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This column is skeptical of the “abundance” agenda on the political left but is willing to observe a pending test in California. The skepticism derives from “abundance” champion Ezra Klein clarifying that he seeks more plentiful government action, rather than the real abundance that results from open markets and individual liberty. What makes California possibly interesting is a growing consensus even among the Democrats who dominate state government that their beloved environmental-protection machinery is a threat not only to all sorts of useful development but even to their
environmental-protection agenda. Having tried everything else, will the pols now liberate Californians to create abundance? The San Jose Mercury News is running a series of stories lately on one of the state’s great monuments to unintended consequences. Kate Talerico writes: When legislators passed the California Environmental Quality Act in 1970, it was considered a modest regulation, meant to ensure that government agencies considered how public projects could impact the state’s residents, wildlife and natural resources. Since then, the law’s scope has massively expanded. Today, CEQA (pronounced “see-qwa”) provides an easy path to legally challenge almost any project — public or private, large or small — on environmental grounds. It’s a favored tool among special interest groups — from NIMBY neighbors looking to stop growth to labor unions trying to negotiate agreements. But the use of CEQA as a legal cudgel has lead to major delays,
escalating costs and, in some cases, has killed projects entirely.
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