SB 51: the California politics thread

I would like to be able to take the train from Seattle to LA in less than two entire days so please do build that train

based on this week's charter school discussion, threads where everyone is an amateur are more "fun" than when there are posters that actually know shit

NB I'm not saying how to do it I'm just asking

i want this train to have a smoking car, like, if they don't have a smoking car, I kinda don't care as much

relevant:

https://medium.com/@parismarx/high-speed-rail-from-los-angeles-to-vancouver-f67c81ef9afd

I understand and agree with banning smoking on planes because you can't really isolate the smoke, but on a train, you totally can.

a train that starts operating in 2050-california will probably not have a smoking car

...but it might have a vaping car ;)

xpost It seems that some people hold the view that this project, or public-works projects in general, need to be economical in a closed-system sense. That is, when you open it up and set up a fare gate you should get your money back.

But that's not how a whole lot of public-works projects we rely on and consider successful work. I don't think this needs to meet that criteria.

It's not dumb to run the train through the route they're building on. It was a conscious decision. It may not meet goals a person agrees with, but that doesn't mean those goals are the only ones that matter.

I understand and agree with banning smoking on planes because you can't really isolate the smoke, but on a train, you totally can.

― sarahell, Friday, November 30, 2018 2:32 PM (three minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

but people have to work on a train

worth reading about this project: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High_Speed_2. obviously the politics are different but the political imperatives (people want the economic and social benefit of trains without the tracks and the trains) are the same.

i see the argument(s!) for going through the central valley (spread the wealth, simpler engineering problems), but infrastructure that encourages the urbanization of somewhere that is going to be 120+ °F on the reg is not necessarily a point in its favour.

basically i'm saying the train should go through the central valley but not stop there (half joking)

xpost It seems that some people hold the view that this project, or public-works projects in general, need to be economical in a closed-system sense. That is, when you open it up and set up a fare gate you should get your money back.

But that's not how a whole lot of public-works projects we rely on and consider successful work. I don't think this needs to meet that criteria.

It's not dumb to run the train through the route they're building on. It was a conscious decision. It may not meet goals a person agrees with, but that doesn't mean those goals are the only ones that matter.

I think you're conflating two criticisms here. public transit is rarely economical and shouldn't be, but projects in america also end up costing considerably more than they do in other countries and we shouldn't just gloss over that forever.

the path that its taking was a political price we probably had to pay. there are winners and losers from these choices.

i'll be dead by 2050 so really idgaf

^ smoker

projects in america also end up costing considerably more than they do in other countries and we shouldn't just gloss over that forever.

This is more expensive to build in CA than it would be elsewhere regardless of route. I think focusing on the route is a distraction from looking at other issues that cause this to be the case. If we can fix those, we have better hopes of having more public transit here.

SB 827 is back and it's now SB 50

https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-housing-transit-bill-20181204-story.html

Wiener made three major changes to the bill that aim to soften opposition from tenant groups and their allies that helped torpedo the prior effort. The legislation blocks developers from using the bill if they planned to knock down properties that renters had occupied within at least the previous seven years. It also allows communities facing pressures from gentrification and displacement to propose alternative plans to boost homebuilding instead of using the system outlined in the bill. And it loosens local zoning restrictions in communities with high median incomes, quality schools and short commutes to jobs, even if there isn’t access to transit nearby — an effort to push development into wealthier areas that might have previously resisted it.

Key details about the latter two provisions remain unresolved, as do rules about how much of the new development will be reserved for low-income residents.

amazing thread

This is literally the YIMBY-est year in the Legislature. Ho boy. I am reviewing all the bills that dropped today - join me. A thread. (1/x)

— Louis Mirante (@louismirante) December 4, 2018

some notable bills

AB 56!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Edwardo Garcia) would require a report on how to nationalize the energy industry for all residential customers.

— Louis Mirante (@louismirante) December 4, 2018

AB 68 (@PhilTing) is a MAJOR reform, allowing more casitas or accessory dwelling units. It allows more nice tiny homes in your backyard! Very cool.

— Louis Mirante (@louismirante) December 4, 2018

(already a big and surprisingly effective deal in LA county)

SB 50 has 11 co-authors, meaning the bill already has the support of fully ten percent of #caleg, and it is just day 1. Boy, this is gunna be a year.

— Louis Mirante (@louismirante) December 4, 2018

Oof. pic.twitter.com/FFC1Ltg9TI

— 🌹Revolutionary💥Clown🍉 (@RevClown) December 21, 2018

https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/Proposition-13-is-no-longer-off-limits-in-13492400.php

missing from this article: possible global recession right around the time we're asking people to vote for higher taxes on businesses.

Just as there's never a convenient time for an emergency, there's never a convenient time to raise taxes. It would be nice if governments around the globe all decided to shut down those off-shore shell companies used for tax evasion. That would raise a fair bit of pocket change.

