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California Land Use & Development Law Report

California Land Use & Development Law Report offers insights into legal issues relating to development and use of land and federal, state and local permitting and approval processes. View posts by topic. Subscribe 🡢

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California Court of Appeal Upholds Statewide Climate Change Scoping Plan

The court of appeal in San Francisco has upheld the Climate Change Scoping Plan adopted by the Air Resources Board in December 2008. In its June 19th decision in Association of Irritated Residents v.

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New South Coast Air District Rules Withstand Manufacturer's Second CEQA Challenge

A court of appeal has upheld the South Coast Air Quality Management District's second attempt to adopt a rule imposing strict limits on paint thinners and solvents. The court rejected a manufacturer's claim that CEQA required the District to study alternatives and mitigation measures before adopting the new regulations. W.M. Barr & Co. v.

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Island Annexations: Unanswered Questions

Those interested in the ins and outs of LAFCO law reacted excitedly to the news that the Attorney General was poised to issue an opinion on a perplexing question – when is an area of unincorporated land an "island" for purposes of annexation to a city under the Cortese-Knox-Hertzberg Local Government Act? The Attorney General issued the opinion on June 1, and you could almost hear the collective

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EIS Must Evaluate Impacts As Soon As It Is "Reasonably Possible" To Do So

In Pacific Rivers Council v.

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Plan Bay Area: The Regional Plan for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions - The EIR is Underway

The Metropolitan Transportation Commission, the transportation planning agency for the nine-county San Francisco Bay Area, and the Association of Bay Area Governments have announced that they are going to prepare an Environmental Impact Report to evaluate the agencies' proposed plan to reduce regional greenhouse gas emissions from cars and light duty trucks. On June　11, the agen

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Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace — Issue Exhaustion Applies to CEQA Exemptions.

The California Supreme Court has issued a landmark decision holding that the exhaustion doctrine – which requires parties to raise their claims at the administrative level before litigating them in court -- applies to challenges to an agency decision that a project is exempt from CEQA. Overturning a 15-year-old precedent, the court ruled that if the decision-making agency holds a h

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The Wetlands Debate Intensifies As House Republicans Question Two Upcoming EPA Studies

In a recent post ["When is a Wetland a Wetland -- and How Do We Find Out?"] we described the significant uncertainties in ascertaining the reach of the Clean Water Act over wetlands, ponds, drainage ditches and other small aquatic features only remotely connected

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To Consult or Not To Consult – That Is the Question for the Ninth Circuit

The Ninth Circuit is at center stage again in the debate over the interpretation and enforcement of federal environmental laws.

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Do Effects on the Adequacy of Public Services Have to be Mitigated Under CEQA?

No, at least according to a recent court of appeal decision in a case brought by the City of Hayward to challenge the EIR for the California State University East Bay campus master development plan.

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Court Invalidates San Jose Affordable Housing Ordinance

The California Building Industry Association scored a major victory recently when a San Jose judge threw out the city's requirement that residential developers sell or rent a specified portion of newly-built homes to lower-income households.

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The 2012 Edition Curtin's California Land Use and Planning Law Available Soon!

For over three decades, Curtin's California Land Use & Planning Law has provided a succinct and definitive summary of the major

provis

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Supreme Court to Decide Scope of Categorical Exemptions from CEQA

In what is perhaps the most controversial CEQA decision this year, the court of appeal in Berkeley Hillside Preservation invalidated permits for construction of a single-family home, ruling that the project did not qualify under CEQA's categorical exemption for construction of a single-family residence or its categorical exemption for infill development. The Cali

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Coastal Commission Steps Over the Line By Imposing Local Coastal Plan Amendment

In a jurisdictional dispute pitting the City of Malibu against a state conservancy and the California Coastal Commission, the court of appeal ruled the Commission lacked authority to disregard the city's objections to an amendment to its Local Coastal Program. While the Commission has the power to override a local agency's objections to LCP amendments requested by public a

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When Is Wetland a Wetland - And How Do We Find Out?

In recent years, two United States Supreme Court decisions have significantly reduced the scope of federal wetlands jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act. Solid Waste Age

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How Far Will USFWS Expand Incentives for Voluntary Conservation Actions Under the Endangered Species Act?

The U.S.