San Jose housing left out of state environmental reform

Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has made a habit of taking big swings on critical policy issues, laid out a proposal earlier this month for reforming the California Environmental Quality Act, aiming to make it easier to build major infrastructure projects.

But with California facing a deficit of millions of homes, and officials up and down the state stressing the need for more housing, advocates and developers are wondering why Newsom’s pitch failed to include ways to speed up much-needed residential development.