Will 2012 be the Year of CEQA Reform in California?

Sacramento political blogger David Siders provides a brief explanation of the politics behind a last minute push to reform the 42-year-old 'bible' of the California environmental community. The legislative season ends August 31.

"The proposal aired by the Silicon Valley Leadership Group and other business interests at a news conference (Monday) morning (August 20) resembled draft legislation that would limit the ability to challenge certain projects in court. One proposal would exempt from CEQA projects that comply with a city general plan or other planning document for which an environmental review already has been done."

"We're here to press this effort forward," said Jim Earp, executive director of the California Alliance for Jobs, a major construction lobbying group that includes labor representatives. The business group, which includes retailers and builders, is being advised by Gov. Jerry Brown's top political adviser, Steve Glazer."

"Environmentalists today were already lobbying against the proposal at the Capitol. Kathryn Phillips, director of Sierra Club California, said general plans are not sufficiently detailed to address environmental concerns about projects."

Sacramento Bee columnist Dan Walters writes on August 21 that "Carl Guardino of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group called it "a thoughtful yet meaningful CEQA reform" that would 'modernize CEQA to stamp out non-environmental uses'."

On July 31, Siders wrote of Gov. Jerry Brown's history with CEQA as an Oakland mayor known for his efforts to create 'elegant density' as well as his current advocacy for high speed rail in California Gov. Jerry Brown upsets environmentalist friends with his CEQA critique.

"Brown's interest in an exemption for high-speed rail highlights one of his chief complaints about CEQA – that an environmental regulation can be used to block projects he believes are beneficial for the environment.

(A)s mayor of Oakland, Brown experienced firsthand how restrictive the law could be. In 2001, he lobbied successfully for legislation to relax standards for infill housing projects in the city core.

The Planning and Conservation League's David Mogavero said Brown in Oakland "saw how CEQA could be an impediment to good infill development. That's what's coloring his thinking these days a lot."

Indeed, those attempts to bring what Brown coined "elegant density" to downtown Oakland may not only have shaped his attitude toward CEQA but influenced his return to the Governor's office, as described by the Bay Citizen's Zusha Elinson on Sept. 2, 2010 in the New York Times, "As Mayor, Brown Remade Oakland's Downtown and Himself:

"A look inside Mr. Brown's 10K Project - his plan to attract 10,000 people to live downtown by 2001, which was the cornerstone of his tenure as mayor - reveals the transformation of his political career. Ultimately, it helped lead to his latest candidacy for governor."

Thanks to Scott Lay