AB 3279 was amended in the Assembly Appropriations committee, but those amendments do not address concerns and we remain opposed along with other enviro and EJ organizations. The bill will be up on the floor this week.
It contains a bad cost-shifting provision that only allows plaintiffs to prepare the CEQA administrative record if the lead agency requests it. This would make CEQA lawsuits prohibitively expensive, since lead agencies typically want to charge exorbitant amounts to the plaintiffs for preparing the record. It would be particularly bad for large water projects such as the Delta tunnel. You can think of others.
Take good care … be in touch with your Assembly representative.
Rue
AB 3279 is still moving in the Assembly.
SEC. 4. Section 21167.6 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:
21167.6. Notwithstanding any other law, in all actions or proceedings brought pursuant to Section 21167, except as provided in Section 21167.6.2 or those involving the Public Utilities Commission, all of the following shall apply:
(a) At the time that the action or proceeding is filed, the plaintiff or petitioner shall file a request that the respondent public agency prepare the record of proceedings relating to the subject of the action or proceeding. The request, together with the complaint or petition, shall be served personally upon the public agency not later than 10 business days from the date that the action or proceeding was filed.
(b) (1) The public agency shall prepare and certify the record of proceedings not later than 60 days from the date that the request specified in subdivision (a) was served upon the public agency. Upon certification, the public agency shall lodge a copy of the record of proceedings with the court and shall serve on the parties notice that the record of proceedings has been certified and lodged with the court. The parties shall pay any reasonable costs or fees imposed for the preparation of the record of proceedings in conformance with any law or rule of court.
(2) Upon request of the public agency, the plaintiff or petitioner may elect to prepare the record of proceedings or the parties may agree to an alternative method of preparation of the record of proceedings, subject to certification of its accuracy by the public agency, within the time limit specified in this subdivision.