A bill to give California commuters more options for sustainable transportation is getting strong support. Assembly Bill 2206 would make it easier for employers to implement a California law known as parking cash-out, which requires companies that provide free employee parking to offer the cash equivalent to those who choose not to drive to work. SPUR explored the benefits of parking cash-out at a digital discourse earlier this year.
This year, SPUR is celebrating staff members — a.k.a. “Spurritos”— who have served the organization for 10 years or more. This month we profile Food and Agriculture Policy Director Eli Zigas, who launched this policy area at SPUR in 2011 and today continues to lead our work to create healthy, just and sustainable food systems and put an end to food insecurity.
With housing prices out of reach for many, California is facing the need to find new ways to create housing affordable to middle-income households. A promising new model — joint powers authority (JPA) owned middle-income housing — uses tax incentives to close the gap between development costs and affordable rents. This brief by SPUR and the Terner Center for Housing Innovation explains how the JPA model works, how it’s being used and how to ensure that it delivers meaningful public benefits.
During the pandemic, federal stimulus funds sent as cash transfers gave many people the money they needed to survive. Organizations across the country started cash transfer programs to help those who needed it most. These bold moves helped bring guaranteed income to the forefront of a national conversation on how best to alleviate poverty and tackle growing income inequality. SPUR recently participated in an effort to begin turning San Francisco’s guaranteed income pilot programs into permanent policies.
If Governor Newsom and the state legislature act now, they can help Californians spend less on gas by delivering transportation options that are better for the environment. Our op-ed with Capitol Weekly proposes that they should support $2 billion for the Active Transportation Program this June alongside increased investments in transit.
