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| SB 375 (2008) | |
|---|---|
| Name | SB 375 (2008) |
| Enacted by | California State Senate |
| Enacted | 2008 |
| Status | active |
SB 375 (2008) is a California statute that integrates California Air Resources Board planning with regional transportation planning agencies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from passenger vehicles through coordinated land use and transportation planning. The law connects Sustainable Communities Strategy requirements to the California Environmental Quality Act and aims to align housing development patterns with transit investments and climate change goals. SB 375 was authored by Darrell Steinberg and enacted as part of a suite of measures following the passage of Assembly Bill 32.
SB 375 (2008) emerged amid policy responses to global warming and statewide mandates from Assembly Bill 32 that tasked the California Air Resources Board with statewide greenhouse gas reduction targets. The bill reflects policy debates involving stakeholders such as California Department of Transportation, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Southern California Association of Governments, and Regional Planning entities responding to litigation under the California Environmental Quality Act and political dynamics shaped by lawmakers like Arnold Schwarzenegger and advocacy groups including Natural Resources Defense Council and Sierra Club. Proponents linked SB 375 to precedent efforts in smart growth initiatives championed in jurisdictions such as Portland, Oregon, New York City, and London, while opponents referenced concerns voiced by organizations like the California Building Industry Association and municipal coalitions such as the League of California Cities.
SB 375 requires each Metropolitan Planning Organization or comparable regional agency to adopt a Sustainable Communities Strategy as part of the Regional Transportation Plan, demonstrating how land use and transportation investments will meet California Air Resources Board greenhouse gas reduction targets for passenger vehicles. The statute directs the California Air Resources Board to set per-capita greenhouse gas reduction targets for 2020 and 2035 for large regions, and assigns responsibilities to entities including local governments, county transportation commissions, and regional planning bodies to prepare Sustainable Communities Strategies or alternative planning templates. It also amends California Environmental Quality Act provisions to provide CEQA incentives and streamlining for projects consistent with an approved Sustainable Communities Strategy, affecting approvals overseen by agencies such as California Department of Housing and Community Development, California Transportation Commission, and district offices of the Metropolitan Planning Organization network.
Implementation of SB 375 involves rulemaking and target-setting by the California Air Resources Board, coordination among regional entities like the Southern California Association of Governments, Sacramento Area Council of Governments, and Association of Bay Area Governments, and local adoption actions by counties and cities including Los Angeles County, San Diego County, and San Francisco. Regulatory processes have engaged consultants, academic partners such as University of California, Berkeley, Stanford University, and University of Southern California, and federal agencies like the Federal Highway Administration in modeling vehicle miles traveled and land-use scenarios. Compliance relies on analytic tools including travel demand models used by Metropolitan Planning Organizations and greenhouse gas quantification methodologies developed with input from organizations such as ICF International and Environmental Protection Agency regional offices.
SB 375 has influenced regional planning documents, housing element alignment, and transit-oriented development projects in metropolitan regions including Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, and the Sacramento region. The law contributed to the acceleration of transit-oriented development around corridors served by systems such as Bay Area Rapid Transit, Los Angeles Metro Rail, San Diego Trolley, and commuter rail like Caltrain. Evaluations by academic centers at University of California, Davis and policy groups such as the Public Policy Institute of California report mixed outcomes in reducing vehicle miles traveled and meeting greenhouse gas targets, with successes in promoting infill development near transit while unevenly affecting housing affordability and urban displacement dynamics documented in case studies of Downtown Los Angeles and Oakland.
Critics of SB 375 include the California Building Industry Association, some county officials, and analysts at think tanks like the Reason Foundation who argue the law imposes planning constraints that interfere with local land-use authority and could exacerbate housing affordability issues. Environmental justice advocates including chapters of the Greenlining Institute and Communities for a Better Environment have criticized implementation for failing to guarantee equitable investment in underserved neighborhoods and for potential displacement effects near transit projects. Legal challenges have invoked precedents from California Environmental Quality Act litigation, with disputes over the adequacy of Sustainable Communities Strategy analyses and the scope of CEQA streamlining benefits in specific municipal approvals.
Since enactment, SB 375 has intersected with subsequent statutes and regulatory initiatives such as revisions to Senate Bill 1 (2017), expansions of housing element law, and executive orders on climate change by governors including Jerry Brown and Gavin Newsom. Legislative refinements and administrative guidance from the California Air Resources Board and agencies including California Department of Housing and Community Development address issues like housing allocation, fair housing considerations under laws such as Assembly Bill 686 and Senate Bill 9, and procedural coordination with federal programs administered by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.