Federal appeals court rules against Huntington Beach’s effort to bypass housing requirements.

A federal appeals court delivered a blow to Huntington Beach’s legal bid to sidestep state housing mandates, affirming the dismissal of the city’s lawsuit against California’s housing law requirements. The U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision, handed down Wednesday, upholds a previous court ruling rejecting the city’s challenge, adding another setback to its long-running housing policy dispute with the state.

The March 2023 lawsuit was Huntington Beach’s response after the state filed a separate legal action in state court, demanding the city comply with California’s zoning laws to facilitate new housing construction. A district court dismissed Huntington Beach’s federal case last year, ruling that the city lacked the standing to assert constitutional claims against the state’s housing mandates. This week’s appellate ruling unanimously reaffirmed that decision, stating the case had no grounds for federal review.

California Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta, who have frequently condemned Huntington Beach’s opposition to state housing mandates, welcomed the appellate court’s ruling.

“Today, yet another court has slapped down Huntington Beach’s cynical attempt to prevent the state from enforcing our housing laws,” Newsom said in a statement. “Huntington Beach officials’ continued efforts to advance plainly unlawful NIMBY policies are failing their own citizens — by wasting time and taxpayer dollars that could be used to create much-needed housing. No more excuses — every city must follow state law and do its part to build more housing.”

Echoing this sentiment, Bonta remarked, “While the city has been wasting the public’s time and money pursuing this meritless lawsuit, its neighboring communities — along with every Californian struggling to keep a roof over their heads or wondering where they’re going to sleep tonight — need Huntington Beach to step up and adopt a housing plan without further delay.”

To date, Huntington Beach’s City Council has refused to implement zoning changes that would permit the construction of over 13,000 new homes in the coastal city, arguing its charter city status exempts it from state-mandated housing laws. The appellate court, however, dismissed this argument, stating that California cities, whether chartered or not, remain subject to state law as subordinate political bodies.

Additionally, the judges rejected Huntington Beach’s attempt to invoke free speech rights on behalf of Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark and Councilmember Tony Strickland, who had argued that their rights protected them from being required to sign housing mandate documents.

Despite the unfavorable ruling, Huntington Beach City Attorney Michael Gates expressed the city’s determination to continue its legal battle. Gates said the city intends to seek a hearing with a larger panel of judges and, if necessary, will petition the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case.

“We have to keep fighting,” Gates said. “At some point, the tide is going to turn … and we are going to start to get more favorable rulings.”

Gates characterized the state’s authority over city council housing votes as “fundamentally un-American and unconstitutional.”

At a local forum, City Council candidates debated solutions for Huntington Beach’s business landscape, from rental costs to crime and community events.

In a critical forum ahead of the upcoming election, candidates for three seats on the Huntington Beach City Council and one city clerk position shared their strategies to strengthen the local economy. The event, hosted Thursday by the Huntington Beach Chamber of Commerce, drew about 50 attendees to the Senior Center. Moderated by Chamber board member Sheik Sattaur, the two-hour discussion featured eight council hopefuls who addressed key economic concerns facing Huntington Beach businesses.

Candidates at the forum included incumbents Rhonda Bolton, Dan Kalmick, and Natalie Moser, along with challengers Amory Hanson, Marissa Jackson, Don Kennedy, Butch Twining, and Chad Williams. With seats on the council awarded to the top three vote-getters rather than by district, candidates presented distinct visions on how to address the economic and social hurdles impacting businesses.

Bolton, Kalmick, and Moser, who identify with the council’s liberal-leaning bloc, defended their seats against conservative candidates including Jackson, who campaigns for religious and family-oriented policies, and Twining, Kennedy, and Williams, who advocate for a unified, business-friendly council aligned with Huntington Beach’s existing conservative majority.

Candidates identified rising rents as a major obstacle for local businesses, with Bolton, Jackson, and Hanson highlighting this as a leading factor driving companies out of Huntington Beach. High housing costs were also flagged by Bolton, Kalmick, and Moser as a barrier for talent retention, limiting companies’ ability to attract skilled workers.

Public safety emerged as another priority. Jackson, Kennedy, Twining, and Williams linked homelessness with public disturbances, stressing the need for policies to address homelessness, especially around popular tourist areas. Moser, in turn, raised the issue of significant vacancies in the city’s police department, which has struggled to fill 27 positions. She pointed to the broader shortage across city roles, attributing it to “chaos” within local government.

“I think one of the biggest challenges is going to be what the city can control,” Moser stated, “which is a lack of stability in the whole [city] government, lack of functional government [and] the chaos that’s been created here with recent culture wars. We’ve lost our workforce in City Hall.”

Throughout the forum, conservative candidates Twining, Kennedy, and Williams labeled their liberal counterparts as the “Newsom Threesome,” referring to California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, and argued that replacing the incumbents would foster council unity. Williams criticized incumbents over the 2021 closure of Ruby’s Diner, previously located on the Huntington Beach Pier, citing the restaurant’s exit as a failure of local leadership.

