California coastline regulator’s powers could be curtailed

A small but powerful California agency that oversees the state’s 840-mile coastline is facing scrutiny for decisions that critics say exceed its mission, which includes protecting Pacific Ocean access for beachgoers and staving off waterfront development.

First established via voter initiative in 1972, the California Coastal Commission’s mandate is “to protect, conserve, restore, and enhance the environment of the California coastline.”

The 12-member panel controls construction along the sprawling coast stretching from the U.S.-Mexico border north to the Oregon state line. Including buildings, housing, roads, and fire prevention efforts in a varied coastline that includes 420 beaches, iconic oceanfront cliffs and bluffs, and, at California’s far north end, terrain so rugged that the ocean isn’t accessible by road, with steep climbs down and back up, the

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