Statute
CEQA
1,312 published works
California Land Use & Development Law Report
College District’s Approval of Agreement to Buy Land Did Not Trigger CEQA
A community college district's approval of an agreement to buy land for possible use as a new campus did not trigger CEQA review where the agreement required an EIR before…
Environmental and Climate
Fourth Appellate District Upholds City of San Diego’s Rejection of Subdivision Project and Related MND
CEQA decisions usually arise in the context of a challenge to a lead agency’s approval of a project and a related CEQA document. However, in a recent decision, Kutzke v.…
CEQA Developments
Fourth District Rejects CEQA Challenge to College District’s Entry into Land Acquisition Agreement Prior to Preparing EIR Due to Plaintiffs’ Failure to Exhaust and Based on Merits
In a published decision filed August 8, 2017, the Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial Court’s judgment dismissing a CEQA action brought by two individuals (“Appellants”) against the…
Administrative and Regulatory
“Self-Governance,” Not “Regulation”: California Supreme Court Rules No Federal Preemption of CEQA under ICCTA for State-Owned Rail Projects
On July 27, the California Supreme Court released its long-awaited decision in Friends of the Eel River v. North Coast Railroad Authority (S222472), resolving a split among the State’s courts…
Administrative and Regulatory
Second District Court of Appeal Upholds Interlocutory Remand in Shopping Center Project Challenge, Clarifies General Plan Relationship with Projects
In The Highway 68 Coalition v. County of Monterey (2017) 14 Cal.App.5th 883, the Sixth District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court and upheld the County’s approval of a…
California Land Use & Development Law Report
CEQA Not Preempted by Federal Rail Transportation Law for Projects Carried Out by State Agencies
The California Supreme Court has issued its decision in Friends of the Eel River v. North Coast Railroad, an important case regarding preemption of state environmental law by the Interstate…
CEQA Developments
Supreme Court Denies Depublication Request, Declines To Review CEQA Decision Addressing Discretionary/Ministerial Project Approval Distinction
On July 26, 2017, the California Supreme Court issued its order denying the losing appellants’ (Sierra Club and Center for Biological Diversity) request for depublication of the opinion in Sierra…
Environmental and Climate
DWR Certifies EIR for WaterFix, Triggering 30-Day Deadline for Opponents to File Suit
By Rebecca R. A. Smith, Austin C. Cho, Meredith E. Nikkel, Kathryn L. Oehlschlager
On July 21, 2017, the California Department of Water Resources (“DWR”) certified the final environmental document and issued its Notice of Determination for the California WaterFix, a significant new water…
Environment, Land & Resources
Uncertainty Looms with Delays to Resolution of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard Program Challenges
By Joshua Bledsoe and Kimberly Farbota Two recent developments in the interrelated legal challenges commonly known as POET I and POET II may create additional uncertainty for the future of…
Real Estate, Land Use & Environmental Law Blog
High Court Upholds Long-Term GHG Emissions Analysis, But Warns Agencies to Keep Pace with Regulatory Advancements: Lessons from Cleveland National Forest Foundation v. SANDAG
Cleveland National Forest Foundation, et al. v. San Diego Association of Governments (2017) __ Cal. 5th __, Supreme Court Case No., S223603 Judicial deference to a lead agency’s determination regarding the proper…