The California Coastal Commission (CCC) is a state-level government agency that regulates environmental matters and economic development on California’s coastline. ¹

The CCC has consistently opposed property development and sided with environmentalist and local interests. The agency has faced opposition from private developers, local governments, nonprofits like the Pacific Legal Foundation, and the Yes in My Backyard (YIMBY) movement for allegedly overstepping its legal bounds. In December 2024, the CCC was sued by billionaire Elon Musk after the agency blocked requests to increase the number of SpaceX launches on a U.S. Space Force base. Among other complaints, SpaceX alleged that the CCC was politically biased against Musk, who supported Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election. ²

Founding

In 1972, the California Coastal Commission was temporarily established by Proposition 20, a voter initiative launched in response to the creation of Sea Ranch, an unincorporated town on the coast of Sonoma County. Though developed in an environmentally conscious manner, environmentalist critics considered Sea Ranch “an outrageous encroachment on public access to a large swath of the state’s majestic coast.” After its creation, the CCC blocked construction on Sea Ranch for a decade and guaranteed public access to its beaches. ^{3 4}

In 1976, the CCC was established permanently by the passage of state legislation signed by then-Governor Jerry Brown (D). Two years later, he publicly referred to the CCC as “bureaucratic thugs” due to their interference in property development. ^{5 6}

Structure and Leadership

The California Coastal Commission is composed of 12 voting members and three non-voting members. Four voting members are appointed each by the Governor, the state Senate Rules Committee, and the Speaker of the state Assembly. Half of the voting members need to be elected officials from local coastal districts. ⁷ The New York Times has noted that appointing officers have “been dominated by Democrats with political and philosophical interests generally aligned with conservation advocates.” ¹

In February 2016, California Coastal Commission’s commissioners voted seven to five to oust executive director Charles Lester after a 12-hour hearing. Lester, who was considered to be popular among environmentalist advocates, was allegedly ousted due to a combination of business interests influencing the agency to take a more pro-development stance, and a “an issue the commissioners were legally unable to disclose that led to the decision to terminate Lester.” ^{8 9}

Activities

The California Coastal Commission regulates property development on California’s coast and is best known for blocking development projects or placing a heavy regulatory burden for environmental and public access reasons to incentivize developers to abandon proposed projects. The CCC often comes into conflict with both private developers and local county and city governments. ¹

In 1998, the CCC successfully blocked an attempt by the Hearst Corporation to build a golf course in San Luis Obispo County. ¹

After a series of legal battles between the CCC and the City of Malibu in the mid-2000s, Malibu Mayor Jeff Jennings commented, “The commission basically tells us what to do, and we’re expected to do it… and in many cases that extends down to the smallest details imaginable, like what color you paint your houses, what kind of light bulbs you can use in certain places.” ¹

In 2007, the CCC blocked actor and director Clint Eastwood’s attempt to build a golf course on the Monterey Peninsula. ¹

In February 2008, the CCC entered a legal battle against a local transit authority over its proposed extension of a toll road by 16 miles in San Diego County to alleviate traffic on California’s Interstate 5 highway. The CCC sided with locals against the transit authority due to concerns over destroying natural beauty, adding local traffic, and “[imperiling] the endangered Pacific pocket mouse.” ¹

In May 2022, the CCC rejected a permit application for a $1.4 billion Poseidon desalination plant in Huntington Beach. ¹⁰

The CCC has been in a longstanding conflict with the Yes in My Backyard (YIMBY) movement which seeks to ease local and state building regulations to encourage development primarily to lower housing costs. In 2024, YIMBYs aligned with numerous Democratic lawmakers to push a slate of pro-development bills through the California state Assembly with specific provisions limiting the CCC’s authority. According to Cal Matters, by Spring 2024, all of the bills were either defeated or “so severely watered down that they no longer carry the promise of a more built-out coastline.” One of the defeated bills was AB 2560 intended to require coastal housing developers to set aside a portion of their units for low-income housing in exchange for looser building requirements. ¹¹

As of late 2024, the proposed Venice/Dell low-income housing project in Venice Beach, California has been rejected six times by the CCC, mostly due to alleged violations of various architectural requirements. ¹²

Controversies

SpaceX

In October 2024, the CCC denied a request by the Vandenberg  Space Force Base to increase its annual SpaceX launches from 36 to 50. Soon after, SpaceX sued the CCC, claiming that the decision violated the First Amendment and constituted an overstepping of state authority on federal land. Additionally, the lawsuit alleged that the CCC displays “shocking, political bias” against SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. In December, the CCC was sued by the right-of-center think tank Judicial Watch for allegedly not complying with public information requests regarding the Vanderberg decision. ^{13 2}

Nollan v. California Coastal Commission

The California Coastal Commission has occasionally suffered setbacks. In 1987, the CCC was defeated in the U.S. Supreme Court case Nollan v. California Coastal Commission. The Nollan family had sought to replace a small beachfront home with a larger one, but the CCC noted that the home would interfere with the public’s view of the beach, and so the CCC levied a series of regulatory requirements on the Nollans’ building permit, including allowing the public to walk through their property. The Nollan family sued the CCC arguing that the permit requirements violated their Fifth Amendment rights. The court ruled that the CCC’s regulations of private homeowners on California’s coast were so severe that they constituted “taking,” or the de facto seizure of ownership, and were therefore illegitimate without just compensation. ¹⁴

