Governor Schwarzenegger Holds Press Conference to Sign SB 375

SECRETARY ADAMS: Good afternoon, everyone, thank you for being here. It's very hot out today, so we'll get going and make it quick. And thank you very much for joining us today to celebrate a major milestone toward meeting our AB 32 goals and in our fight against global warming.

This was really an unprecedented coalition that made this bill a reality and I have a long, long list of people to thank. Before I call on the Governor I'll go through those very quickly. First, the Department of General Services and State and Consumer Services Agency for putting this event together on short order and of course to Mayor Cabaldon for hosting us in his city. And also to Mayor Fargo, we are very happy to see her today also. Mary Nichols, California Air Resources Board; the California League of Conservation Voters; the California Business Industry Association; the California Association of LAFCos; Assemblyman DeSaulnier; Assemblyman Lois Wolk; of course our author, Senator Steinberg, my senator; the American Planning Association; the Rural Legal Assistance Association; Secretary Bonner, Business, Transportation and Housing Agency; California Conference of Carpenters; the California State Association of Counties; the League of Cities. We have several council members here including from the city of Folsom and the city of Citrus Heights and finally the director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments.

So welcome and thank you all for being here. And now I'd like to introduce our fearless leader of the great state of California and a world leader in environmental protection, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. (Applause)

GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER: Well, thank you very much, Linda Adams, for the wonderful introduction and also for your great, great leadership that you have shown being the head of the EPA and all the great work that you have been doing over the years, so thank you very much.

I also want to say thank you very much to all the others that are here today -- and I am so happy that it was Linda that had to do all the introductions of all the different groups and people so I don't have to do it. But it is nice to have everyone here.

And you know, two years ago we were standing on Treasure Island, right across the bay from San Francisco and we had this extraordinary bill signing ceremony and a big celebration of a historic global warming bill, AB 32. And we got world attention. There was press from California, from America and from all around the world of this great and daring move that we made and this commitment that we made.

But little did they know at that time that two years later there would be a sequel. Now, let me tell you something, that when you come from the movie business you love sequels. (Laughter) But here in this, this is actually a more important sequel than anything, this SB 375. And so this is why it is so great to be here today with all of you on this day when California is making history once again. And I could not be prouder than to stand here with Senator Darrell Steinberg, the author and to sign SB 375. Let's give him a great hand for the great work that he has done for this. (Applause)

Now, this bill takes California's fight against global warming to an unprecedented new level. It is a fight the rest of the country will undoubtedly use as a model. SB 375 marks the first time a state has tied greenhouse gas reductions to transportation, to housing and to regional land use planning. This will encourage cities and counties to work together and to grow smart by locating the housing closer to jobs and closer to transportation, to mass transportation, in order to lower our greenhouse gas emissions. We can reduce the time that people spend in their cars and spend, of course, more time therefore with their families, while we are cutting down on traffic, on gridlock and on sprawl. That's good for the people, that's good for their wallet, that's good for the environment, that is good for the fight against global warming.

And the reason why I love this bill so much is because it works on the promise of AB 32, our 2006 landmark Global Warming Law and it is another important example of our commitment to follow through. And follow through is what is all important. That's something that I learned in sports, to follow through. If you learned and took lessons in golf they talk about follow through in the swing. When you play tennis they talk about follow through. When you go skiing they talk about follow through in the turn. Well, it's the same in everything in life. Follow through is important, because it's one thing to pass a bill that attacks global warming but it's another thing to take the strong action needed to actually make it work and to turn our goal into reality.

We are already leading the way as we fight global warming, if it has to do with cleaner cars that we have here, cleaner fuel, the Green Building Initiative, renewables, the Million Solar Roof Program, the Hydrogen Highway and the list goes on and on. But now we lead the way by encouraging land use patterns to allow people to drive less. SB 375 enables us to plan comprehensively for housing, for transportation and for climate change all at the same time.

This was not an easy bill, let me tell you, to pass and I think that our Senator here can tell you how much work went in there, because this is a new idea and people had to be brought along one step at a time. And so, Senator Steinberg, I want to congratulate you, because you have worked on this for two years now. He now has the support, because of this great work that he has done, from the homebuilders, local government and leading environmental groups. And you very rarely see those groups together, may I remind you but he has managed to do that. He has brought them all together and also the endorsement and the support of this governor.

So I congratulate him for the hard work, for bringing all those different stakeholders together. Let's give him again a big hand for the great work that he has done. (Applause)

This, I just want to finish by saying, is a great gift to the people of California and it will produce a better, healthier and more efficient California for many, many generations to come. So thank you very much again, all of you, for being here today.