Yeah and of course it's exactly because of recessions that CA needs to diversify its revenue beyond pro-cyclical income taxes...

this is a good article on one aspect of that cyclical revenue hazard

https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-pol-ca-next-california-economy/

good point:

SB 827 didn’t pass but it moved the window. Marin’s state senator feels compelled to offer a housing bill. https://t.co/fiAQbjJq7v

— 🎄 Dingnogitude! 🎄 (@VamonosLA) January 2, 2019

PG&E breakup looking increasingly likely

https://www.sfgate.com/california-wildfires/article/PG-E-considering-selling-its-natural-gas-division-13509622.php?t=f8e4a3e331

long thread of wonky stuff

New California Gov. @GavinNewsom is proposing a huge new investment in low-income housing and a host of new policies to boost housing production overall in his first budget

— Liam Dillon (@dillonliam) January 10, 2019

including this

Wow. Newsom now talking about housing. He says if cities and countries don’t meet their housing production goals, the state will take away gas tax money from them

— Liam Dillon (@dillonliam) January 10, 2019

Cannot underscore how big a deal this is. The new governor says if cities don’t meet their housing goals they will lose transportation funds. A huge stick. “If you’re not hitting your goals, I don’t know why you should be getting the money.”

— Liam Dillon (@dillonliam) January 10, 2019

it's all proposition 13

31,000 teachers are on strike in LA for smaller class sizes (and better pay), and the school district is pleading poverty—we shouldn't forget some of the reasons why California's largest public school district is perpetually underfunded:

— Sam Dean 🦅 (@SamAugustDean) January 14, 2019

so has everybody dumped their PG&E shares yet cuz boy are we in for a rollercoaster

*Nelson laugh*

California GOP lawmaker defects to Democrats in latest blow, blames Trump https://t.co/jglrzkyvCy

— Carla Marinucci (@cmarinucci) January 24, 2019

"Republicans hold just 19 out of 80 seats in the California Assembly. The entire state legislative delegation from San Diego — long a stronghold of conservative politics in California — will be represented in Sacramento by Democrats."https://t.co/s8clk9cX3I

— Alex Burns (@alexburnsNYT) January 24, 2019

I mean the earliest mayor I remember from growing up in San Diego was Pete Wilson. Things have reallllly changed.

Pete Wilson, architect of the CA GOP's destruction

the baddest governor to ever grab a mic and go booom, iirc

Wonderful, now gas lines are erupting into massive walls of flames.

Just when you thought municipal infrastructural fires were limited only to rural windswept canyons or valleys...

whoah holy shit

I blame PG&E cuz why not

what?

https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Explosion-in-San-Francisco-causes-fire-injuries-13595313.php

Wonder if the backhoe engulfed in flames had anything to do with it.

ya think

All 8 members of the PG&E crew are accounted for.

Former state Sen. Kevin de León is running to replace Jose Huizar on the Los Angeles City Council, ⁦@DavidZahniser⁩ reports: https://t.co/ttop40wUNw

— Laura J. Nelson 🦅 (@laura_nelson) February 11, 2019

icymi, what seems likely to turn into a huge development corruption scandal involving DTLA, overseas developers and several city hall offices (including garcetti's and herb wesson's, although currently only tangentially) began the morning after the november election when the FBI raided all the jose huizar (my guy!) offices, and carried out boxes of papers labelled "FUNDRAISING", and named his extended family in warrants. huizar is term limited and was hoping to install his wife, but what with the warrants and her particular involvement (apparent grifting on his behalf for his old private school?!), there's a vacancy.

de leon used to rep the state seat that included this council district, so it's not total carpet bagging. the CD now includes most of DTLA, so is perhaps the most influential CD, especially with the olympics coming up. there's a bunch of musical chairs going on in LA politics right now after garcetti announced he's not running for president, so this may complicate things.

'carried out boxes of papers labelled "FUNDRAISING"'

^^^ it seems the new LAT guild has a clause in their contract that they have to mention this in every story they do about huizar btw

there's this more-crucial-than-normal school board election coming up as well, with something like ten candidates on the ballot, all lining up to replace a guy who is gone due to a scandal over campaign contributions. seems like the new board member would be a key swing vote in the whole public schools vs charters thing. We very, very casually know one of the folks running, enough to nod in passing, but we're probably throwing our votes to someone else.

when is that election?

March 5. I'm trying to find out more about Goldberg, she might be good?

Hi Speed Rail DOA'd by slick Gavvy:

https://www.apnews.com/783b336c787a42fd9148986786ee73cf

Stupid move

I was passively listening to the state of the state this morning and thought I heard him say something about how "it would be unwise to back out at this point" and I took that as meaning he was still going forward, but I guess he must've been referring to the Bakersfield to Madera segment specifically. bummer, if the funding's not there, it's just not there, and no amount of optimism can change that. I've helped prepare EIRs for railroad realignment and doubletracking projects that were only 2 or 3 miles long, and the cost and schedule for those always reliably bloomed to at least 200% of the original contract estimate within the first few phases of design. so this is no surprise, but still a bummer.