Mercury News: Major California zoning bill dies, supporters vow to try again

“One of the most divisive housing measures in recent California memory died on the Senate floor Thursday, but with its supporters already promising to try again with new legislation, the debate is far from over.

“Thursday’s vote comes after a fraught, two-year process. Wiener first introduced his zoning reform effort in 2018 as SB 827, but the bill died in its first committee hearing. When he brought it back again last year as SB 50, the bill stalled in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

“Thursday’s vote comes after a fraught, two-year process. Wiener first introduced his zoning reform effort in 2018 as SB 827, but the bill died in its first committee hearing. When he brought it back again last year as SB 50, the bill stalled in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

““While we’re disappointed that SB 50 did not pass today,” Executive Director Amie Fishman wrote in a news release, “we know that today’s vote does not mark the end of the conversation; it instead begins a new one.””

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