And now I would like to bring out the man that is responsible for this great achievement, Senator Darrell Steinberg. Please. (Applause)

SENATOR STEINBERG: Thank you very much, Governor, for your kind comments. But more importantly, thank you for your visionary leadership in making sure that California is not just the national leader but the international leader, in improving our climate. Your work is being recognized not only in this state but -- read Time Magazine this week -- throughout the nation and throughout the world. And the state of California owes you a great debt of gratitude, not only for signing this bill but for, as you say, following through on the landmark legislation of two years ago and saying that our work is not yet done. Thank you, Governor. (Applause)

I want to thank my colleague, who is not here today, Senator Denise Ducheny, who was the joint author of the bill and put in untold numbers of hours in helping, in the early stages especially, to bring this together. And, of course, my colleagues Lois Wolk and Mark DeSaulnier for all of your great leadership and help. I have so many people to thank and I can't thank everybody.

But I want to say this. You know, this is the eighth year that I have worked on the issues of land use, housing, transportation and the relationship between state and local government and certainly there are those, many standing behind me, who have worked on these issues for much longer. And as the Governor mentioned a moment ago when he talked about this being a sequel, I just want to say that I'm proud to be just a bit part in the sequel that I would entitle, 'Never Say Die,' because people for years have been grappling with the issues of how we respect local control and, at the same time, how do we promote regional cooperation? How do we integrate the issues of the environment and growth?

And finally we have found a way. This landmark legislation and the difficult negotiation that it took to get here represents all that is possible in California. Here is what I know; growth is inevitable and growth is good for all the right reasons. People want to come and live in this wonderful state and stay to live in this wonderful state. But I know that we can both grow and grow in a way that improves and sustains our environment. I know that we can grow and we can lead the nation in improving our climate. I know that we can bring together diverse interests; the environmental community, the building industry, cities and counties, affordable housing advocates, business and labor and people who want to see things done differently, that we can bring people together to create coalitions of the impossible, coalitions that people don't believe can happen.

And this can serve and must serve as a model for how we go forward in the future. Despite the conventional wisdom, given some of the recent difficulties here in California, I know that state government can, in fact, solve complicated problems and be a force for positive change.

Local control is essential and yet this bill represents the truth that our major California challenges know no artificial boundaries. Traffic doesn't all of a sudden go from bad to good, or good to bad, when you cross one city boundary into another. The air quality doesn't all of a sudden go from bad to worse, or bad to good, when you cross another city or county boundary into another. This is the new way of doing business and it will allow California to grow and to prosper, I believe and I hope, for a long, long time to come.

And finally I just want to say to the Governor, as I embark upon a new responsibility come November the 30th, that this is just the beginning. This is just the beginning. I look forward to working with you to make California and its state government work again. We can do great things together, all of us -- all of us -- and let SB 375 be maybe the primary example that shows how to get it done. Thank you very much to everybody. (Applause)

Let me now introduce one of the many champions of this effort, Ann Notthoff from NRDC, who along with Tom Adams and Pete Price and many others, were just unbelievable, unbelievable in terms of the dedication to making sure that we got to this day today. Please welcome Annie Notthoff. (Applause)

ANN NOTTHOFF: Well, what a nice present at the end of a long, hot summer. Thank you, Governor and thank you, Senator Steinberg, for working your special magic to bring all of us together today. Working with my partner, Tom Adams and Pete Price at the League of Conservation Voters and Bill Craven at Senator Steinberg's office and Mary Nichols and Mike McKeever, we were able to get this over the end of the line there -- and I tell you, it was really nip and tuck at the end. So I couldn't be happier to be here. It's much better than this time yesterday afternoon, I have to tell you. (Laughter)

So I just have to say that this is huge, people. We finally have the missing piece in California's plan to limit global warming pollution. This new law is so essential to meeting our pollution reduction goals. Now we're not just going to have cleaner cars, cleaner fuel to put in the cars but we're going to give some people some options to get out of their cars once in a while and that's going to save them money too.

So we are very proud to have worked together with this broad coalition and we are looking forward to working with this kind of coalition on other issues that are affecting California, where there are lots of challenges out there to deal with -- land, air, water -- and this type of coalition building and cooperation, where everybody gets something -- we don't always get everything we want but this is the roadmap for solving some of those tough California problems. So thank you very much.

