- “California does not have to choose between affordable housing and protecting our coastal resources. We can and must do both.” – Senator John Laird
SACRAMENTO, CA – Governor Gavin Newsom has signed Senate Bill 484, authored by Senator John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), marking a major legislative step toward increasing affordable housing development in California’s coastal cities while maintaining the state’s environmental protections.
The new law creates a 10-year pilot program that streamlines the coastal development permitting process for 100 percent affordable infill housing in coastal cities. SB 484 aims to address the state’s severe housing shortage by accelerating construction where demand is highest and infrastructure already exists, without weakening the California Coastal Act.
“California does not have to choose between affordable housing and protecting our coastal resources. We can and must do both,” Senator Laird said. “Senate Bill 484 balances both critical priorities so the state can better address our housing crisis without weakening the Coastal Act, and proves that progress can go hand in hand with conservation and public access. I’m grateful to the Governor Newsom for signing SB 484 into law.”
California’s housing affordability crisis has grown more severe in recent years. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) reports that home prices remain among the highest in the nation and have increased at rates far exceeding wage growth. According to the LAO’s California Housing Affordability Tracker for the second quarter of 2025, mid-tier home prices in the state are now more than twice as expensive as comparable homes nationwide. Even for lower-priced homes, costs remain staggering—a bottom-tier home in California is about 30 percent more expensive than a mid-tier home in the rest of the United States.
The LAO found that the cost of purchasing a mid-tier home, including mortgage, taxes, and insurance, reached over $5,900 a month in June 2025—an 82 percent increase since January 2020. For bottom-tier homes, monthly payments averaged $3,600, up 87 percent since 2020. Those increases have pushed ownership out of reach for most households.
The LAO also reported that the annual household income needed to qualify for a mortgage on a mid-tier California home in mid-2025 was about $237,000—more than twice the median California household income of $96,500 in 2023. For a bottom-tier home, $145,000 in annual income was required, roughly 50 percent higher than the state’s median.
Housing advocates say that SB 484 is a practical reform that meets this moment by cutting red tape for affordable developments without undermining environmental standards. They argue that the legislation addresses both the supply shortage and the inequitable access to housing along California’s coast, where some of the state’s worst affordability pressures exist.
“While California’s environmental laws help preserve the coast for the public to access and enjoy, low-income residents of our coastal cities are experiencing severe challenges with housing affordability,” said Matt Schwartz, President and CEO of the California Housing Partnership. “Governor Newsom’s approval of Senator Laird’s SB 484 helps to address this problem by streamlining permitting and increasing certainty for providers of affordable housing in urbanized areas of the coast, creating more homes where they are most needed. The California Housing Partnership sees this as a win-win-win for the state’s environment, economy, and working families.”
Advocates note that the lack of affordable housing near jobs and transit has fueled longer commutes, increased sprawl, and worsened greenhouse gas emissions—issues that the LAO has also identified as byproducts of California’s lopsided housing market. The state’s transportation sector remains its largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, a trend policymakers have linked to a shortage of infill housing.
“As we enter the 50th Anniversary Year of the landmark California Coastal Act, we are thrilled to be able to work together with our partners in affordable housing, environmental justice and coastal resource protection to advance SB 484,” said Susan Jordan, Founder and Executive Director of the California Coastal Protection Network. “Senator Laird deserves tremendous credit for recognizing the severe lack of affordable housing in the Coastal Zone that has followed since the Legislature removed the Coastal Commission’s authority to require it in 1981. SB 484’s passage shows that responsible housing reform that attracts widespread support is possible.”
The bill’s success is notable in a policy space often marked by conflict between housing and environmental interests. Coastal cities are among California’s most desirable and economically productive regions, but strict regulations and high land costs have long limited affordable development. Many local governments have resisted higher-density housing near coastal areas, citing traffic, infrastructure, and environmental concerns.
Supporters of SB 484 say the legislation proves that affordability and conservation can coexist through targeted, collaborative reform. By restricting the pilot program to 100 percent affordable infill housing projects, the bill ensures that new construction occurs within existing urban footprints, reducing pressure to build in environmentally sensitive or fire-prone areas.
“California’s coastal communities generate around 80 percent of the state’s economic output and wages, yet housing costs in coastal cities are often a prohibitive barrier to low-income renters and people of color,” said Chione Lucina Muñoz Flegal, Executive Director of Housing California. “Housing California is proud to have joined a diverse coalition including fellow housing advocates, conservation organizations, and the Coastal Commission itself in support of SB 484, which takes an important step to responsibly streamline infill affordable housing in the Coastal Zone. We commend Senator Laird and Governor Newsom for this thoughtful approach to advancing equitable access to housing and jobs along California’s coast.”
