Environmental Quality: CEQA: exemption: critical infrastructure projects.

(1) The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared by contract, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project, as defined, 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 exempts from its provisions, among other things, certain types of ministerial projects proposed to be carried out or approved by public agencies, and emergency repairs to public service facilities necessary to maintain service. This bill would exempt from CEQA a critical infrastructure project, which would include, among other projects, projects funded under the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006 or the Disaster Preparedness and Flood Prevention Bond Act of 2006. The bill would provide that this exemption applies retroactively. Because a permitting agency, which includes a local agency, would be required to determine the applicability of, and to give notice of, that exemption, this bill would create a state-mandated local program. This bill would require a permitting agency, as defined, to issue or deny a permit within 15 working days of receiving a permit application from the Department of Transportation (Caltrans) or a local agency for a permit for a critical infrastructure project. The permitting agency would be authorized to apply to the ad hoc critical infrastructure permit review panel (panel) , which would be created by the bill, for a time extension to consider the permit application. The bill would provide that a permit application is deemed to be approved if the permitting agency fails to act within 15 working days of receiving the permit application and fails to obtain a time extension from the panel. The bill would authorize Caltrans or the local agency to file an appeal to the panel if the permitting agency denies the permit application or if the issued permit imposes unreasonable conditions that would lead to a significant delay in a critical infrastructure project. The panel would be authorized, at a duly noticed public meeting, to review a permit or denial of a permit for which an appeal was filed and to take specified actions. By requiring a permitting agency to perform additional duties related to critical infrastructure projects, this bill would imposed a state-mandated local program. (2) Existing law provides that, until January 1, 2010, in an environmental impact report, a negative declaration, a mitigated negative declaration, or other document required by CEQA for either transportation projects funded under the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006, or projects funded under the Disaster Preparedness and Flood Prevention Bond Act of 2006, the failure to analyze adequately the effects of greenhouse gas emissions otherwise required to be reduced pursuant to regulations adopted under the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 does not create a cause of action for a violation of CEQA. This bill would repeal that provision, thereby making a conforming change. (3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.