And I'm now going to introduce Pete Price, who is with the League of Conservation Voters. Tom Adams who worked so hard on the bill, is currently hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and I'm sure he's having a much nicer hike now that he knows the bill has been signed into law. (Applause)

PETE PRICE: Thank you. I'm Pete Price, the legislative representative for the California League of Conservation Voters, CLCV. And on behalf of the many members of CLCV and especially our president, Tom Adams -- who I don't think you'll mind me saying, Senator -- was the driving force behind this bill. I want to say thank you to you, Governor Schwarzenegger, for really seizing this opportunity and taking a big step forward and actually achieving the aggressive targets of AB 32 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. And of course Senator Steinberg, I want to thank you. You've worked so long on these complicated housing and land use issues and Senator Steinberg brought all of his experience to these very challenging negotiations that led to the final version of SB 375 that could be signed into law.

All of the interest groups that are here today were forced to move out of their traditional comfort zone to reach a final agreement and I want to thank all of our environmental colleagues who hung in there with us, because it was challenging at times. But we all realized that business as usual isn't working. For all the strengths of California's major environmental laws, the fact is they haven't really succeeded in stopping urban sprawl, which leads to the greenhouse gas emissions and more travel time on the roads and everything we're trying to deal with.

SB 375 recognizes that our environmental laws need not only to prevent environmental degradation but also to encourage projects that are good for the environment. And that's only one of the reasons why SB 375, we believe, is the most important land use reform bill to be enacted in 30 years. CLCV is very proud and pleased to be a part of this broad coalition that made the bill possible. Thanks and congratulations to all involved.

Senator, I'm going to get away from the script a little bit and invite Mike McKeever from SACOG up here. (Applause)

MIKE McKEEVER: I'm Mike McKeever, I'm the executive director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments and a constituent of Senator Darrell Steinberg. I've had the good fortune, over the last several years, of working for 31 local elected officials on the blueprint project here. And three of them are here today as either current or past board chairs; Tom Cosgrove, Lincoln, is our current chair; Heather Fargo, Sacramento, is our past chair; and Mayor Cabaldon from West Sacramento. All three of them provided phenomenal leadership in developing a growth strategy for this region that accomplishes the goals that the Governor and the Senator have talked about, using land efficiently, using less energy, less water and creating fewer carbon emissions.

As the SACOG board adopted the blueprint three and a half years ago we knew that we needed some regulatory reform help in order to implement it. The Governor had a task force that he had appointed to look at what could be done to improve the Council of the California Environmental Quality Act. They had a number of good recommendations. I had a conversation with Senator Steinberg and I said we really need some regulatory reform to help us achieve these smart growth goals. And so this is very much a coming together of a lot of great leadership; local, state and in the Senate and I am very, very grateful that this day is here. Thank you. (Applause)

Now I'm going to introduce Layne Marceau from the builders in the state. (Applause)

LAYNE MARCEAU: Thank you and good afternoon. My name is Layne Marceau, I'm here representing the California Homebuilder group. I sincerely want to thank Governor Schwarzenegger, Senator Steinberg and Senator Ducheny for their strong leadership on this issue. Clearly, California has its share of challenges. The impact to our environment from changes in the global climate certainly pose big challenges. On this score, California Homebuilders are committed to doing our part to help the state realize its greenhouse gas reduction goals.

Another big challenge we face is getting the housing market back on its feet. As you all know, the construction of new housing in our state has come to a virtual standstill. That's not good for potential homebuyers and that's not good for our state economy. We firmly believe, as Governor Schwarzenegger has said many times, we can have a strong economy and have strong environmental protection as well.

SB 375 provides a bold plan to address both. By focusing on achieving our greenhouse gas reduction targets, by fully providing for our housing needs and by bringing to the table the critical certainty that builders need in the form of streamlining the environmental review process and the zoning that must actually be in place, SB 375 will not only help a struggling housing industry but will provide the environmental protection that Californians have come to expect. As we move forward we will be working with Governor Schwarzenegger and Senator Steinberg and others to continue to find ways to stimulate the economy and provide the housing needs of California. Today we celebrate SB 375, a monumental achievement and I thank you. (Applause)

Now I'd like to introduce Mayor Fargo of Sacramento. (Applause)

MAYOR FARGO: Thank you, Layne. And it's wonderful to see everybody here today. As the president of the League of California Cities I am very proud to be here today to join everyone else that worked so hard on this incredible piece of legislation. This is one of the missing pieces, after AB 32, one of the implementation pieces that we need as a state to get this whole process going of us doing our share to reduce climate change. And as you sit out here and swelter just a bit, it's a little hard to argue about climate change, about global warming. We think that argument is behind us; it certainly is here in the state of California, with the leadership that we have here.

But thanks to the vision and the leadership, the commitment and the follow through of our Governor, this bill was signed, or is about to be signed. I shouldn't say it was signed, it's about to be signed. Okay. This Governor has shown not only the commitment that we need but the willingness to do what it takes to actually get the job done. And if it wasn't for Darrell Steinberg, who isn't always known for being stubborn but was incredibly stubborn in this process and stuck with it, kept bringing people back to the table, kept looking at the details, kept trying to fix it and tweak it, which we were able to do.

