In a push to address the state's gripping housing crisis, the California Coastal Commission approved a rule change early November to make it easier to build affordable housing along the hundreds of miles of the Pacific Coast.

The amendment, which gives affordable housing projects more time to build after permits are issued, was the latest effort by the powerful state agency to combat its poor reputation among housing advocates and Democratic leaders, who see it as an obstacle to drastic housing reform in California's coveted coastal regions.

The commission has faced relentless scrutiny in recent years for not permitting enough affordable housing in coastal cities, or doing so too slowly, as state lawmakers have stripped numerous housing regulations to make it easier to build more apartments.

Staff and commissioners have hailed the change as a step in the right direction for affordable housing developments that cannot be financed quickly enough under the previous two year deadline.

Governor Gavin Newsom, a critic of the commission, and other top Democrats have appointed three pro-development local officials this year to help get more housing and other developments approved along the Pacific Coast.

Critics of the agency point to the exorbitant housing prices along the coast, some of the highest in the country, as exacerbating the housing shortage.

Fewer than 2.5% of California residents live in coastal cities, which comprise less than 1% of land in the state, but is home to some of the most valuable real estate in the world.

Created in 1972 by voters and codified into law by the 1976 Coastal Act, the Commission's primary role is to conserve the natural bluffs and shorelines of the coast.

The agency frequently points to this as its main go.. protecting the coast from environmental degradation rather than controlling housing development.

For CalMatters, I'm Mia Henry, with reporting by Nadia Lathan.