SPUR urges San José to allow more flexibility to create missing middle housing throughout the city. SPUR emphasizes that restrictive zoning has contributed to the housing shortage and increases in density are necessary to improve affordability and expand housing choices.

This letter, signed by dozens of California environmental organizations including SPUR, urges Governor Newsom and the California Air Resources Board to remove a proposed Manufacturing Decarbonization Incentive from the Cap-and-Invest rulemaking, warning that creating 118 million additional allowances outside the emissions cap would undermine California's 2030 climate targets. The groups also argue the proposal would shift billions of dollars away from household affordability programs and ratepayer relief toward subsidies for polluting industries, and that the rushed 15-day amendment process violates the Administrative Procedures Act.

As part of a review of its General Plan, the City of San José is looking for ways to encourage “missing middle” housing options like fourplexes and courtyard apartments to help address its housing affordability crisis. This is an opportunity to start legalizing small-scale multifamily homes citywide, particularly in exclusive, high-resource neighborhoods. Over time, the addition of thousands of such homes can meaningfully expand supply, reduce housing costs, and improve mobility within the housing market.

SPUR and Permit Power are co-sponsoring AB 1738 (Carrillo), legislation to expand the use of remote virtual inspections for simple, low-risk building permits across California. The bill would help reduce housing and clean energy project delays by allowing eligible inspections — such as water heaters, solar, and ADUs — to be conducted virtually, cutting costs, saving time, and freeing up inspector capacity while maintaining safety standards. By modernizing permitting processes, AB 1738 aims to accelerate housing production, electrification, and climate resilience statewide.