Environmental quality: California Environmental Quality Act: record of proceedings.

(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. CEQA establishes a procedure for the preparation and certification of the record of proceedings upon the filing of an action or proceeding challenging a lead agency's action on the grounds of noncompliance with CEQA. This bill would require, until January 1, 2016, the lead agency, at the request of a project applicant for specified projects, to, among other things, prepare a record of proceedings concurrently with the preparation of negative declarations, mitigated negative declarations, EIRs or other environmental documents for specified projects. Because the bill would require a lead agency to prepare the record of proceedings as provided, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would require, for a lead agency that is a state agency, the consent of the state agency for the concurrent preparation of the record of proceedings. (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. (3) This bill would not become operative unless AB 1570 of the 2011–12 Regular Session of the Legislature is enacted on or before January 1, 2013.