Features

Overview

Features

Article Features Fred Silva

California’s Two-Thirds Legislative Vote Requirement and Its Role in the State Budget Process

What does the two-thirds requirement mean for California’s budget process?

Article Features Gus CaravalhoCraig ChavezDavid Pierce

Inspiring Leadership: Next Generation Update – A New Opportunity

Article Features Scott SummerfieldSheri Benninghoven

Telling Your Story Through Effective Media Relations

Article Features Frederick C. DockJoaquin T. Siques

Traffic, Transit, Technology and the Rose Parade

Article Features Joanne HallRob Wilson

Pleasanton Saves Time and Money Through Technology

Work that preciously took up to two days to complete is now finished in a matter of minutes, thanks to software that integrates computerized maintenance management systems with geographic information.

Article Features Lillian Henegar

Sustainable Redevelopment Builds Better Communities

By promoting urban-centered growth and restoring contaminated areas to viable use, redevelopment helps preserve the environment and open space while reducing sprawl and commute times.

Article Features Ken LomanCharles Summerell

Planning for Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions

Ken Loman is a policy consultant for the California Climate Action Network, a program of the Institute for Local Government (ILG), and can be reached at kloman@ca-ilg.org. Charles Summerell is a program analyst for ILG and can be reached at summerc@ca-ilg.org. Special thanks to the following individuals who contributed to this article: Betsy Strauss, special counsel to the League; Beth Gabor, public information officer, Yolo County; Jill Boone, sustainability consultant to the City of San Mateo; and Nancy McKeever, PLACE3S program manager, California Energy Commission. For more information about ILG’s climate change program, visit www.ca-ilg.org/climatechange.


An increasing body of scientific research links greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions with rising land and ocean temperatures, changes in storm and rainfall patterns, seasonal temperature variations, rising sea levels and other evidence of climate change.

Article Features Brian HeatonBill Higgins

The Housing Element Process: How California Cities Are Faring

Brian Heaton is former communications specialist for the League. Bill Higgins is the League’s housing and land use legislative representative and can be reached at bhiggins@cacities.org.


At first glance, drafting a new housing element may not seem that complicated. The housing element requires a city to plan for its fair share of housing for each income category: very low, low, moderate and above moderate. The city must identify the land where this housing will be located. To the extent that communities cannot complete this inventory, they must develop a program so that all the land will be identified and appropriately zoned by the end of the five-year planning period.

Article Features Jude Hudson

Planning with Fire: Balancing Growth and Safety in Fire Hazard Areas

California’s catastrophic fires raise a number of questions about fire safety and land use planning.

Article Features Darrell Steinberg

SB 375 Explained

Senator Steinberg (D-Sacramento) offers insights into the thinking behind his bill.

Article Features Eva Spiegel

Legislators from Local Government Weigh In

The 2007-08 Legislature is a special class because former local government officials now constitute a majority in both the Senate and Assembly. When these new members took office in January 2007, they brought fresh ideas and a local perspective to statewide policy-making.