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California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed SB 375, also dubbed the "cllimate change smart growth bill" into law this week, reports Morrison Foerster. Declared the most significant land use legislation since the 1976 Coastal Act, the law seeks to adhere to greenhouse gas (GHG) emmission standards by reducing personal automobile contributions. The Air Resources Board has found that even with cleaner fuels and higher efficiency levels, the number of miles driven in an automobile is the variable preventing reaching target GHG levels.

The law encourages collaboration between the traditionally unrelated planning areas of regional transportation, housing allocation, and land use planning. In order to reduce traffic, California plans to move toward higher-density development with the added benefit of increased regional transport. Opponents of the new law claim it will only complicate planning processes and legislation, while doing little to reduce the state's carbon footprint.