New Study Highlights Importance of Council’s Permitting Reform Efforts to Fast-Track Housing

A new study about the difficulty of building new housing in California highlights the importance of work the Bay Area Council is doing to cut through the thicket of permitting requirements and other bureaucratic obstacles that contribute to the state’s persistent housing shortage and affordability crisis. The study by Rand found that California is the most expensive state for building multifamily housing; that it takes 22 months longer to complete a new project in California than in Texas; that local impact and development fees are up to 20 times higher than other states; and that overall astronomical production costs mean California builds far fewer units per dollar than most other states.

The Council last year partnered with Assemblymember Buffy Wicks in her role as Chair of the Select Committee on Permitting Reform to identify the root causes for California’s stunted and costly housing production. And this year, we’re proud to be sponsoring several bills in a larger package of legislation unveiled by Assemblymember Wicks and other legislators to eliminate red tape. We’re working now in Sacramento to advocate for passage of these bills to make it easier, faster and less costly to build the housing our state needs. To engage in the Council’s housing policy work, please contact Vice President Louis Mirante.