Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton announced a sweeping economic plan Monday that proposes suspending some of California’s most stringent regulations for a decade to encourage a building boom across the state. Hilton stated in a prepared speech for the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco that “For 10 years, California will have one overriding priority: build again.”
Hilton argued that a “left-leaning bureaucracy” and progressive policies are a greater threat to California workers than billionaires, leading to eroded job opportunities, incomes, and quality of life. He pointed to the state’s second-highest youth unemployment rate, attributing it to policies that are popular with young, college-educated voters in other states. “The exact same policies that seem to be winning the support of young, college-educated elites in Michigan and New York have given us the highest youth unemployment rate of all 50 states except Delaware,” Hilton posted on X, formerly Twitter.
The plan calls for a special legislative session during Hilton's first week as governor to enact a 10-year suspension of rules, regulations, government-imposed costs, and bureaucratic processes that he claims are driving businesses and development away from California. Key targets include the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), PAGA lawsuits, Vehicle Miles Traveled rules, and taxes on investment, along with regulations that add costs without clear public benefit.
Hilton suggested that some of these changes could be implemented through executive powers if the Democratic-controlled Legislature does not agree. "If they reject this offer, I am well prepared to use executive authority and the governor’s control of state agencies to achieve as much of it as possible incrementally," he said, though he acknowledged this approach would be slower and less optimal.
While maintaining clean air and water standards, the proposal aims to streamline permitting and legal challenges, with clear deadlines and a single appeal process. "One decision. One appeal. Then build," Hilton stated. "For 10 years, California should become the easiest, not the hardest place in America to build something that matters."
The plan envisions a significant expansion of housing, manufacturing, and infrastructure, including semiconductor factories, AI infrastructure, aerospace and defense facilities, nuclear power plants, reservoirs, desalination facilities, roads, bridges, ports, and new communities. Hilton suggested that developing 1% of California's land—approximately 1 million acres—could accommodate 5 million people in single-family homes and double the state's manufacturing capacity.
Hilton attributed California's economic challenges to "climate posturing," high taxes, burdensome regulations, litigation, and powerful union interests, which he believes have driven residents and businesses to states like Texas. He framed the election as a choice "between builders versus blockers. Creativity versus bureaucracy. Growth versus decline."