Ashley Eagle-Gibbs, Executive Director of the Environmental Action Committee of West Marin, said the collaboration behind SB 484 reflects a new era of problem-solving that links environmental stewardship with social equity. “As a local organization that works statewide, we’re acutely aware of the critical housing needs in California and especially Marin County. SB 484 achieves housing and environmental goals simultaneously, piloting new solutions responsibly and sustainably,” Eagle-Gibbs said.
“The legislation is a result of the leadership of Senator Laird, and groundbreaking collaboration between housing, environmental justice, and coastal protection advocates. We look forward to continued work together, building on this success to generate additional affordable housing solutions while protecting the California coast for the benefit of all.”
The LAO’s housing data reinforces the urgency driving such legislative efforts. Between 2020 and 2025, the costs of purchasing a home grew far faster than wages, with payments for mid-tier homes rising 82 percent and bottom-tier homes 87 percent, compared with just 23 percent wage growth statewide. Rents also increased 38 percent over the same period, leaving fewer affordable options even for those not attempting to buy.
Mortgage rate increases have compounded the challenge. The LAO noted that the prevailing rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage rose from 2.7 percent in early 2021 to 7.6 percent in late 2023, and remained above 6.5 percent through mid-2025. The report found that 81 percent of California homeowners have mortgages below 5 percent, discouraging them from selling and further tightening supply for would-be buyers.
Supporters of SB 484 view the bill as a needed experiment in balancing growth and preservation—one that could inform future statewide reforms. The pilot program is designed to test whether streamlining can meaningfully increase affordable housing production without eroding environmental safeguards that Californians broadly support.
“With SB 484 now law, advocates say they are committed to expanding their shared agenda in the years ahead—developing and implementing additional responsible reforms to ensure that California meets its housing needs while protecting its climate, environment, and treasured outdoor access for all,” the press release stated.
SB 484 will take effect on January 1, 2026.
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So are the apartments pictured in the article considered protecting the coast?
I think people may find that to be just the opposite.
My bad, I should have generated more realistic images of coastal flooding due to global warming or oil tankers off the coast of Santa Barbara.
And what do you and some of your followers on here like to say, two wrongs don’t make a right.
So the answer is let’s build more houses on the coast and make it worse?
Clearly you didn’t read the article
Don’t act like you care about the coastline – and next time, comment on the article, not the image.
My reaction to the images is exactly the same as Keith’s.
The one accompanying the article looks like something that should never be built, and David subsequent image is even worse that the first one regarding the location. (The second image also looks like something that taxpayers and anyone else with homeowner insurance will literally have to “bail out”.)
Folks may not fully realize this, but “everyone” is forced to pay for some of the costs associated with building houses in the wrong place through taxes, insurance, utility costs, etc.
And now that the governor has also eliminated CEQA within cities, there’s also no accounting for environmental impacts in regard to such locales. But clearly, you can see that there ARE such impacts to the natural environment – even with city limits.
First of all, your A.I. generated photo makes me want to barf. I remember when people cared about the coast and when the Coastal Commission was formed, and when I am on the coast I thank God and the foresight of those people that our coast remains a scenic wonder. And then I read this:
” . . . a new era of problem-solving that links environmental stewardship with social equity.”
I don’t know what’s happened to environmentalists . . . but I suspect they have been bought out developers via YIMBY and brainwashed into believing this carp about a ‘housing crisis’. I’m done. I used to support housing and voted for most Measure J projects. I’m so disgusted with the state over-reach on local zoning, YIMBY, the Vanguard, etc., I’m voting no on Measure J projects even as I continue to believe that law is garbage and causing more problems than it solved. But affordable housing is a scam, everything Weiner touches is a scam, and environmentalism has been taken over and derailed by social justice activists. What is happening to downtown Santa Cruz is sad. And strangely, even with all the new, tall housing units downtown Santa Cruz, there are still so-called “homeless” people all over downtown SC. Gee, I wonder why.
” . . . and environmentalism has been taken over and derailed by social justice activists.”
That’s for sure, and not “just” in regard to housing.
Social justice is not the same thing as environmentalism, and (in reality) the goals sometimes conflict with each other. When I periodically point this out in various formats, some of them immediately imply (or outright state) that I’m a racist, and shut me down quicker and more completely than Beth Bourne showing up at the school board in a bathing suit. This includes being banned from their social media sites – with no warning, no explanation, no appeal process, etc. (Organizations that I’d typically supported in the past with contributions, etc.)
Maybe someday, they will re-claim their original missions. Until then, they’re not getting my support, at least.
One hundred percent affordable didn’t work in Davis. Time will tell if it will work on the coast but I’m skeptical because of our experience with that locally.
Someone actually read the article!