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<\/p>\nCompany officials are pursuing legislation that would streamline environmental and regulatory reviews for its mega-development in Solano County, but some local residents are concerned it could mean a hasty deal without oversight. \n<\/p>\n
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A ‘No to California Forever’ sign is displayed at the entrance of Soul Food Farm in Vacaville on June 4, 2024. The company is currently pursuing plans for nearby Suisun City to annex some of its land, including the Foundry site.\u00a0(Gina Castro\/KQED)<\/p>\n
According to the bill\u2019s authors \u2014 former Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg and former Senate majority leader Bob Hertzberg, who joined California Forever\u2019s team in mid-April as \u201cspecial counsel\u201d \u2014 the draft legislation provides several mechanisms to speed environmental and regulatory approvals for the two proposed projects: a shipyard in Collinsville and the Solano Foundry, an advanced manufacturing site seven miles away. It would also extend to any workforce housing included on either site.<\/p>\n
It asks for the proposed shipyard to rely on a 2008 environmental impact report the county has already approved for that site. And, it requires any challenges to the two projects under the landmark California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) be resolved within 270 days<\/a>.<\/p>\n But there\u2019s a catch: in order to trigger those mechanisms, the company first has to sign a deal with a major manufacturer that promises to bring thousands of jobs to the county.<\/p>\n Since late last year, California Forever has been in talks with Saronic<\/a>, an autonomous shipbuilding defense startup<\/a> valued at more than $9 billion, to see if it might open its $3.2 billion naval shipyard called Port Alpha in Solano County.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re trying to create the environment where any of these companies that want to come to California to create these high-wage jobs can actually happen,\u201d Hertzberg told KQED. \u201cAnd we\u2019re not going to be in a situation where it takes 10 years.\u201d<\/p>\n The draft legislation has not been published yet, but company officials said it will be included in a trailer bill to the state\u2019s budget, which lawmakers approved this week. The use of a trailer bill, or a secondary piece of legislation the state can enact to implement the state budget after it has been approved, has been criticized <\/a>by some<\/a> as a way to sidestep public input.<\/p>\n Sarah Soroken, a resident of Rio Vista and member of Solano Together, a coalition opposed to California Forever, said she\u2019s deeply concerned this legislation could allow the project to be approved without proper oversight.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is why transparency in a public process is so important,\u201d she said. \u201cBecause if we let decisions happen behind closed doors, there may be factors taken into account that really don\u2019t prioritize the health and well-being of the people.\u201d<\/p>\n Job seekers, however, are eager for a change. Last week, labor groups across the state called on<\/a> Gov. Gavin Newsom and other state leaders to approve the proposed draft legislation and bring jobs to Solano County.<\/p>\n John Kowalski, a union pipe fitter and plumber based in Vacaville, said he has spent most of his career traveling outside the county for work. He pointed to the Budweiser plant<\/a> shutting down in Fairfield, the Valero plant <\/a>shutting down in Benicia and Jelly Belly<\/a>, the candy company based in Fairfield, closing its corporate-commercial operations there.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s no real industry here,\u201d he said. \u201cWith [the Foundry] and the housing that California Forever would like to bring to Solano County, it\u2019s needed.\u201d<\/p>\n Steinberg and Hertzberg told KQED that California Forever would still need to complete environmental impact reports and would need county approval on its projects. But those approvals, they acknowledged, can take years to negotiate, especially with property, sales or other tax-sharing agreements. The draft legislation includes a provision requiring binding arbitration to protect the county from any costs the project could incur.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/250513-CALIFORNIAFOREVERANNEXEXPLAINER-17-BL-KQED.jpg\")
The intersection of Highway 12 and Highway 113 in Solano County outside of Suisun City on May 13, 2025. (Beth LaBerge\/KQED)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/231205-SolanoCountyFarmers-39-BL_qed.jpg\")
Jan Sramek, CEO of California Forever, speaks during a town hall meeting in Rio Vista on Dec. 5, 2023, for the proposed California city backed by Silicon Valley investors on farmland in eastern Solano County. (Beth LaBerge\/KQED)<\/p>\n
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A sign says, \u2018Welcome to Suisun City\u2019 on Highway 12 in Suisun City on May 13, 2025. (Beth LaBerge\/KQED)<\/p>\n