Updates and Articles
Is Community Choice Aggregation the Right Choice for Your Community?
Community choice aggregation is surging in California. The Center for Climate Protection estimates that local governments representing over 17 million California customers are part of a community choice aggregator (CCA), scheduled to launch a CCA, or are actively considering one. Given this growing trend, communities that are not currently involved in a CCA effort may find themselves being invited to join a CCA or...
Read MoreLocal Actions Can Help Spur Renewable Energy Growth in California Communities
As renewable energy prices drop and consumer interest grows, many local governments are wondering what they can do to help their residents and businesses reap the benefits of clean energy. Erica McConnell provides an overview of some of the options that local governments have to improve access to renewable energy for their residents and bring its benefits to their communities. Consumer interest in renewable...
Read MoreSettlement with PG&E Will Close Last Nuclear Power Plant in California
The firm helps Friends of the Earth block PG&E's lease extension on public lands, and negotiate the historic 2016 settlement agreement with the utility to close in 2025 the Diablo Canyon Power Plant, located on the coast in a highly active seismic area.
Read MoreLegislation Passes Authorizing Mission Rock Project on Giants Parking Lot Site
In 2016 the state legislature enacts legislation (AB 2797), drafted by the firm for the Port of San Francisco, authorizing the development of the Mission Rock project on the site of a surface parking lot. The project includes 40% affordable housing and a five-acre waterfront park on China Basin Park.
Read MoreCalifornia Promulgates Innovative Solar and Energy Storage Policies
On behalf of the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, the firm develops multiple first-of-its kind interconnection policies that are adopted by the California Public Utilities Commission in 2016 to facilitate the adoption of solar and energy storage on the grid. These policies serve as models for other states, allowing California to continue its leadership on clean energy.
Read MoreGilroy Voters Adopt Urban Growth Boundary
Voters in the City of Gilroy pass an initiative in 2016, drafted by the firm, that establishes an urban growth boundary around the City, limiting urban sprawl.
Read MoreSMW Advises Orinda Throughout Wilder Development Process
The Art & Garden Center opens at the Wilder playfields in Orinda in 2016 — a substantial community amenity resulting from a Development Agreement negotiated by the firm following its successful defense of a takings case brought by the developer against the City.
Read MoreRecognition for a Supreme Court Victory
SMW partner Kevin Bundy receives the California Lawyer's Attorney of the Year (CLAY) Award for his role, while at the Center for Biological Diversity, in obtaining a decision from the California Supreme Court overturning the greenhouse gas analysis for the Newhall Ranch project in L.A. County. (Center for Biological Diversity v. Cal. Dept. of Fish & Wildlife, 62 Cal.4th 204 (2015) rehg. den. Feb. 17, 2016).)
Read MoreSMW Advises SAFCA on Local Funding Mechanisms for Flood Control
From 2007 through 2016, the firm advises the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency on the formation of assessment districts to fund the local share of flood control improvements, providing benefits to approximately 160,000 properties.
Read MoreGovernor’s “By Right” Bill Threatens to Eliminate Local Control over Residential Development
When it returns from its recess, the California Legislature will consider Trailer Bill 707—a proposal by Governor Brown’s office to require “by right” approval of certain residential developments. As the bill would greatly limit local control over land use, its effects would be far reaching. Cities and counties should review the legislation and its implications for their communities to determine whether they wish to take a...
Read MoreTribal Consultation Under AB 52: An Overview and Tips for Compliance
With the implementation of Assembly Bill 52 (AB 52) last July, California welcomed a new chapter in the ongoing relationship between public agencies and Native American tribes. This new law recognizes California tribes’ expertise regarding cultural resources and provides a method for agencies to incorporate tribal knowledge into their CEQA environmental review and decision-making processes. Under AB 52, California tribes...
Read MoreHelp Public Agency Clients Avoid Inadvertent Disclosures
Public agencies breathed a collective sigh of relief following the California Supreme Court’s ruling in Ardon v. City of Los Angeles (2016) 62 Cal.4th 1176. The Court found that public agencies do not waive exemptions when they inadvertently disclose confidential documents in response to a Public Records Act (PRA) request. But some mistakes are more easily cured than others. Given the practical limits of the Court’s...
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