Designed to close a loophole in Proposition 13 which has allowed businesses to avoid property tax reassessments upon the purchase of a property, Tom Ammiano’s proposed Assembly Bill 2372 aims to refine what constitutes a sale. But as originally drafted, the bill would have created a loophole of its own.... Read More »

Senator Mark Leno’s proposed bill to curb speculative Ellis Act evictions in San Francisco has been rejected by the State Assembly’s Housing and Community Development Committee by a vote of 3 to 4. Drafted “to ensure that real estate speculators in San Francisco do not buy rent-controlled property and... Read More »

Falling three votes short on Wednesday with only two days left to pass the bill to the State Assembly, Senator Mark Leno bill to curb speculative Ellis Act evictions in San Francisco appeared DOA but was revived when the bill was reconsidered and passed by the Senate in a... Read More »

Mark Leno’s Senate Bill 1439 which seeks “to ensure that real estate speculators in San Francisco do not buy rent-controlled property and empty it of long-term tenants” failed to clear the Senate Floor yesterday in a 18-19 vote.  A motion to reconsider the Bill was approved, however, and Leno... Read More »

Seeking “to ensure that real estate speculators in San Francisco do not buy rent-controlled property and empty it of long-term tenants” and written to freeze Ellis Act evictions in San Francisco until a landlord has owned a building for at least five years, Mark Leno’s Senate Bill 1439 cleared... Read More »

With a hearing for Supervisor Wiener’s proposed California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) reform legislation having been delayed by at least another two weeks, Supervisor Kim is set to formally introduce her competing legislation to the Board this afternoon. The major points of contention between the two proposed pieces of... Read More »

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is a State statue established in 1970 which requires local public agencies to provide analysis and disclosure of possible environmental impacts prior to the approval of building permits. Exemptions from analysis can be granted for minor projects, saving much time and money, but... Read More »