Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009: covered actions.

Existing law, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Reform Act of 2009, establishes the Delta Stewardship Council as an independent agency of the state. Existing law requires a state or local public agency that proposes to undertake a covered action that will occur within the boundaries of the Delta or the Suisun Marsh to prepare, and submit to the council, a specified written certification of consistency with the Delta Plan prior to taking those actions. Existing law defines the term "covered action" to mean a plan, program, or project, as specified. This bill would exclude from the definition of "covered action" any anticipated upgrades to existing drinking water, stormwater, or wastewater treatment facilities to meet state water quality requirements. Existing law, the Johnston-Baker-Andal-Boatwright Delta Protection Act of 1992, establishes a primary zone in the Delta where further development is barred and a secondary zone surrounding the Delta where development may proceed under certain conditions. This bill would also exclude from the definition of "covered action" any levee improvements and other flood control projects in the secondary zone, as specified, and would exclude from the definition the implementation of existing, fully permitted, habitat conservation and agricultural mitigation plans and programs within the primary and secondary zones of the Delta. Existing law, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) , requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report (EIR) 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. CEQA 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. CEQA exempts housing for agricultural employees, housing affordable to low-income households, and other infill housing projects meeting specified criteria. This bill would exclude from the definition of "covered action" specified plans, programs, projects, or activities within the secondary zone that have received environmental certification under CEQA or otherwise have vested rights as of the effective date of the Delta Plan, or both, and would exclude all of the categorical CEQA exemptions. This bill would also exclude from the definition agricultural employee housing, low-income housing, infill residential projects, and other infill development projects, as described.