Environmental quality: California Environmental Quality Act: bicycle transportation plan.

The California Environmental Quality Act, known as CEQA, requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of, an environmental impact report, known as an 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 requires the lead agencies to make specified findings in an EIR. Existing law authorizes a local agency that determines that a project is not subject to CEQA pursuant to certain exemptions and approves or determines to carry out that project, to file notice of the determination with the county clerk in the county in which the project is located. Existing law establishes the Office of Planning and Research, known as OPR, in the Governor's office. Existing law requires OPR to assist with, among other things, the orderly preparation of programs of transportation. This bill, until January 1, 2018, would exempt from CEQA a bicycle transportation plan for an urbanized area, as specified, and would also require a local agency that determines that the bicycle transportation plan is exempt under this provision and approves or determines to carry out that project, to file notice of the determination with the OPR and the county clerk. Existing law exempts from CEQA a project that consists of the restriping of streets and highways for bicycle lanes in an urbanized area, as provided. Existing law requires a lead agency to, among other things, prepare an assessment of any traffic and safety impacts of the project and include measures in the project to mitigate potential vehicular traffic impacts and bicycle and pedestrian safety impacts. This bill would provide the preparation of the assessment described above doesn't apply if certain conditions are met.