How Climate-Forward Rules Trip Up California Affordability Push

West Coast Land Use and Environmental Group Leader Jennifer Hernandez was interviewed by The Builder's Daily for an article exploring the connection between California's aggressive climate policies and the state's housing affordability crisis. The article cites a study she co-authored contending that climate strategies carried out by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) have exacerbated the housing crisis by increasing costs and decreasing affordability, particularly for low- and middle-income families. In her interview with The Builder's Daily, she pointed to the state's focus on reducing vehicle miles traveled (VMT) through laws affecting infill development and public transit-oriented development as examples of regulations that ultimately raise land prices. She also expressed concerns about CARB's plan to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions by banning the sale of gas-powered vehicles by 2035 and mandating traffic reductions. She called these initiatives too aggressive, saying CARB could have achieved the same results and helped boost affordability by prioritizing townhomes in coastal areas, easing rental pressures and promoting hybrid transit.

To illustrate her arguments, Ms. Hernandez recalled her family's experience growing up in Contra Costa County. Although her father was laid off and had to make ends meet through minimum-wage jobs, her family had paid off the mortgage on its house and was able to pass it onto the next generation.

"It is impossible to replicate that today," she said. "Climate policies have literally crushed that dream."

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