Latest News

• WAVE OF LEGISLATIVE BILLS COMING!
• BSC CONSIDERING CHANGES TO ELECTRIC VEHICLE REGS
• BUSINESS/COMMUNITY GROUPS ASK GOVERNOR TO REOPEN SCHOOLS
• SAFE SCHOOLS INTERACTIVE MAP
• CALCHAMBER URGES PULL BACK OF EMERGENCY COVID RULES
• CBPA 2021 CALENDAR

WAVE OF LEGISLATIVE BILLS COMING!

With one week to go until the California State Legislature’s “Bill Introduction Deadline,” we have already seen more than 1,100 new legislative bills introduced, on a wide variety of topics. But wait, there’s more. A lot more. In the next seven days we expect that number to more than double. The dribble of bills will become a tsunami of new legislation.

Your staff in Sacramento reads every single one of these bills and will start working with our own legislative committees and subject matter experts to identify those that have an impact on your business, tenants, and those you do business with, and will work to support the things that make sense, while opposing the bills that will make it harder for you to operate as an employer.

BSC CONSIDERING CHANGES TO ELECTRIC VEHICLE REGS

At the request of the Air Resources Board (ARB), the Building Standards Commission (BSC) in January unveiled a proposal that would mandate at least one fully operational Level 2 EV-Charging station wherever EV-ready spaces are required.

At that same meeting, it was also announced that the California Energy Commission (CEC) would be providing compliance credit with the energy standards that could help cover some of the EV-charging installation costs. 

How much credit has yet to be determined; however, when the CEC releases formal language in March, our energy advisors at ConSol will be calculating the monetary value of this credit.

Many believe the EV charger mandate for commercial and multi-family, is inevitable this year due to heavy support from the Governor, growing demand, new funding opportunities, and the fact that such a mandate has been staved-off for more than a decade.

Unfortunately, in response to the Governor’s executive order on EV Charging last summer, ARB is pursuing additional changes to code that could conceivably mandate Level 1 charging for 50% of all parking spaces. While more manageable from a load perspective, Level 1 (120v outlet) being installed in unsecured commercial parking lots exposed to the elements could represent a significant health and safety problem, not to mention being a potential magnet for use by individuals using the outlets for things other than charging a vehicle.

Bottom line: we will continue to raise the questions: Who is paying for the installation, on-going maintenance, and monthly utility bills? After all, this represents an on-going revenue stream to the local electrical utility. How do we safely provide access to consumers in an unsecured parking lot exposed to the elements, especially during a storm? How do we keep Level 1 chargers from attracting unintended usage?

If you are interested in having a deeper discussion and/or participating in the code process, please let us know. We are seeking expertise to help us analyze proposals and figure out how much they will cost different types of properties.

BUSINESS/COMMUNITY GROUPS ASK GOVERNOR TO REOPEN SCHOOLS

Earlier this week Rex S. Hime, President and CEO, California Business Properties Association, represented the commercial, retail, and industrial real estate industry, along with statewide and local leaders, to urge Governor Newsom to open the state’s schools as soon as possible.

Here is a press release on the event from our friends at the California Business Roundtable:

“SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, business organizations from across California delivered a unified message to urge state and local leaders to work with Governor Gavin Newsom to follow the science and the lessons we’ve learned over the last 11 months and reopen public schools immediately. The prolonged closure of California public schools is hurting the current and future workforce, economic recovery and the mental, physical and emotional wellbeing of children.

“We believe the business community can be a partner to help tackle the challenges ahead for our region, with solutions to ensure our communities, the economy, and families are healthy and thriving,” said Maria S. Salinas, president and CEO of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce. “The realities of this pandemic – the loss, economic devastation, and the inequities experienced – are heartbreaking. And nowhere are they more evident than in the effects from our schools closing. We urge the safe reopening of schools, with the implementation of appropriate safety protocols and the prioritization of schools in underserved communities, ensuring they receive the help they need first.”

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, since the pandemic started a year ago, nearly 3 million U.S. women have dropped out of the labor force as they have been forced to assume caretaking and homeschooling duties. Before the pandemic, women consisted of more than 50% of the country’s workforce, underlining their importance to the economy. In a recent CBS Evening News interview, President Biden called the sudden loss of women in the workforce a “national emergency.”

“The longer we wait to reopen, the more we risk Black students failing behind and entrepreneurs and small business closing for good,” stated Edwin Lombard, president and CEO of the California African American Chamber of Commerce. “Let’s be clear: the school shutdowns are putting the future of Black children at an academic and economic disadvantage. Some families and students may be excelling with distance learning, but for students and families who have been struggling for these last 11 months, there must be an option to return to in-person learning now.”

Click here to see the full press release as well as a recording of the press conference.

Click here for a news story on the event.

SAFE SCHOOLS INTERACTIVE MAP

Today, the Governor’s office released an online tool to communicate with families and community’s information on status of reopening schools, safety planning and available supports.

A Map is available at the Safe Schools for All Hub and builds on additional transparency, accountability and assistance measures incorporated in Safe Schools for All Plan

Click here to see the news resource focused on schools.

CALCHAMBER URGES PULL BACK OF EMERGENCY COVID RULES

On behalf of all employers in the state of California, including the commercial, industrial, and retail real estate industry, the CalChamber has urged the California Legislature this week to correct a series of costly COVID-19 workplace mandates imposed through an emergency regulation order.

“The regulation, issued by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) late in 2020, requires employers to take a number of extraordinary steps that include providing costly unlimited paid time off for workers. It further creates an overly broad testing scheme that ignores the realities of current testing availability.”

Click here to read more about the effort and to see the full letter.

CBPA 2021 CALENDAR

Thursday, April 8, 2021
Industrywide Legislative Committee Meeting
Zoom

Tuesday-Wednesday, June 8 – 9, 2021
California Commercial Real Estate Summit
CalChamber - Sacramento

Thursday, October 21, 2021
Industry Awards Dinner and CBPA Board Meeting
The Renaissance Hotel, Newport Beach

Thursday-Friday, December 2 - 3
Strategic Issues Conference
Embassy Suites, Napa Valley

For more information on any of our events, please contact Melissa Stevens at 916-443-4676 or mstevens@cbpa.com.