In discussing broader economic support, candidates shared common ground on expanding events outside the popular downtown beachfront, proposing that other city venues like the sports complex and golf courses could host festivals, athletic competitions, and other attractions to diversify revenue streams for local businesses.

Voter turnout is impressively high in both the county and in Surf City; but with the election a mere week away, around three-fourths of ballots still have yet to be submitted. 

There’s only one week until Election Day, and as California now offers more early voting options than ever before, it has become easier to cast your ballot ahead of time and skip the lines. Voter turnout across Orange County is surging, even surpassing 22% as of October 27th. However, despite this high turnout, Democrats and Republicans are still working around the clock to activate their base and convert undecided voters.

In Huntington Beach, residents can impact critical citywide, statewide, and nationwide elections. Here’s how you can vote today.

According to the Orange County Registrar of Voters, Huntington Beach has 13 voting locations––and you can even track wait times if you’re in a rush.

Three of these voting sites opened on October 26th and additionally offer drive-through services: the Edison Community Center (21377 Magnolia Street), the Murdy Community Center (7000 Norma Drive), and the Huntington Beach Central Library (7111 Talbert Ave). The remaining ten early voting sites will open on November 2nd; but if you must wait until November 5th, all vote centers will be open for Election Day voting from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM PST.

Voters in Huntington Beach can also utilize the secure ballot drop boxes or mail their ballots using their nearest USPS Post Office or USPS Mailbox with no postage required. The Registrar has an interactive tool to help you locate your nearest drop box to you, as well as a concise list including locations such as the Huntington Beach Civic Center (2000 Main Street), Golden West College (15744 Goldenwest Street), 5 Points Plaza (18591 Main Street) and more.

Huntington Beach has recently made national headlines for its refusal to kowtow to the state on major municipal issues—earning the city a reputation for championing local control. Despite California’s deep blue legislative makeup, Huntington Beach voters trend quite right of center. Earlier this year, the city made waves after voters approved Measure A, which requires a valid state ID to be presented to participate in city elections. In addition to a lawsuit from the state, legislators in Sacramento are also looking to ban Huntington Beach’s new law through Senate Bill No. 1174.

Here are the races and ballot measures to watch in Huntington Beach this time cycle.

The contest for the 47th Congressional District has been one of the most closely-watched in the nation. State Senator Dave Min (D) and Former State Assemblyman Scott Baugh (D) and are duking it out for current Congresswoman Katie Porter’s soon-to-be-vacant seat. It’s one of several tossup races that could potentially shift the balance of power in Congress. 

Additionally, incumbent Republican Assemblywoman Diane Dixon is challenged by Democrat businesswoman Dom Jones for Assembly District 72.

Voters will also elect three City Council members. In the running are conservative-vetted candidates Don Kennedy, Edward Butch Twining, and Chad Williams, against progressive-vetted candidates Dan Kalmick, Natalie Moser, and Rhonda Bolton. 

But those aren’t the only HB-specific seats up for grabs. Voters can also choose the next City Clerk and Treasurer. Current city clerk Robin Estanislau’s seat will either go to conservative candidate Lisa Lane Barnes or progressive candidate Regina Blankenhorn. Though all citywide seats are nonpartisan, it’s worth noting that conservatives have backed Alisa Backstrom for Treasurer, while progressives have not made an endorsement.

As for ballot measures, Huntington Beach voters can weigh in on Measure U, which would require voter approval for any zoning change or general fund that could have a “significant” environmental impact. This means if a land use project in question could impact the local environment, there’s an added layer of transparency by bringing it back to the voter. Then there are ten statewide ballot propositions––all of which, of course, Huntington Beach voters can weigh in on. Insiders have been watching Proposition 5, which would lower voter approval requirements for local governments to borrow money to fund affordable housing and some infrastructure projects and potentially burden middle and low-income families.

Prop. 32 has also been trending, as it proposes a state minimum wage increase from $16 to $18 an hour, which some groups fear will negatively impact small business owners. If Prop. 32 passes, fast food workers’ wages would increase to $20 starting in April, and health care workers’ wages would increase to $25 starting in October at the earliest. Other hotly debated propositions include Prop. 33, which would allow local governments to impose rent control on privately owned single-family homes, and Prop. 4, which would allow California to borrow $10 billion to respond to climate change.

These races cannot go unnoticed, as state lawmakers contribute to laws that govern California as a whole––from restrictions on gun sales to single-use plastic bans to in-state tuition for undocumented immigrants and more. California’s State Senate only has nine Republicans among 31 Democrats, and California’s State Assembly has a Democrat supermajority as well. But, if Republicans flip five Senate seats minimum, the Democrats would lose their supermajority––barring them from passing things like tax increases despite unanimous opposition from the opposition party. 

Once you’ve cast your ballot, whether by mail, at a Vote Center, or by drop box, you can track your ballot using Orange County’s Ballot Express service. They even offer updates through email and text, from ballot delivery to pickup to being officially counted by the Registrar.

Even in a big state like California or a big city like Huntington Beach, elections sometimes come down to razor-thin margins. That’s all the more reason to cast a ballot and let your voice be heard—it may tip the scales in a pivotal race.