Freight: development projects.

(1) The Planning and Zoning Law, among other things, requires the legislative body of each county and city to adopt a comprehensive, long-term general plan for the physical development of the county or city and of any land outside its boundaries that relates to its planning. That law authorizes the legislative body, if it deems it to be in the public interest, to amend all or part of an adopted general plan, as provided. That law also authorizes the legislative body of any county or city, pursuant to specified procedures, to adopt ordinances that, among other things, regulate the use of buildings, structures, and land as between industry, business, residences, open space, and other purposes. The Permit Streamlining Act requires public agencies to approve or disapprove of a development project within certain timeframes, as specified. The act requires a public agency, upon its determination that an application for a development project is incomplete, to include a list and a thorough description of the specific information needed to complete the application. Existing law authorizes the applicant to submit the additional material to the public agency, requires the public agency to determine whether the submission of the application together with the submitted materials is complete within 30 days of receipt, and provides for an appeal process from the public agency's determination. Existing law requires a final written determination by the agency on the appeal no later than 60 days after receipt of the applicant's written appeal. Existing law, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) , requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and to certify the completion of, an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to 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 regulations establish a categorical exemption for existing facilities. This bill, until January 1, 2024, would prohibit a local agency from denying a permit for a short-term freight transportation use, as defined, that is submitted by a developer on a parcel if the proposed use is in conformity with all applicable plans, programs, and ordinances, among other things, that apply to the land, solely because the developer has a pending development application, or is concurrently submitting a development application, for a freight transportation project on that land. The bill would restrict the application of its provisions to land zoned for industrial or agricultural uses, subject to specified conditions, as of the date of the application submission. If a governing body of a California port adopts real estate agreements, tariffs, ordinances, or other entitlements to allow for a short-term port freight transportation use or freight transportation infrastructure, the bill, until January 1, 2024, would provide that the use be considered an existing facility with negligible or no expansion of use for the purposes of CEQA. By imposing new duties on local agencies with regard to local planning and zoning, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (2) The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities. (3) 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 with regard to certain mandates 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. (4) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.