“JOB KILLER” LIST RELEASED BY THE CALCHAMBER

The California Chamber of Commerce (CalChamber) released its annual list of “job killer” legislative measures, calling attention to the negative impact the proposed measures would have on California’s competitiveness and job climate if they were to become law. The Job Killer list is a very effective advocacy tool as a vast majority of bills that have found their way on the list have either died in the process or been vetoed by the Governor.

The CalChamber is very good about consulting with members and allied groups to make sure the list is fully vetted by the business community and truly represents the “worst of the worst” bills. BOMA California appreciated the opportunity for input and opposes all measures on the list.

Below is a link to the full list, and here are a few of the bills that have the greatest impact on our industry:

AB 1065 (Lieber; D-Mountain View) Construction Costs Increase
Substantially increases the cost of housing and development in California by implementing significant energy efficiency measures for all new residential and commercial buildings without regard for the additional costs that will be passed on to consumers.

AB 2030 (Lieu; D-Torrance) Construction Costs Increases
Substantially increases the cost of commercial development, interferes with the utilities’ ability to meet the AB 32 carbon cap mandates and drives up the cost of AB 32 compliance, ultimately leading to increased utility bills by mandating on-site energy generation and efficiency standards for all new commercial development.

AB 2046 (Jones; D-Sacramento) Construction Jobs Loss
Halts construction of housing, costs construction jobs and provides a disincentive to clean up ground water by inappropriately denying use of some groundwater resources as a stable water supply.

AB 2112 (Saldaña; D-San Diego) Construction Costs Increase
Substantially increases the cost of housing, interferes with the utilities’ ability to meet the AB 32 carbon cap mandates and drives up the cost of AB 32 compliance, ultimately leading to increased utility bills by mandating on-site energy generation and efficiency standards for all new residential buildings.

AB 2153 (Krekorian; D-Burbank) Construction Jobs Loss
Imposes an unconstitutional developer fee on new residential and commercial development that will be used to finance water conservation strategies in existing communities by requiring that all new development be water-demand neutral.

AB 2447 (Jones; D-Sacramento) Construction Job Loss
Severely limits residential and commercial development to a degree that it could virtually shut down any suburban development in certain areas of California by prohibiting the approval of development in fire-risk areas without a mitigating finding by the city or county.

AB 2678 (Nuñez; D-Los Angeles) Building Energy Audits
Threatens already-beleaguered existing housing and commercial real estate markets by establishing a process to adopt mandatory time of sale energy efficiency audits without any specificity on what would ultimately be required by the audits.

AB 2705 (Jones; D-Sacramento) Construction Jobs Loss
Potentially makes new housing less affordable, risks the loss of construction jobs and squeezes support for maintenance costs for parks and schools by expanding Mello Roos Fees to include financial support of transit services.

SB 375 (Steinberg; D-Sacramento) Limits Transportation Capacity
Thwarts the intent of voters who approved broad-based transportation bonds and limits increased transportation capacity in certain areas of the state by prioritizing transportation projects in areas identified as a preferred area for growth.

SB 1165 (Kuehl; D-Santa Monica) Construction Jobs Loss
Jeopardizes economic growth by restricting environmental impact statements to a five-year lifetime which will delay permitting of the project and open the door for frivolous lawsuits in an attempt to block the project.

CalChamber 2008 Job Killers.

 

GREEN BUILDING CODES MEASURE PASSES SENATE

SB 1473 (Calderon; D - Montebello) strongly supported by the business community passed the Senate Floor.

The bill clarifies that the Building Standards Commission is the primary state agency responsible for proposing and adopting non-residential Green Building Codes. Although the BSC has traditionally worked on commercial building codes, there has been pressure in recent years from the environmental community to shift that authority to the Environmental Protection Agency and/or the Integrated Waste Management Board. Additionally, SB 1473 assesses a small fee.

The bill also directs state agencies to prepare educational and training material to assist local building departments, design professionals and industry with the effective field application of these measures.

Lastly, in order to generate the necessary resources to perform these tasks, a special fund is created for use by the BSC with the revenue being generated via a permit valuation fee of $4 for every $100,000 dollars for residential and commercial construction permits. This fee has a direct nexus to our projects and will provide clarity to businesses and building officials to the rush of green building codes that are rapidly being adopted.
 

PROPERTY VANDAL BILL PASSES ASSEMBLY

AB 1767 (Ma; D-San Francisco) unanimously passed the Assembly Floor. The measure adds the act of vandalism by graffiti to the list of misdemeanor offenses that cannot be remedied through civil compromise. Graffiti vandalism is a huge problem and a huge expense to local governments and private property owners in all areas of the state. This bill makes the act less attractive for potential graffiti vandals to perpetuate their destruction of public and private property and get away with just paying restitution or a small fine. If graffiti vandals in California know they will definitely have to serve time cleaning up graffiti, painting over "art" and tags, or performing some other local community service, they may not be so eager to commit the offense.
BOMA California strongly supports this measure and will keep you posted on its progress.
 

