Environmental quality: California Environmental Quality Act: judicial review.

(1) 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. The Jobs and Economic Improvement Through Environmental Leadership Act of 2011 establishes, until January 1, 2015, an alternative method for the preparation of the record of proceedings and alternative judicial review procedures for an action challenging the certification of an EIR for a project meeting specified requirements, including the requirement that the project will result in a minimum investment of $100,000,000, the project is located at an infill site, and the project has been certified by the Governor as an environmental leadership development project. The act also requires a residential, retail, commercial, sports, cultural, entertainment, or recreation use project that qualifies for certification to be certified as LEED silver or better by the United States Green Building Council. This bill would extend indefinitely the use of the alternative method for the preparation of the record of proceedings and the alternative judicial review procedures. The bill would expand projects that would be eligible for those alternative processes to include, among others, commercial development projects exceeding 125,000 square feet, residential development projects exceeding 50 units, and projects with over 20 acres of cultivated development. The bill would repeal the requirements that the project will result in a minimum investment of $100,000,000, be located in an infill site, and be certified by the Governor. The bill would instead require a residential, retail, commercial, sports, cultural, entertainment, or recreation use project that qualifies for these alternative processes to be designed to meet or exceed the standards for the CalGreen Tier 1 building as provided in the California Green Building Standard. Because this bill would expand the use of the alternative method for preparing the record of proceedings, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) 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.