the Panama Canal. This year’s super El Niño has exacerbated the ongoing fires across Indonesian Borneo. It is projected …

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A summary of BACA

An overview of my analyses of Proposition 45

I’ve written a lot on the Cal Chamber sponsored initiative to dramatically change CEQA, BACA, which is Proposition 45 on this year’s ballot. Here are some key takeaways from what I’ve written, as well as links to the relevant blog posts. First, BACA will not just apply to CEQA. It broadly expands vested rights and …

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A Warning to Local Planners in California

If Proposition 45 is passed, you may get blindsided by projects you cannot stop. You may want to prepare yourself.

A lot of the debates over BACA, the Cal Chamber supported initiative to fundamentally change CEQA (Proposition 45 on the ballot) focus on the initiative’s impacts on CEQA. But from a local government and planning perspective, I would argue that far more important are the sweeping vested rights provisions in the initiative. As I noted …

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Insurance Law and Wildfire

Providing a federal backstop for wildfire insurance in return for state and local reforms

This blog post was co-authored with Dave Owen, at UC Law SF. The draft article this blog post series is based is here. This is the sixth in a series of blog posts on our proposal to reform wildfire law in the United States. The first post is here. The second post is here. The …

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Land-Use Law and Wildfire

Creating incentives for local and state governments to manage development in high-risk areas

This blog post was co-authored with Dave Owen, at UC Law SF. The draft article this blog post series is based is here. This is the fifth in a series of blog posts on our proposal to reform wildfire law in the United States. The first post is here. The second post is here. The …

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A Mile High Solution To Housing Affordability?

Denver skyline with tall buildings, green trees in the foreground, and snow-capped mountains in the background under a clear blue sky.

Want to expand the availability of deed-restricted affordable units? Build market-rate ones!

One of the most dispiriting debates in housing policy and land use concerns the relative merits of deed-restricted affordable versus market-rate housing. YIMBY advocates argue building more market-rate units will eventual filter down and expand affordability; many on the Left argue that market-rate housing reduces the availability of land for deed-restricted affordable units. Eunisses Hernandez …

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The Challenges of Wildfire

Why wildfire management is so difficult to reform

This blog post was co-authored with Dave Owen, at UC Law SF. The draft article this blog post series is based is here. This is the second in a series of blog posts on our proposal to reform wildfire law in the United States. The first post is here. Why is fire such a hard …

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Fixing Wildfire Law

The urgent challenge of reforming how we manage wildfire

This blog post was co-authored with Dave Owen, at UC Law SF. The draft article this blog post series is based is here. Every year brings another reminder of why fire is at the top of environmental and natural resource issues for the United States, and how our legal system struggles to adjust to fire. …

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Dear 2026 1L

A large, diverse group of people sits and stands on outdoor steps, smiling and posing for a group photo in front of a building on a sunny day.

Today’s entering law students are preparing to start careers at a critical time for the environment.

Welcome to law school. You’re beginning your life in the law at a critical time. What we do together between now and 2035 will determine what your lives look like in 2050 and 2080, and what your children and grandchildren will see in the next century. So, grab your books, get yourselves ready, and be prepared to head for the legal trenches when you graduate. No time to waste!

The Limits of Implementation for BACA

Potential practical limits on the scope of the initiative to rewrite CEQA

I’ve done a lot of analysis of the potential scope of the Cal Chamber initiative on the ballot this fall to fundamentally rework CEQA. However, I also want to highlight a range of constraints that I think will limit the practical impact of the initiative. In doing so, I do not want to minimize the …

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Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.

The Drain is a roundup of climate and environmental news from Legal Planet delivered to your Inbox once a week.

The Arguments We Did and Didn’t Hear in Suncor v. Boulder

Oral arguments in the climate case before the Supreme Court gave hints to possible outcomes. But one of Boulder’s strong answers to the “tort suits are regulation” objection went unmade.

Why Does Chevron Want Karen Bass to Win Re-election?

The Drain is a roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

Permitting Wars

Environmental groups should engage constructively with permitting reform

How to Deconstruct Federal Regulation

Section 1401 of the Permitting Reform Bill is a stealth repeal of a wide swath of federal regulatory law, not just environmental law

Improving permitting reform

Suggestions to make the permitting reform bill work better and avoid unintended results

NEPA Remedies Revisited

Guest contributor Justin Pidot writes that the permitting bill known as BAAJA would end judicial review of most NEPA claims — but it sure is hard to figure that out.

Land Use

Facing climate disasters, the GCF Task Force is putting the network theory of governance into practice.

An overview of my analyses of Proposition 45

If Proposition 45 is passed, you may get blindsided by projects you cannot stop. You may want to prepare yourself.

Providing a federal backstop for wildfire insurance in return for state and local reforms

Creating incentives for local and state governments to manage development in high-risk areas

Want to expand the availability of deed-restricted affordable units? Build market-rate ones!

Why wildfire management is so difficult to reform

The urgent challenge of reforming how we manage wildfire

Today’s entering law students are preparing to start careers at a critical time for the environment.

Potential practical limits on the scope of the initiative to rewrite CEQA

Join Our Mailing List

Climate policy is changing rapidly. Stay in the loop with expert analysis via email Monday - Friday.

The Drain is a roundup of climate and environmental news from Legal Planet delivered to your Inbox once a week.

TRENDING

The Drain is a roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

All my posts (to date) on the permitting reform bill before the Senate

Drawing a false dichotomy between procedure and substance does not lead to good policy

Environmental groups should engage constructively with permitting reform

This October, we officially celebrate the coal and oil industries. Says President Trump.

What can we expect if Dems flip the governorships in red states?

Section 1401 of the Permitting Reform Bill is a stealth repeal of a wide swath of federal regulatory law, not just environmental law

Suggestions to make the permitting reform bill work better and avoid unintended results

Guest contributor Justin Pidot writes that the permitting bill known as BAAJA would end judicial review of most NEPA claims — but it sure is hard to figure that out.

The permit certainty provision in the permitting reform bill appears to (inadvertently) change the basic standard for enforcement of most federal law

Oral arguments in the climate case before the Supreme Court gave hints to possible outcomes. But one of Boulder’s strong answers to the “tort suits are regulation” objection went unmade.

The Drain is a roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

Environmental groups should engage constructively with permitting reform

Section 1401 of the Permitting Reform Bill is a stealth repeal of a wide swath of federal regulatory law, not just environmental law

Suggestions to make the permitting reform bill work better and avoid unintended results

Guest contributor Justin Pidot writes that the permitting bill known as BAAJA would end judicial review of most NEPA claims — but it sure is hard to figure that out.

The permit certainty provision in the permitting reform bill appears to (inadvertently) change the basic standard for enforcement of most federal law

Concerns about passing 1.5C and ‘global dimming’ are driving attention to the prospect of large-scale interventions in Earth systems.

The Drain is a roundup of environmental and climate news from Legal Planet.

NEPA provisions are substantial in their changes, but (mostly) leave the core of the Act in place