Trailer bill SB 131<\/a>, which includes Wiener\u2019s bill, makes more technical changes to CEQA reviews, but ultimately tries to avoid redundancies in the process. Among other provisions, the bill includes a number of CEQA exemptions for certain categories of development, including high-speed rail, trails and wildfire mitigation projects.<\/p>\n It also exempts advanced manufacturing facilities in industrial areas, a feature Wiener hopes will spur the production of electronics and semiconductors in the state.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re seeing a new kind of manufacturing that we\u2019re trying to reshore into the US, whether it\u2019s semiconductors, electronics, other kinds of advanced technology that we want to be produced here,\u201d Wiener told KQED. \u201cAnd the last thing we want is for California to get skipped over.\u201d<\/p>\n But environmental groups say this exemption is precisely what concerns them about the bill. Semiconductor factories often require significant amounts of water to fabricate microchips and can release hazardous chemicals into the air and water supplies.<\/p>\n Silicon Valley garnered international esteem for its semiconductor and microprocessor facilities, but now has 23 toxic Superfund sites,<\/a> a designation the Environmental Protection Agency gives to the worst hazardous waste sites in the United States.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are examples across the state of how the communities surrounding these facilities have just really experienced a lot of health harm,\u201d Raquel Mason, senior legislative manager with the California Environmental Justice Alliance, said at a press conference opposing the bill. \u201cThis is why CEQA [was created], so that we can have this review and make sure that there\u2019s safety and health considerations for projects exactly like that.\u201d<\/p>\n When it comes to housing, however, some advocates argue those reviews can result in more process than progress. They have criticized recent legislation as being ineffective<\/a> because they made too many concessions to environmental groups and often fell into an everything bagel black hole<\/a> of qualifications \u2014 an idea central to the burgeoning Abundance<\/a> movement. That Newsom fought to get Wicks\u2019 and Wiener\u2019s bills passed so quickly is telling, Lewis said.<\/p>\n CEQA has been the third rail of California politics for decades, but Lewis argued the state no longer has the luxury to delay the housing it needs.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is just fundamentally irresponsible to be blocking homes in California cities in 2025 when we\u2019re seeing the incredible heat waves across the country. We\u2019re seeing wildfires, we\u2019re seeing flooding, we\u2019re seeing storms destroy entire communities, all because of the pollution caused from sprawl and traffic and other pollution,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s time to get over that.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.kqed.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2025\/06\/250618-NewTeacherHousing-19-BL_qed.jpg\")