All of the groups that are represented here before you worked very hard to make this happen and I think that we're all committed to looking at whatever the next steps are. But we have finally made the case that yes, there is a relationship between land use, transportation, air quality and global warming and as Californians, as mayors, as city representatives, as state representatives, we are going to do something about it. It's not going to be easy. We're going to need a lot of people in California to step up and help us. But I think what you see here today is that leadership and that commitment to actually get this moving.

So Governor, thank you so much on behalf of the cities of California. Senator Steinberg as well, thank you so much for working with all of us. Thank you all. (Applause)

GOVERNOR: The next speaker is Tom Radulovich. If you'd come out here and say a few words, please?

TOM RADULOVICH: Thank you, everyone, for coming out today. I am Tom Radulovich, BART director elected from San Francisco, where it's about 20 degrees cooler than it is here. You know, sometimes you think, oh, global warming, not such a bad thing. But come out to Sacramento and you get to really feel it.

I'm really pleased to be here. The urgency of effectively addressing climate change is growing day by day. I think we're all beginning to feel that we need to do something. More and more, also, I think, Californians are understanding that public transportation is going to play a really important role, an essential role, in creating a more sustainable, prosperous, equitable and livable California in the years to come.

And BART is and I think our sister transit agencies as well, are determined to meet this challenge despite a very, very difficult environment budgetarily, especially for transit across the state these days. It's tough for everyone but especially for transit. As a director I saw SB 375 and I said, "We have to support this bill, it's the most important bill in the legislature this session."

And I really wanted to thank, first of all, BART staff for working through their issues. Like a lot of people with this bill we had issues with earlier drafts. So Paul Fadelli is here from BART Government Relations, thank you. And thank you, Senator Steinberg. It was a really incredible, monumental task to bring together all the parties. So mazal tov, you've created something truly great and worked very, very hard.

SB 375 is going to help keep California a leader in climate protection and it's going to help this state realize our AB 32 climate protection goals. SB 375 puts climate protection at the center of environmental and land use planning in this state. It's sort of been at the margins; it's going to be at the center. And it's a great combination of accountability for climate impacts of planning decisions but also some great incentives to build and grow in climate friendly ways. So again, very pleased to be here. Thank you, Senator Steinberg, Governor Schwarzenegger and everyone else who made this happen. (Applause)

GOVERNOR: And our last speaker, Jim Wunderman, or Wonderman. I call it in German Wunderman. Nice to see you.

JIM WUNDERMAN: Just call me, Governor. Thank you. Thank you very much. Governor Schwarzenegger, I want to thank you. First off there's the bill but I want to thank you -- the advice on the follow through is going to help my tennis game. I couldn't figure out what was wrong. Now, that's going to be a big help.

But in terms of this bill, this is a monumental event and you've convened an amazing group here who not only are achieving something fantastic today but in the future. This really bodes well for the future of California and after what we've just been through over the last few months this is really a good start to come out of the budget cycle and start doing something really, really significant for the future.

We're a business group and I'm very proud of the Bay Area Council's 63 years in the Bay Area. This is what we've been talking about for so long, to bring regional control over the process that affects land use and transportation and the environment all in the same place, so that we can plan properly for the future of our communities, for our children, create a livable place, a healthy place. This has really been, in effect, the Holy Grail for the Bay Area Council. My predecessor, Sunne McPeak -- who was, of course, your Cabinet Secretary, Dale Bonner's predecessor here at BTH, also Assemblyman DeSaulnier's predecessor on the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors -- she was a leader and for seven years ran the Bay Area Council working toward this. Angela Siracusa of our group -- many of you know, 25 years president of the Bay Area Council, working toward in fact what we've achieved here today.

So to us this is really the dawn of a new era and I cannot thank you, Senator Steinberg, enough for seeing this, for providing the kind of leadership that you have to create this. This is bigger than I think anyone can imagine and as a business group I'm so proud, Governor, to have been with you two years ago at Treasure Island, to stand with you for the signing of AB 32 and two years later to do this. California is on the move again and we're going to show some people what it takes to succeed and I think we've got it going. So again, I want to thank all of you, all the groups that participated. You're really wonderful and it's great to be in partnership with you. Thank you so very, very much. (Applause)

GOVERNOR: Thank you very much, Jim and also thank you, Jim, for the great leadership in the Bay Area Council. I want to thank you very much for your help. And now let's create the action and sign the bills. There are five copies over there and a copy goes to each one of the main stakeholders and people that were part of the main negotiations, so it's a great pleasure to do that. (Applause)