Bill Text: CA SB118 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Chaptered

California Senate Bill 118 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: California Environmental Quality Act: public higher education: campus population.

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Passed) 2022-03-14 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 10, Statutes of 2022. [SB118 Detail]

Download: California-2021-SB118-Chaptered.html

Senate Bill No. 118

CHAPTER 10

An act to amend Section 21080.09 of the Public Resources Code, relating to environmental quality, and making an appropriation therefor, to take effect immediately, bill related to the budget.

[ Approved by Governor March 14, 2022. Filed with Secretary of State March 14, 2022. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SB 118, Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review. California Environmental Quality Act: public higher education: campus population.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report (EIR) on a project that the lead agency proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect.

Existing law makes the selection of a location for a particular campus of public higher education and the approval of a long-range development plan subject to CEQA, requires preparation of an EIR, and requires environmental effects relating to changes in enrollment levels to be considered for each campus or medical center of public higher education in the EIR prepared for the long-range development plan. Existing law makes the approval of a project on a particular campus or medical center of public higher education subject to CEQA and authorizes it to be addressed in a tiered environmental analysis based upon a long-range development plan EIR.

This bill would delete the provision requiring the environmental effects relating to changes in enrollment levels be considered in the EIR prepared for the long-range development plan. The bill would provide that enrollment or changes in enrollment, by themselves, do not constitute a project for purposes of CEQA. The bill would authorize the court, if the court determines that increases in campus population exceed the projections adopted in the most recent long-range development plan and analyzed in the supporting EIR, and those increases result in significant environmental impacts, to order the campus or medical center to prepare a new, supplemental, or subsequent EIR. The bill would authorize the court, if a new, supplemental, or subsequent EIR has not been certified within 18 months of the court’s order, to enjoin increases in campus population that exceed the projections adopted in the most recent long-range development plan and analyzed in the supporting EIR, as provided. The bill would specify that any injunction or judgment in effect as of the effective date of this bill suspending or otherwise affecting enrollment is unenforceable. The bill would specify that the above provisions apply retroactively to any decision related to enrollment or changes in enrollment made before the effective date of this bill.

This bill would appropriate $50,000 from the General Fund to the Regents of the University of California for purposes of this act for the 2021–22 fiscal year.

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: YES Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 21080.09 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

21080.09.

(a) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:

(1) “Public higher education” has the same meaning as specified in Section 66010 of the Education Code.

(2) “Long-range development plan” means a physical development and land use plan to meet the academic and institutional objectives for a particular campus or medical center of public higher education.

(b) The selection of a location for a particular campus and the approval of a long-range development plan are subject to this division and require the preparation of an environmental impact report.

(c) The approval of a project on a particular campus or medical center of public higher education is subject to this division and may be addressed, subject to the other provisions of this division, in a tiered environmental analysis based upon a long-range development plan environmental impact report.

(d) Compliance with this section satisfies the obligations of public higher education pursuant to this division to consider the environmental impact of academic and campus population plans as they affect campuses or medical centers, provided that any such plans shall become effective for a campus or medical center only after the environmental effects of those plans have been analyzed as required by this division in a long-range development plan environmental impact report or tiered analysis based upon that environmental impact report for that campus or medical center, and addressed as required by this division. Enrollment or changes in enrollment, by themselves, do not constitute a project as defined in Section 21065.

(e) (1) If a court determines that increases in campus population exceed the projections adopted in the most recent long-range development plan and analyzed in the supporting environmental impact report, and those increases result in significant environmental impacts, the court may order the campus or medical center to prepare a new, supplemental, or subsequent environmental impact report. Only if a new, supplemental, or subsequent environmental impact report has not been certified within 18 months of that order, the court may, pursuant to Sections 525 and 526 of the Code of Civil Procedure, enjoin increases in campus population that exceed the projections adopted in the most recent long-range development plan and analyzed in the supporting environmental impact report.

(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this division, any injunction or judgment in effect as of the effective date of this subdivision suspending or otherwise affecting enrollment shall be unenforceable.

(3) The amendments made to this section by Senate Bill 118 of the 2021–22 Regular Session shall apply retroactively to any decision related to enrollment or changes in enrollment made before the effective date of that bill.

SEC. 2.

The sum of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the Regents of the University of California for purposes of this act for the 2021–22 fiscal year.

SEC. 3.

This act is a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill within the meaning of subdivision (e) of Section 12 of Article IV of the California Constitution, has been identified as related to the budget in the Budget Bill, and shall take effect immediately.