California Office of Planning and Research

California Office of Planning and Research
Name	Office of Planning and Research
Formed	1970
Jurisdiction	State of California
Headquarters	Sacramento, California
Chief1 name	Director
Parent agency	Office of the Governor

Contents

California Office of Planning and Research is a state-level policy planning and research office located in Sacramento that advises the Governor of California and coordinates statewide land use, environmental review, and planning efforts. It provides technical guidance on implementing legislation such as the California Environmental Quality Act and supports interagency coordination among entities like the California Natural Resources Agency, California Department of Transportation, California Air Resources Board, Department of Housing and Community Development, and California State Transportation Agency. The office interacts regularly with municipal bodies including the Los Angeles City Council, San Francisco Board of Supervisors, San Diego County, and regional organizations such as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Association of Bay Area Governments, and Southern California Association of Governments.

History

The office was established in 1970 amid policy initiatives led by Governor Ronald Reagan and subsequent administrations including Governor Jerry Brown and Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. to centralize planning functions across agencies like the California Department of Finance, California Environmental Protection Agency, and the California State Lands Commission. Early work intersected with landmark actions such as the passage of the California Coastal Act, the enactment of the National Environmental Policy Act in federal practice, and regional planning efforts around projects like the Bay Area Rapid Transit expansion and the Los Angeles Metro Rail system. Over decades the office engaged with statewide crises and reforms during events such as the Northridge earthquake, the California energy crisis, the Great Recession, and policy shifts under governors Gray Davis and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The office reports to the Governor of California and coordinates with the California State Senate and California State Assembly through staff liaisons and the Director, historically interacting with state leaders appointed by governors including Governor Gavin Newsom. Leadership has included directors recruited from academic institutions like University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University, and University of Southern California, and from municipal planning departments such as the City of Sacramento Community Development Department and Los Angeles Department of City Planning. The organizational structure comprises divisions that routinely work with federal partners like the United States Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and nonprofit stakeholders including the Natural Resources Defense Council, Trust for Public Land, and American Planning Association.

The office crafts statewide planning policies tied to statutes including Senate Bill 375, Senate Bill 2 (2008), Assembly Bill 32 (Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006), and provides guidance on implementing SB 743. It issues guidelines for environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act and coordinates technical advisory committees with the California Air Resources Board, California Energy Commission, and California Coastal Commission. Responsibilities include advising on land use policy, climate adaptation aligned with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change findings, facilitating housing strategies invoked by the Department of Housing and Community Development, and supporting transportation planning connected to the Federal Transit Administration and Federal Highway Administration programs. The office maintains statutory relationships with commissions such as the California Coastal Commission and the California Transportation Commission.

Programmatic work encompasses greenhouse gas reduction strategies that reference International Panel on Climate Change reports and state policies like Assembly Bill 32. Initiatives include regional planning grants similar to efforts by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, transit-oriented development strategies linked to projects like the Los Angeles Metro Purple Line extension, and infill development promotion resonant with San Francisco Planning Department initiatives. The office supports resilience planning for hazards identified in studies following events such as the Camp Fire (2018), Tubbs Fire, and other wildfires, coordinating with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. It has launched data-sharing efforts with entities like the California Open Data Portal, Caltrans, California Geological Survey, and academic partners at University of California, Davis.

The office produces technical reports, model policies, and guidance documents used by agencies such as the California Department of Public Health, California Energy Commission, and academic researchers at California Institute of Technology. Publications cover topics intersecting with transportation studies from the Mineta Transportation Institute, climate science from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and land use economics reflected in work by the Public Policy Institute of California. Data initiatives integrate information from the California Natural Diversity Database, United States Census Bureau, American Community Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and statewide GIS datasets maintained by the California Department of Technology.

Funding streams derive from the California state budget appropriations approved by the California State Legislature and the Governor's Budget, supplemented by federal grants from agencies including the United States Department of Transportation, Environmental Protection Agency, and discretionary funds tied to programs administered by the California Department of Conservation. The office's budget is reviewed in hearings before committees such as the Assembly Budget Committee and the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee and is influenced by statewide fiscal policies enacted during budget cycles under administrations like those of Governor Jerry Brown and Governor Gavin Newsom.

Critiques have focused on perceived tensions with local control exercised by city councils such as the San Jose City Council and county boards like the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, disputes over housing mandates under RHNA allocations administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development, and controversies surrounding CEQA guidance that involved stakeholders including the League of California Cities and the California Building Industry Association. Advocacy groups such as the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, and tenant organizations have both supported and opposed various policies, and litigation has arisen in state courts including cases argued before the California Supreme Court and federal litigation involving the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

Category:California state agencies