California Environmental Quality Act: housing and land use.

(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. This bill, until January 1, 2025, would exempt from the requirements of CEQA emergency shelters or supportive housing projects meeting certain requirements. The bill would require an agency that determines that an emergency shelter or supportive housing project is exempt from CEQA pursuant to these provisions to file a notice of exemption with the Office of Planning and Research, as provided. By requiring local agencies to file this notice of exemption, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. CEQA establishes public comment periods for the lead agency to receive comments on a draft EIR for a project and requires the lead agency to respond to public comments received. This bill would authorize the lead agency to post on its internet website, at least 30 days before a public hearing at which it may approve the project, its responses to public comments received. The bill would authorize the lead agency to set a deadline of 10 days before the final public hearing at which it may approve the project for the receipt of written comments and supporting evidence if certain conditions are met. CEQA requires the courts to give an action or proceeding alleging noncompliance with CEQA preference over all other civil actions. CEQA establishes procedures applicable to an action or proceeding brought to challenge a public agency's action on the grounds of noncompliance with CEQA, including, among other procedures, the requirement that a petitioner bringing the action or proceeding is to request a hearing within 90 days from the date of filing of the petition and the requirement that the respondent public agency, not later than 20 days from the date of service of the petition, is to file with the court a notice setting forth the time and place at which all parties are to meet and attempt to settle the litigation. This bill would additionally require the respondent public agency, not later than 20 days from the date of service of the petition, to file and serve a request for the court to schedule a case management conference, as provided. The bill would specify the subjects to be addressed in the case management conference, which include, among other subjects, the potential usefulness of settlement discussions, mediation, or arbitration. The bill would instead require the public agency, not later than 15 days from the date of service of the petition, to file with the court a notice setting forth the time and place at which all parties or their counsel are to meet to discuss various issues, including, among other issues, the potential usefulness of settlement discussions, mediation, or arbitration. The bill would require the public agency, not later than 20 days after the initial case management conference, to file and serve a notice of the time and place of a settlement meeting. CEQA requires a petitioner, at the time of the filing of an action or proceeding pursuant to CEQA, to file a request that the respondent public agency prepare the record of proceedings related to the subject of the action or proceeding. CEQA provides the petitioner with the authority to elect to prepare the record of proceedings, instead of preparation by the public agency. This bill would require the petitioner to file with the respondent public agency a notice either requesting the public agency to prepare the record of proceedings or notifying the public agency that it is electing to prepare the record of proceedings. The bill would authorize the public agency or real party in interest, within 10 business days of the service of the notice, to assume responsibility of preparing the record of proceedings, notwithstanding the petitioner's election. The bill would require the lead agency or real party in interest, if it makes this election, to bear the full costs in preparing and certifying the record of proceedings and to waive its rights to recover those costs from petitioner if it prevails in the action. CEQA requires superior courts in counties with a population of more than 200,000 to designate one or more judges to develop expertise in CEQA and certain related laws so that those judges will be available to hear and quickly resolve actions or proceedings alleging noncompliance with CEQA. This bill would require the Judicial Council, on or before July 1, 2021, to take certain actions related to the administration of justice under CEQA and to submit a report to the Legislature on its view regarding the administration of justice under CEQA, as provided. The bill would authorize a superior court in a county with a population of 200,000 or less, upon its own motion or upon motion by a party, to either order the transfer of the action or proceeding alleging noncompliance with CEQA to the superior court in a county with a population of more than 200,000 or to order the case be heard by a judge with expertise in CEQA assigned by the Judicial Council. This bill would repeal various obsolete provisions from CEQA, make conforming changes, and make various clarifying and nonsubstantive changes. (2) Existing law requires a legislative body of a city or county or a district board, if an initiative petition is signed by a specified number of voters, to either adopt the ordinance set forth in the initiative petition, without alteration, at a regular meeting at which the certification of the petition is presented, or within 10 days after it is presented, or submit the ordinance proposed in the petition, without alteration, to the voters for approval. This bill would require the legislative body of a city or county or district board to submit the ordinance proposed in an initiative petition to the voters for approval if the legislative body or district board determines that the approval of the proposed ordinance constitutes an approval of a project within the meaning of CEQA, had the proposed ordinance been proposed by the legislative body or district board rather than by initiative petition. By requiring the legislative body of a city or county or district board to submit those ordinances to the voters for approval, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) The Planning and Zoning Law requires an action or proceeding against local zoning and planning decisions of a legislative body to be commenced within certain time periods, as specified. The Subdivision Map Act requires an action or proceeding against a decision of a local agency taken pursuant to that act to be commenced within a certain time period, as specified. CEQA requires an action or proceeding challenging a decision of the lead agency on the grounds of noncompliance with CEQA to be commenced within certain time periods, as specified. This bill would specify that tolling agreements entered into, as provided, are effective to toll the time periods in which an action or proceeding is to be commenced, as required by those 3 acts. (4) 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. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.