California Land Use & Development Law Report
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.
EPA Publishes Draft Scientific Report To Support Significant Expansion of Clean Water Act Jurisdiction
Ninth Circuit Moves Low Carbon Fuel Regulations Closer to Validation
California Supreme Court To Hear San Jose Affordable Housing Case.
The California Supreme Court has granted a petition by the California Building Industry Association for review of an appellate court's decision upholding a San Jose affordable housing ordinance. The court of appeal found the ordinance to be a valid exercise of the City's police powers, reversing a lower court ruling that the city had not shown a reasonable relationship between
Senate Bill 743: Legislature Sends CEQA Amendments to Governor
Following a week of intense negotiations, the Legislature has sent Governor Brown a set of CEQA amendments. Senate Bill 743 replaces – at least for now -- Senate Bill 731, which had become an unwieldy mass of 15 separate CEQA revisions. (See our April 26 post
All About Drakes Bay and Oysters, Little Oysters.
County Can Establish Winery Uses By Right Despite Environmental Impacts
Faulty Greenhouse Gas Analysis Sinks EIR
An environmental impact report must not only identify a proper significance threshold for a project's greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; it must then correctly apply that threshold. The EIR for a Wal-Mart Supercenter failed this test in Friends of Orov
No CEQA Review Required For Adoption of CEQA Thresholds of Significance
A court of appeal today rejected a CEQA challenge to an air pollution control district's published thresholds of significance for air pollution impacts. California Building Industry Association v Bay Area Air Quality Management District, No. 135335 (First District, July 13, 2013).
Use Of Future Baseline In CEQA Analysis Approved By California Supreme Court
The California Supreme Court has both resolved a split in the appellate courts and forged new law on the baselines agencies may use to assess projects' environmental effects under CEQA. Neighbors for Smart Rail v. Exposition Metro Line Construction Authority, Case No. S202828 (Cal.
City Council's Interpretation of General Plan Prevails Despite Conflict With Plan's Land Use Map
A city council has sweeping authority to interpret the city's general plan. That authority trumped a successful referendum campaign designed to block a residential development project, according to the court's decision in Orange Citizens for Parks and Recreation v.
Offsite Conservation Easements Are Feasible Mitigation For Loss Of Agricultural Resources According to Appellate Court
Specific Limitations Period In Government Code Prevails Over Statute of Limitations In CEQA
Under the Public Records Act, agencies must allow access to land use databases.
The California Supreme Court has unanimously held that a public agency must allow access to a database of information on land use parcels, rejecting the claim that such information is subject to the "computer software" exemption under the Public Records Act.
Pre-Approval Disclosures Between Agency and Applicant Waive Privileges In CEQA Cases.
The Fifth Appellate District has issued another in a series of decisions regarding administrative records in CEQA cases. The court held that the "common interest doctrine" does not protect otherwise privileged communications shared by a developer and an agency prior to approval of a project because the two cannot be considered to be advancing any shared interest at the preapproval stage.&