California Environmental Quality Act: emergency shelters: supportive and affordable housing: exemption.

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 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. This bill would, until January 1, 2029, exempt from environmental review under CEQA certain activities approved by or carried out by a public agency in furtherance of providing emergency shelters, supportive housing, or affordable housing, as each is defined. The bill would require a lead agency that determines to carry out or approve an activity that is within this CEQA exemption to file a notice of exemption, as specified. Because this bill would impose additional duties on local lead agencies to determine if the exemption applies and, if so, to file a notice of exemption, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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.