"California faces a severe housing crisis." That's what the state legislature said in 2016. As part of a slew of legislative reforms intended to address the crisis, the state passed new laws designed to simplify and expedite the process for building a particular type of housing, one that is an "essential component of California's housing ...
California is in the midst of a severe housing shortage. With options limited and prices skyrocketing, the legislature in 2019 passed a slew of reforms making it easier for homeowners to build accessory dwelling units, or ADUs, on their properties. ADUs are small homes located on the same lot as an existing single- or multi-family ...
Before the last few weeks, many Americans had probably never heard of "qualified immunity." But as a result of the nationwide protests against abusive policing, this esoteric legal doctrine is now widely understood as a significant impediment to the sound enforcement of constitutional law. The call to "End Qualified Immunity!" has made its way from ...
The Prince of Motown himself, Marvin Gaye, sang that "Life's a Game of Give and Take." But for county treasuries across the state of Michigan, it's more like a game of take, and take, and take some more. The Perez family is fighting Michigan's predatory home equity theft policy, which allows counties to take property ...
Many American communities are suffering from a housing shortage. Affordable housing is disappearing, new homes aren't being built quickly enough, and the racial disparities in housing availability are widening. In Michigan alone, the numbers are stark: a recent report on housing needs by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) sugg ...
Can a state prohibit new residents from doing business in the alcoholic beverage industry? In a 7-2 opinion in Tennessee Wine & Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas, today the Supreme Court answered with a resounding "no way." The Court affirmed that states may not discriminate on the basis of state residence, and that protectionism is ...
Last Friday, Pacific Legal Foundation helped Arron and Arthur Benedetti to challenge Marin County's new forced-farming mandate that requires landowners to remain personally engaged in commercial agriculture in perpetuity as a condition of granting a building permit. Arron and Arthur are the sons of the late Willie Benedetti, who worked with PLF to ...
Back in 2014, PLF urged the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Ninth Circuit's decision upholding California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) against constitutional challenge. The LCFS regulates transportation fuels using a "life-cycle" analysis, meaning that it fictionally assigns a "carbon intensity score" based on estimated carbon emissions resul ...
Marin County's Local Coastal Program (LCP) is currently the subject of ongoing litigation between the estate of Willie Benedetti, represented by PLF, and the County. Yesterday, the California Coastal Commission voted to certify amendments to Marin County's LCP over PLF's objections, which we made in a public comment letter and re-iterated at yester ...
With today's overgrown regulatory state, Congressional review of executive branch agency rules is more important than ever. A recent court case centered on hunting restrictions in Alaska, Center for Biological Diversity v. Zinke, illustrates why. During the Obama Administration, the Department of the Interior enacted a rule that prohibits hunting o ...
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