California Environmental Quality Act: arbitration.

"?>The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency to prepare, or cause to be prepared, 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, as defined, or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also generally 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. CEQA provides some exemptions from its requirements. This bill would allow an applicant for a project and the lead agency, at the time of application, to opt to resolve all disputes arising out of a subsequent environmental impact report for that project before an arbitrator, in lieu of retaining the option to file an action or proceeding arising out of those disputes before a court. If an applicant and the lead agency opt to do so, the bill would require the applicant and the lead agency to agree to an arbitrator.