You may have missed it, but a bunch of California bills and laws are removing restrictions on building homes for low-income residents. Read Ben Christopher on the pros and cons of moving faster with affordable housing. And yes, this is another #CEQA story. calmatters.org/housing/2023/0…

Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara (Ricardo Lara) unveiled a new plan to shore up the California insurance market for homeowners. Insurers would return to wildfire zones, but would have an easier path to rate increases. cal.news/3EOBZWp 📝 Ben Christopher

After an effort to rescue California's home insurance market fell apart in the Legislature this month, Insurance Commission Ricardo Lara will pursue many of those ideas through regulation, Ben Christopher reports. calmatters.org/politics/2023/…

Also: -- Ben Christopher on last-minute changes to #HousingCrisis bills by Senator Scott Wiener Anna Caballero -- Tony Thurmond jumps into 2026 Governor Gavin Newsom race -- @CommonCauseCA et al on language access for voters calmatters.org/newsletters/wh…

I dunno, I feel like ADHD might not be the main culprit here. calmatters.org/education/high…

The uber exclusive Bay Area burb of Atherton is having a tough time finding room for all the new houses the state is forcing them to plan for. One reason why: City council won't consider anything with more than 10 units per acre. almanacnews.com/news/2023/09/2…

Just weeks ago, Newsom dismissed the prospect of appointing Sen. Feinstein's replacement as "a hypothetical on top of a hypothetical." From Alexei Koseff: "That hypothetical is now real." calmatters.org/politics/2023/…

To everyone who hasn't yet realized I'm now on the housing beat and is still emailing me about election stuff, please kindly re-direct those emails to Stella and say hello!

...can it, though? Good write up here from my new colleague Yue Stella Yu calmatters.org/politics/2023/…

Caltrans official says she was demoted for objecting to highway expansion ow.ly/EC2G104WB8z

Breaking: California’s COVID-era $5.2 billion rent relief program is at risk of running out of money. That could leave the more than 100K renters who had applied and are still awaiting a decision officially out of luck. cal.news/3PIinZm 📝 @frombenc

After deeming Toddler healthy and physically average, Doctor tells us to limit our two year old's meals to TWO TABLESPOONS. Fixating on a demonstrably low risk of obesity while ignoring the health consequences of a lifetime of body image issues. Docs: get your shit together.

Today's CalMatters newsletter Ben Christopher -- CA ASSN OF REALTORS® on home prices -- Carolyn Jones + Erica Yee on CA Department of Education test scores -- Alejandro Lazo on CARB on #methane from cows -- Jeanne Kuang on #tinyhomes calmatters.org/newsletter/cal…

If you’ve thought about buying a house, perused your local listings and then deleted the Zillow app from your phone while quietly weeping — you’ve probably noted that interest rates are high these days. cal.news/3S6pzBb 📝 Ben Christopher

Breaking: The California Supreme Court gave the greenlight for UC Berkeley to build student and homeless housing at People’s Park, ending a years-long legal debate over whether student noise is an environmental pollutant. cal.news/3x2qISh 📝 Ben Christopher 📸 Semantha Norris