California's Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom ran for governor in 2018 to address the Golden State's dire need for more affordable housing, but after nearly seven full years in office, the state is still in a housing crisis.
Newsom promised to build 3.5 million new housing units by 2025 but has fallen far behind that goal, with production continuing to stall even after his administration lowered the target. Although Newsom has made it clear his wish To ease the housing crisis, Californians continue to face low housing permit rates, rapid growth costs and one of lowest the country's homeownership rate. (CONNECTED: Rich City Running Out of Money Due to Blue State's Strict Affordable Housing Policy)
The attempt to produce 3.5 million units did not last long. Newsom called the aspiration “tight target” in 2022, when he announced a new goal of building 2.5 million new housing units by 2030.
Under Newsom's original 3.5 million housing unit schedule, 737,295 new private housing units were built in California. according to to the U.S. Census Bureau, about a fifth of its original goal. Production in the first eight months of 2025 alone is nearly 16,000 units lower than the same period in 2022.
According to the Census Bureau, 2022 saw the highest number of new housing permits issued in a year during Newsom's administration, with 120,780 units built. California will have to more than double its current housing production must meet the reduced target of 2.5 million units, which equates to approximately 310,000 units per year.
New retirement study found that California has the “highest negative net migration rate” of any generation.
California Governor Gavin Newsom attends a press conference during the UN Climate Change Conference COP30 in Belem, Pará state, Brazil, November 11, 2025. (Photo by Mauro Pimentel/AFP) (Photo by Mauro Pimentel/AFP via Getty Images)
California Republican Sen. Tony Strickland, who represents most of Orange County and has served in the state Legislature under five governors, pointed to the permitting process as a major obstacle for builders. He told the Daily Caller News Foundation that it took developers in Huntington Beach a decade to go through the California Coastal Commission (CCC) and get a permit to build a residential and commercial complex. project.
“When you take ten years to build a project, it will be handed over to the consumer,” Strickland told DCNF.
As the state's affordable housing shortage grows, so does Californians' ability to own a home. according to to a recent report from the state Legislative Analyst's Office. Homes in the Golden State have become twice as expensive as typical homes in the U.S., with mortgage rates and home prices driving monthly payments higher as of 2020.
More than four in 10 Californians are worried they won't be able to pay their rent or mortgage. for a recent study from the State Institute of Public Policy.
The Democratic governor signed two housing bills into law this year; AB 130 cuts red tape and exempts housing projects from the strict California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) supervision rationalize unit production and SB 79 which focuses on building high-density housing near public transportation systems.
Strickland nodded to AB 130's attempt to repeal CEQA, but said the bill only addresses one part of the housing solution and worsens another.
Vehicle miles traveled (VMT) taxwhich imposes a fee on developers building in areas with fewer transportation options is also included in AB 130. There are no barriers to preventing this tax from being passed on from developers to homebuyers and renters, resulting in higher mortgages and higher rents.
“When you talk about people wanting to buy a home, we shouldn’t call it a housing crisis, we have an affordability crisis,” Strickland said. ” [VMT] the hidden tax will go towards your mortgage, towards the purchase of your house.”
“This is a new housing tax that Los Angeles families simply cannot afford, adding $197,000 to the cost of a new home and increasing monthly rent by $1,350,” the Los Angeles Federation of Business said. said VMT tax. “This misguided VMT housing tax will disproportionately harm low-income families and households of color, while halting housing production and deepening California’s housing crisis.”
❌AB 130 is a direct attack on the American Dream. It adds a housing tax that penalizes Californians based on where they live: destroying jobs, delaying housing and increasing costs.
We have to stop this before it's too late. 🔗 in bio for application. #legislative candidates #CADeservesBetter pic.twitter.com/3AgRzmIWmm— Senator Tony Strickland (@SenStricklandCA) September 8, 2025
Strickland also told DCNF that Newsom's policies encouraging high-density housing near transit systems, such as SB 79, are “all about urbanization” and many Californians don't want to lose their suburban neighborhoods.
“Many Californians want to live in rural areas or suburbs,” he said. “If [Newsom] really wants to solve this housing crisis, he needs to do everything he can in terms of bringing down construction prices, he needs to do everything he can in terms of labor, and he also needs to quickly get a handle on a lot of the over-regulation.”
The Democratic governor has a year left in his term, and while housing construction has not yet seen an increase in housing construction, Californians may have to expect new fees levied by developers.
“[Newsom] comes out with great fanfare,” Strickland said. “But I’ve always said, don’t look at his rhetoric, look at his track record.”
“The Governor has created a generational and foundational model for achieving the goal of creating the housing California needs—and has set the state up for success,” a spokesperson for Newsom's office told DCNF. “The Governor has adopted new accountability strategies, streamlined construction and permitting, and made historic investments to help communities build more housing and make homes more affordable. We have made progress, but more work remains to be done.”
In 2021, Newsom created the Office of Housing and Homelessness Oversight. In September 2024 press releaseThe governor's office announced that the unit has “unlocked” more than 7,500 housing units in the state over the past two years.
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