UN4LA News - July 2025
Current events and commentary published monthly by United Neighborhoods for Los Angeles.
UN4LA’s mission is to bring communities together to plan for a sustainable future. Growth must be shaped by community engagement, not developer dollars.
NEWSOM AND STATE LEGISLATURE GUT CALIFORNIA ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ACT
In a stunning display of contempt for the democratic process, Gov. Gavin Newsom and the State Legislature worked behind closed doors to insert language in the state budget bill that guts the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Echoing the claims made by the real estate investors who have contributed generously to his campaign, Newsom argued that CEQA was preventing California from building enough housing to address affordability issues, but in fact, less than 3% of housing projects face CEQA litigation.
While Newsom and his supporters claimed that lowering housing costs was the primary reason for hacking away at CEQA, the new language adopted provides exemptions for a number of other project categories, including high-speed rail and semiconductor manufacturing plants. Environmental groups are especially concerned about factories that make semiconductors for two reasons. First, they require vast amounts of water, and California’s water resources are already under significant stress. Second, they are major producers of toxic waste, and Silicon Valley already holds 23 sites with significant concentrations of hazardous waste.
In the article below from KQED, Matt Baker, of the Planning and Conservation League, is quoted saying, “Side-stepping the legislative process in a fast-track budget deal that has had zero transparency for such significant changes to the one law that gives our communities voice in the planning decisions that affect them is just simply a disgrace to our democracy.”
California Lawmakers Approve Major Overhaul of Landmark Environmental Law
L.A. CITY CHARTER COMMISSION MOVING FORWARD
Spurred by a series of ethics scandals at City Hall, Mayor Bass and the Los Angeles City Council created the Charter Reform Commission (CRC) in August 2024 with the stated purpose of improving the way government serves the people. The LA City Charter is the basic legal document that governs the way the city operates and how its officials do their work. The CRC will review the entire charter, but it will also focus on certain issues recommended by the council, including:
• Expanding the number of council districts;
• Revising the city’s budget process;
• Better defining the process for censuring or suspending elected officials;
• Revising the city’s contracting process.
The CRC will meet at least twice a month in public meetings subject to the Brown Act. The CRC’s recommendations will be sent to the City Council by the beginning of April 2026 to be put on the November 2026 ballot for approval by voters.
About the Charter Reform Commission
The only way to bring about meaningful reform is for LA’s citizens to get involved. You can attend meetings of the Charter Reform Commission and submit comments for their consideration. Neighborhood council leaders and members should pay particular attention to any suggested changes to the sections of the charter pertaining to the governance of the citywide system of neighborhood councils. Click on the link below to get updates and to learn how you can participate.
Charter Reform Commission: Submit Comments, Get Updates and Explore Resources
Unrig LA, a local ethics group, already sees problems with the way the process is unfolding.
Don't miss this opportunity to change the City of LA for the better.
JUDGE DECLINES TO ORDER RECEIVERSHIP FOR L.A. CITY HOMELESS PROGRAMS
In a mixed outcome for both sides, US District Judge David O. Carter handed down an order that could have far-reaching impacts on how the City of LA’s efforts to address homelessness are managed. Carter denied the request by plaintiff LA Alliance for Human Rights to place the city’s homelessness programs in receivership, but ordered the city to give a third-party monitor unfettered access to the city’s homelessness data as a way of forcing LA to comply with its obligations.
Judge Declines to Take Power over LA Homeless Programs Away from City Leaders
But beyond the specific actions it requires, Carter’s order offers a fascinating analysis of what he calls “a decades-long record of systemic dysfunction.” While the first nine pages give a breakdown of how the litigation has progressed, starting on page 10 the judge dives deep into the history of chronic failure by the City of LA, the County of LA, and the agency they created together, the LA Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA).
“For nearly twenty years, oversight bodies have repeatedly identified the same fundamental failures: poor fiscal oversight, inadequate contract management, and a chronic inability to ensure accountability for public funds. Each report has reinforced a troubling pattern: that rather than taking accountability and making changes, the longstanding deficiencies have been left to persist and deepen.”
Order Re Plaintiffs’ Motions for Settlement Compliance
CONTROLLER FINDS PROBLEMS WITH CITY OF L.A.’S OVERSIGHT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING
In June, LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia released an audit that found significant problems with the City of LA’s oversight of its affordable-housing portfolio. The report found that 13% of the city’s covenanted affordable housing units were not in compliance with rent/income limits, and that 33% were not compliant with the LA Housing Department’s requirements.
Affordable Housing Oversight Audit by LA City Controller
CITY OF L.A. UPDATES IMPORTANT GENERAL PLAN ELEMENTS
The LA Department of City Planning (DCP) is updating the two General Plan elements related to health & environmental justice and open space. The General Plan is the city’s basic planning document and creates the framework for future development. These two elements are required by state law, and the way they are written could have huge impacts on the city’s communities. The main page for these updates can be found here.
Environmental Justice Policy Work Programs
Use the tabs at the top to navigate the various sections.
A preliminary draft of the Health & Environmental Justice Element is already available, and the DCP is accepting comments. You may want to skip their comment form, because it is cumbersome and appears to limit responses to what the city wants to hear about.
You can also submit comments using this e-mail address: planning.envjustice@lacity.org
No draft of the Open Space Element is available yet, but this is also important to watch. According to the Trust for Public Land, there are serious inequities when it comes to public access to parks in the City of LA.
