BY DAN WALTERS
OCTOBER 16, 2025
Eight years ago, as he began his campaign for governor, Gavin Newsom described fixing the state’s chronic housing shortage as a moral imperative.
“This is a question of who we are,” Newsom wrote in 2017. “Housing is a fundamental human need — let’s not forget the human face behind the dire statistics.
By Alyse DiNapoli,
Oct 11, 2025
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation upzoning many areas throughout the state that fall within a quarter- to half-mile radius of a major transit stop, aimed at spurring housing development. Senate Bill 79, sponsored by state Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, would set a uniform standard for allowable height and density minimums within a certain distance of major rail stops, including Caltrain and BART stations. The upzoning would be implemented on a tiered basis and applies mostly in urban counties in the Bay Area, Southern California and Sacramento.
BY BEN CHRISTOPHER
OCTOBER 10, 2025
IN SUMMARY
After weeks of waiting, California’s governor signed a bill that will allow mid-rise apartment buildings near major transit stops in California’s biggest metro areas. Ever since the Legislature narrowly passed a bill last month that will pave the way for more apartment buildings around major public transit stops in the state’s biggest metro areas, the California political universe has been impatiently awaiting Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signature or veto in a heated statewide game of “will he, won’t he.” Today, he did.
BY HARSHA DEVULAPALLI AND RACHEL SWAN
October 5, 2025
The passage of Senate Bill 79, the Abundant and Affordable Homes Near Transit Act, seemed to herald the rise of pro-density urbanism in California, and the end of a seven-year crusade by a San Francisco YIMBY lawmaker. “Politics have shifted since I began this journey,” Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener said of his legislation to construct apartment complexes and other multifamily dwellings around major
transportation hubs.
By Kate Talerico
October 3, 2025
This bill has been hailed a ‘landmark’ victory for California YIMBYs. But it only narrowly escaped defeat Sen. Scott Wiener’s bill survived more than a dozen amendments and two hostile committee chairs, showcasing both his persistence and divisions among Democrats when it comes to housing
by Diana Diamond
September 25, 2025
Two days after Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California legislature placed Prop 50, a redistricting measure, on the Nov.4 special election ballot, I received three 8 x 11 glossy campaign mailings, urging me to “Say No” to “Unconstitutional Gerrymandering.” One flier declared, “California families struggle with soaring costs, and the states sink deeper into deficit, Governor Newsom and the legislature are scheming to take redistricting power away from our Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission.”