California is fortunate in having legal precedents that 
support broad regulatory authority -- certainly broader than 
exist in many other states. The California Supreme Court 
generally allows government to wield considerable police 
authority when making land-use decisions. That allows the 
Commission to be a little more aggressive than other commissions 
can be when faced with a choice between man's activities in the 
Bay and the need to preserve the natural values of the Bay. 
The "public trust" doctrine also supports better decisions 
for the Bay. The public trust is a type of public property 
interest in the tidelands and submerged lands of the Bay. It is 
held by the state on behalf of the people and is paramount to 
any private property interests that may also exist. It can be 
thought of as an easement. The Commission is one of the co¬ 
trustees of this public trust. The McAteer-Petris Act is a 
declaration of the Legislature concerning what the public trust 
more specifically means for the Bay. When the Commission is 
acting in its capacity as a co-trustee, it can restrict uses on 
private lands more completely than it could if it were only 
using police power. If you use the police power in a way that 
deprives an owner of his property rights without paying for 
them, you are subject to a lawsuit that may require the agency 
to pay for the land affected by the decision. This possibility 
obviously has a chilling effect on the willingness of govern¬ 
ment to approach the line of an overly restrictive land-use 
decision. But if you are applying public trust principles to 
the land, then you are acting as one of the owners. An owner 
usually has greater control over property than a regulatory 
agency. 
Public opinion supports an unfilled Bay. There is a fairly 
broad consensus among the citizens of the Bay Area that the Bay 
is important, valuable, and deserving of protection. Most Bay 
Area "leaders" recognize that the Bay Area is at a competitive 
disadvantage in comparison to most other regions. For example, 
our ports are disadvantaged in comparison with the deeper 
watered and richer Ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, or Seattle. 
Housing costs in the Bay Area are among the highest in the 
country -- that discourages new industry. Chip-based technology 
has been experiencing retrenchment recently due to foreign 
competition and a maturing marketplace. Education and other 
public services have been contracting in the wake of Proposition 
13, which greatly limits public taxing of property. Transpor¬ 
tation is expensive, and roads are jammed and often badly 
maintained. Sewers need replacement in many areas. 
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