Property Rights and Housing Construction

The California Coastal Commission has been criticized for overstepping its bounds, wielding dictatorial power, and violating constitutional rights. The New York Times has described the CCC as having “dominion lacking in comparisons in other states.” Jonathan Zasloff, a law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, has described the CCC as “the single most powerful land use authority in the United States.” ^{1 15} The Wall Street Journal once described a CCC overstep as “pull[ing] a Saddam” in reference to Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. ¹⁶

The Pacific Legal Foundation (PLF) has launched numerous lawsuits against the CCC claiming it has overstepped its legal authority. In January 2025, the PLF successfully sued the CCC to prevent the agency from stopping residents of San Luis Obispo County from building on their own property in accordance with an agreement made with the county before development was halted due to water restrictions. ¹⁶ In the same month, the PLF launched another lawsuit against the CCC after the agency blocked a housing expansion in Laguna Beach despite a legal argument that the property was exempt from CCC oversight. ¹⁷

In June 2024, left-of-center nonprofit Circulate San Diego released a 34-page report criticizing the CCC for consistently blocking or delaying the construction of low-income housing. ¹⁸

1. “In California, Coastal Commission Wields Vast Power.” The New York Times. February 23, 2008. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/23/us/23clemente.html
2. Britschgi, Christian. “Elon Musk Versus the California Coastal Commission.” Reason. November 22, 2024. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://reason.com/2024/10/22/elon-musk-versus-the-california-coastal-commission/.
3. Woo, Elaine. “Al Boeke dies at 88; ‘father’ of Northern California’s Sea Ranch.” Los Angeles Times. November 20, 2011. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-xpm-2011-nov-20-la-me-al-boeke-20111120-story.html.
4. “Our Mission.” California Coastal Commission. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.coastal.ca.gov/whoweare.html.
5. ^[1] “Our Mission.” California Coastal Commission. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.coastal.ca.gov/whoweare.html.
6. Rosenhall, Lauren. “Activists at odds with Gov. Jerry Brown over Coastal Commission.” San Fransisco Chronicle. January 31, 2016. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.sfchronicle.com/science/article/Activists-at-odds-with-Gov-Jerry-Brown-over-6797094.php.
7. “Commissioners and Alternates.” California Coastal Commission. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.coastal.ca.gov/roster.html.
8. Leslie, Jacques. “Why Was the Executive Director of the CA Coastal Commission Unjustly Fired?.” Sierra. March 18, 2016. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/2016-2-march-april/green-life/why-was-executive-director-ca-coastal-commission-unjustly-fired.
9. St John, Allison. “California Coastal Commission Ousts Its Chief.” Kpbs. February 10, 2016. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.kpbs.org/news/politics/2016/02/10/backers-urge-california-coastal-commission-keep-di.
10. Dawid, Irvin. “California Coastal Commission Rejects $1.4 Billion Desalination Project.” Planetizen. May 15, 2022. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.planetizen.com/news/2022/05/117172-california-coastal-commission-rejects-14-billion-desalination-project.
11. Christopher, Ben. “Push to build more homes on California coast stifled after lawmakers derail housing bills.” Cal Matters. August 19, 2024. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://calmatters.org/housing/2024/08/coastal-commission-bills-die/.
12. McGregor, Angela. “After 6 Rejections, Coastal Commission to Revisit Controversial Venice Housing Project.” December 3, 2024. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.westsidecurrent.com/news/after-6-rejections-coastal-commission-to-revisit-controversial-venice-housing-project/article_f68a71b4-b10b-11ef-84de-ab4e06529b51.html.
13. Lanham, Camilia. “California Coastal Commission faces two lawsuits after denying Vandenberg’s request to increase SpaceX launches.” The Santa Maria Sun. January 23, 2025. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.santamariasun.com/news/california-coastal-commission-faces-two-lawsuits-after-denying-vandenbergs-request-to-increase-spacex-launches-16251401#:~:text=January%2023%2C%202025-,California%20Coastal%20Commission%20faces%20two%20lawsuits%20after,request%20to%20increase%20SpaceX%20launches&text=LAUNCH%20CONTROVERSY%3A%20The%20California%20Coastal,annual%20SpaceX%20Falcon%209%20launches.
14. “Nollan v. California Coastal Commission, 483 U.S. 825 (1987).” JUSTIA. U.S. Supreme Court. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/483/825/.
15. “Coastal Commission is the real Goliath.” Orange County Register. April 11, 2017. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.ocregister.com/2017/04/05/coastal-commission-is-the-real-goliath/.
16. Yeatman, Nicole W.C. “Victory! Court rules against the California Coastal Commission in San Luis Obispo.” Pacific Legal Foundation. January 9, 2025. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://pacificlegal.org/victory-california-coastal-commission-in-san-luis-obispo/.
17. “California Coastal Commission and City of Laguna Beach ignore their own rules to block couple’s right to build an ADU.” Pacific Legal Foundation. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://pacificlegal.org/case/reinecke-adu-california-coastal-commission/.
18. Williams, Dana. “Critics say California Coastal Commission resists, delays affordable-housing projects.” San Diego. June 14, 2024. Accessed January 25, 2025. https://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local/critics-say-california-coastal-commission-resists-delays-affordable-housing-projects/3541936/.