AB 32 WORKSHOPS AROUND THE STATE

AB 32, California’s landmark “Global Warming Solutions Act,” will change the way you do business. This paradigm-shifting edict is meant to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels, and has the potential to drastically impact our industry; how much it impacts your bottom line, however, is up to the actions we as an industry undertake now to shape its regulations. What comes out of the regulatory process, that is now underway, will impact our industry for the next generation. Here are some upcoming meeting related to AB 32 that you may be interested in attending:

May 27, 2008 – AB 32 Global Warming Environmental Justice Committee Meeting
Location: Cal/EPA HQ Building, Sacramento
Click here for more information.

June 16, 2008 – AB 32 Economic Analysis Stakeholder Workshop
This series of meetings is being held in order to provide interested stakeholders the opportunity to provide input concerning the economic analysis that will support the AB 32 Scoping Plan.
LOCATION: CAL/EPA Headquarters, Sacramento
Click here for more information.

June 16, 2008 – AB 32 Program Design Technical Stakeholder Work Group
This series of meetings is being held in order to provide interested stakeholders the opportunity to provide input concerning the economic analysis that will support the AB 32 Scoping Plan.
Location: CAL/EPA Headquarters, Sacramento
Click here for more information.
 

SF BAY AREA AIR REGULATORS APPROVE GLOBAL WARMING FEES

Speaking of AB 32, regulators in the San Francisco Bay area voted overwhelmingly to approve new rules that impose fees on businesses for emitting greenhouse gasses. The Bay Area Air Quality Management District's board of directors voted 15-1 to charge companies 4.4 cents per ton of carbon dioxide they emit. Experts say the fees, which cover nine counties in the Bay Area, are the first of their kind in the country. The new rules are set to take effect July 1. Business groups are very concerned that such a fee will undercut the statewide goals of AB 32 by allowing and encouraging local jurisdictions to come up with their own greenhouse gas regulations which will lead to an uneven patchwork of regulation, enforcement, and fees. Click here to read more about the assessment.
 

GOVERNOR'S ENVIRONMENTAL AND ECONOMIC LEADERSHIP AWARDS

The Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award Program is the State of California’s highest environmental honor. The program recognizes individuals, organizations, and businesses that have demonstrated exceptional leadership and made notable, voluntary contributions in conserving California’s precious resources, protecting and enhancing our environment, building public-private partnerships and strengthening the State’s economy.

Competition is open to all California residents, businesses, non-profit organizations, professional and trade associations, communities, state and local government entities, tribes, and federal agencies operating in California.

The awards will be presented for voluntary achievements undertaken or completed in 2007 or culminated during 2007. Projects are deemed ineligible if they are the result of mitigation, litigation, or required by legislation.

If you know of any project that has focused on sustainability or energy efficiency, you should submit a nomination. And yes, you should nominate yourself!

Click here for more information. Deadline is May 30, 2008.
 

CALIFORNIA COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SUMMIT JUNE 10-11

California Commercial Real Estate Summit (CCRES) will be held in Sacramento on June 10 and 11, 2008. This event is the one time of year that industry leaders from all sectors of the commercial, industrial, and retail real estate industry converge on California's Capitol to meet with policymakers. The summit gives you an opportunity to meet other industry leaders from across the nation, high-level staff from Governor Schwarzenegger's Administration, and California State Legislators. Click here for more information and to register for the event.
 

BOMA INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AND THE OFFICE BUILDING SHOW

In today's market, optimizing building performance is a strategic imperative. As operating expenses increase, you must drive value in order to stay competitive. The BOMA International Conference and The Office Building Show is the place to learn the strategies and build the relationships you need to achieve operational excellence and sustain your business through this challenging market cycle. The event is June 22 – 24, 2008. Click here for more information and registration materials.

 

BOMA CALIFORNIA 2008 CALENDAR

JUNE 10 & 11 —
CALIFORNIA COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE SUMMIT
Sacramento (Hyatt Regency)
BOMA California Legislative Days – come to Sacramento to meet your statewide elected officials and advocate on behalf of the commercial real estate industry.

JUNE 11 —
BOMA CALIFORNIA BOARD MEETING
Sacramento (Hyatt Regency)
1:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
This Board Meeting is held immediately following the conclusion of the California Commercial Real Estate Summit to allow BOMA California members the opportunity to attend both events.

OCTOBER 23 —
COMMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL/RETAIL REAL ESTATE INDUSTRY AWARDS DINNER
The Island Hotel (formerly the Four Seasons), Newport Beach, CA
5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

OCTOBER 24 —
BOMA CALIFORNIA BOARD MEETING & ELECTION OF 2009 OFFICERS
Newport Beach (The Irvine Company)
10:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m.