BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1570|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1570
Author: Perea (D)
Amended: 8/22/12 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COMMITTEE : 7-0, 7/2/12
AYES: Simitian, Strickland, Blakeslee, Hancock, Kehoe,
Lowenthal, Pavley
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 5-2, 8/16/12
AYES: Kehoe, Alquist, Lieu, Price, Steinberg
NOES: Walters, Dutton
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 5/30/12 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Environmental Quality Act: record of
proceedings
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill defines the type of projects that are
subject to the SB 984 (Simitian) California Environmental
Quality Act (CEQA), record of proceedings provisions,
provides fee authority for complying with the requirements
of SB 984 and this bill, makes clarifying changes in the
law, sunsets on January 1, 2016, and makes this bill
contingent on the passage of SB 984.
NOTE: This bill also contains provisions of SB 52
(Steinberg) which passed the Senate Floor (32-4) on
CONTINUED
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1/31/12.
ANALYSIS :
Existing law:
1. Requires lead agencies with the principal responsibility
for carrying out or approving a proposed discretionary
project to prepare a negative declaration, mitigated
negative declaration, or environmental impact report
(EIR) for this action, unless the project is exempt from
CEQA (CEQA includes various statutory exemptions, as
well as categorical exemptions in the CEQA guidelines).
2. Establishes requirements relating to preparation,
review, comment, approval and certification of
environmental documents, as well as procedures relating
to an action or proceeding to attack, review, set aside,
void, or annul various actions of a public agency on the
grounds of noncompliance with CEQA. At the time an
action or proceeding is filed in court, the plaintiff
must file a request that the respondent public agency
prepare the record of proceedings, which must be served
personally upon the public agency no later than 10
business days from the date the action or proceeding was
filed. The public agency must prepare and certify the
record no later than 60 days from the date the request
was made by the plaintiff. Upon certification the
public agency must lodge a copy of the record with the
court. The plaintiff may elect to prepare the record of
proceedings or the parties may agree to an alternative
method of preparation of the record.
3. Establishes special procedures relating to an
"environmental leadership" project under the Jobs and
Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership
Act (AB 900 (Buchanan and Gordon), Chapter 354, Statutes
of 2011) which includes requirements for preparation and
certification of the administrative record concurrently
with the administrative process and certain related
requirements.
SB 984 establishes procedures for the lead agency for a
project reviewed under the CEQA to prepare and certify the
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record of proceedings concurrently with the administrative
process for certain environmental documents. Specifically,
the bill:
1. Provides procedures for a lead agency to prepare and
certify the record of proceedings concurrently with the
administrative process for environmental documents, and
to promptly post all documents on the Internet. The
procedures apply upon the request of the project
applicant and consent of the lead agency, provided the
project applicant agrees to pay the lead agency's costs
of preparation.
2. Specifies that disclosure is not required for any trade
secret, location of archeological sites or sacred lands,
or any other information subject to the disclosure
restrictions in the California Public Records Act.
3. Sunsets January 1, 2016.
4. Makes enactment of the bill contingent on enactment of
this bill.
This bill applies the SB 984 record of proceedings under
CEQA for any project of statewide, regional or area-wide
environmental significance (those projects where the draft
EIR, proposed negative declaration or proposed mitigated
negative declaration must be submitted to appropriate state
agencies for review and comment) and certain other infill
development projects.
Comments
CEQA provides a process for evaluating the environmental
effects of applicable projects undertaken or approved by
public agencies. If a project is not exempt from CEQA, an
initial study is prepared to determine whether the project
may have a significant effect on the environment. If the
initial study shows that there would not be a significant
effect on the environment, the lead agency must prepare a
negative declaration. If the initial study shows that the
project may have a significant effect on the environment,
the lead agency must prepare an EIR.
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An EIR must accurately describe the proposed project,
identify and analyze each significant environmental impact
expected to result from the proposed project, identify
mitigation measures to reduce those impacts to the extent
feasible, and evaluate a range of reasonable alternatives
to the proposed project. If mitigation measures are
required or incorporated into a project, the agency must
adopt a reporting or monitoring program to ensure
compliance with those measures.
