BILL NUMBER: AB 956	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Mathis

                        FEBRUARY 26, 2015

   An act to amend Section 21177 of the Public Resources Code,
relating to environmental quality.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 956, as introduced, Mathis. California Environmental Quality
Act: noncompliance allegations: standing.
   The California Environmental Quality Act requires a lead agency,
as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the
completion of, an environmental impact report on a project that it
proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect
on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds
that the project will not have that effect. The act also requires a
lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project
that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions
in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no
substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a
significant effect on the environment.
   The act requires an action or proceeding alleging noncompliance
with its requirements to be based on grounds that were presented to
the public agency, orally or in writing, by any person and requires
the person maintaining the action or proceeding to have objected to
the approval of the project, orally or in writing, during the public
comment period provided under the act or prior to the close of the
public hearing on the project before the issuance of the notice of
determination. For an organization formed after the approval of a
project, the act provides, on and after January 1, 2016, that that
organization may maintain an action or proceeding if a member of the
organization objected to the approval of the project during one of
the 2 specified time periods.
   This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to that provision.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 21177 of the Public Resources Code, as added by
Section 12 of Chapter 496 of the Statutes of 2010, is amended to
read:
   21177.  (a) An action or proceeding shall not be brought pursuant
to Section 21167 unless the alleged grounds for noncompliance with
this division were presented to the public agency orally or in
writing by  any   a  person during the
public comment period provided by this division or prior to the close
of the public hearing on the project before the issuance of the
notice of determination.
   (b) A person shall not maintain an action or proceeding unless
that person objected to the approval of the project orally or in
writing during the public comment period provided by this division or
prior to the close of the public hearing on the project before the
filing of notice of determination pursuant to Sections 21108 and
21152.
   (c) This section does not preclude  any   an
 organization formed after the approval of a project from
maintaining an action pursuant to Section 21167 if a member of that
organization has complied with subdivision (b).
   (d) This section does not apply to the Attorney General.
   (e) This section does not apply to any alleged grounds for
noncompliance with this division for which there was no public
hearing or other opportunity for members of the public to raise those
objections orally or in writing prior to the approval of the
project, or if the public agency failed to give the notice required
by law.
   (f) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2016.