Generally, CEQA actions taken by local public agencies can
be challenged in Superior Court once the agency approves or
determines to carry out the project. CEQA appeals are
subject to unusually short statutes of limitations. Under
current law, court challenges of CEQA decisions generally
must be filed within 30-35 days, depending on the type of
decision. The courts are required to give CEQA actions
preference over all other civil actions. However, the
schedules for briefing, hearing, and decision are less
definite. The petitioner must request a hearing within 90
days of filing the petition and, generally, briefing must
be completed within 90 days of the request for hearing.
There is no deadline specified for the court to render a
decision.
In 2011, AB 900 and its companion measure, SB 292
(Padilla), Chapter 353, Statutes of 2011, established
expedited judicial review procedures for a limited number
of projects. For AB 900, it was large-scale projects
meeting extraordinary environmental standards and providing
significant jobs and investment. For SB 292, it was a
proposed downtown Los Angeles football stadium and
convention center project achieving specified traffic and
air quality mitigations. For these eligible projects, the
bills provided for original jurisdiction by the Court of
Appeal and a compressed schedule requiring the court to
render a decision on any lawsuit within 175 days. As part
of their expedited judicial review procedures, these bills
required the lead to prepare and certify the record of
proceedings concurrently with the administrative process
and required the applicant to pay for it. It was commonly
agreed that this would expedite preparation of the record
for trial. This bill applies that concurrent record
preparation process broadly to any project under CEQA.
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The author intends to apply to additional projects an
expedited CEQA procedure included for a limited set of
projects in other recently enacted statutes.
SB 52 Provisions
1. Provides a technical clarification to the definition of
"applicant," clarifies that the use must be designed to
be Leadership Energy and Environmental Design silver or
better, and provides that the definition of
"transportation efficiency" refers to private automobile
trips rather than vehicle trips. (Public Resources Code
(PRC) Section 21180).
2. Requires the lead agency, prior to release of a draft
EIR for public comment that an applicant is electing to
proceed pursuant to CEQA, to notify the Secretary of the
Natural Resources Agency if the applicant provides
notification, rather than fails to provide notification,
and corrects a cross reference. (PRC Section 21181).
3. Clarifies that the $100 million minimum project
investment is spent on planning, design, and project
construction; provides that priority for greenhouse gas
emission reductions occur on the project site and in
neighboring communities, and provides offset credit
procedures for these reductions; clarifies that special
master costs are not limited to appointment of the
special master; and makes other clarifying amendments.
(PRC Section 21183).
4. Clarifies that procedures relating to an action or
proceeding alleging a violation of CEQA apply to the
lead agency, rather than a public agency, and strikes a
requirement to file concurrent claims; and authorizes
the court to order, rather than grant, extensions of
time only for good cause. (PRC Section 21185).
5. Clarifies cross-references in the specified notice which
is required to be included in EIR reports (PRC Section
21187); revises the Judicial Council reporting
requirement to reference justice administration issues
rather than project certification issues (PRC Section
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21189.2); and clarifies legislative intent to, among
other things, reference public projects (PRC Section
21178).
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
Unknown with the latest amendments but this bill provides
for fee authority.
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/23/12)
California Manufacturers and Technology Association
Cities of Firebaugh, Fowler, Mendota, Orange Cove, Parlier,
and Selma
Fresno Chamber of Commerce
Fresno Council of Governments
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 78-0, 5/30/12
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Conway, Cook, Davis, Dickinson,
Donnelly, Eng, Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth
Gaines, Galgiani, Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Gorell, Grove,
Hagman, Halderman, Hall, Harkey, Hayashi, Roger
Hern�ndez, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones,
Knight, Lara, Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mansoor,
Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell, Monning, Morrell, Nestande,
Nielsen, Norby, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel P�rez,
Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson,
Torres, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A.
P�rez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Fletcher, Valadao
DLW:k 8/23/12 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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