The City Council assigns responsibilities for implementing CEQA as defined in this chapter for all instances wherein the City is considered the lead agency.
(Ord. 96-10 § 1, 1996)
The City Planner is assigned the following functions:
A. 
Determining whether a project is exempt;
B. 
Conducting an initial study;
C. 
Overseeing required consultation with outside agencies;
D. 
Preparing a negative declaration;
E. 
Maintain the City's list of environmental consultants, and monitor consultant progress on projects for which a consultant is retained;
F. 
Making recommendations to the Council and Planning Commission concerning the environmental determination, mitigation measures and alternatives, adequacy of environmental documents and other related matters;
G. 
Assuring required public review;
H. 
Assuring that required time limits are met;
I. 
Preparing responses to comments on environmental documents;
J. 
Preparing draft resolutions including CEQA or environmental findings for council or Planning Commission consideration and action;
K. 
As directed by the City Council, review and provide recommendations to the City concerning notices of preparation, draft environmental impact reports, or negative declarations prepared by consultants or other agencies;
L. 
Other tasks as determined by the City Council necessary to the implementation of the State CEQA Guidelines, and this title.
(Ord. 96-10 § 1, 1996)
The City Clerk shall be responsible for the following functions. The Clerk performs these functions under the supervision of the City Planner. The City Clerk may assign some or all of his or her CEQA environmental review process responsibilities to a deputy or Planning Commission secretary.
A. 
Maintaining address lists of agencies for formal and informal consultation and assisting Planner in carrying out consultation with outside agencies;
B. 
Scheduling public meetings and hearings and issuing proper public notices;
C. 
Distribution of draft negative declarations for public and State Clearinghouse review;
D. 
Minutes of public hearings;
E. 
Finalizing resolutions containing council or Planning Commission actions;
F. 
Filing notices;
G. 
Maintaining complete files and copies of environmental documents including evidence on which council or Planning Commission findings are made;
H. 
Clerical and secretarial support for the Planner, the Planning Commission and the City Council including, but not limited to, typing some environmental documents, preparing related meeting agendas and preparing related correspondence;
I. 
Mitigation monitoring.
(Ord. 96-10 § 1, 1996)
The Planning Commission is assigned the following functions:
A. 
Unless or until a matter is appealed to the City Council, and unless an EIR is required, the Planning Commission shall act on behalf of the City Council, hold public meetings and hearings to consider and act upon environmental documents for the following types of projects:
1. 
Tentative maps;
2. 
Use permits;
3. 
Site plans;
4. 
Variances;
5. 
Lot line adjustments, except for those projects which are solely lot line adjustments as described in Chapter 16.28 of this Code;
6. 
Certificates of compliance.
B. 
The City Council may ask for the recommendations of the Planning concerning environmental documents for the following types of projects:
1. 
Public works projects of the City or another public agency;
2. 
General Plan amendments;
3. 
Zone changes;
4. 
Planned developments and development agreements;
5. 
Prezonings and annexations.
(Ord. 96-10 § 1, 1996; Ord. 2006-01 § 2)
The City Council shall not delegate its responsibility to act on behalf of the City, including holding public meetings and hearings to consider or acting upon environmental documents, for the following types of projects:
A. 
Public work projects of the City or another public agency;
B. 
General plan amendments;
C. 
Zone changes;
D. 
Planned developments and development agreements;
E. 
Prezonings and annexations;
F. 
Any action delegated to staff or the Planning Commission which is appealed to the Council;
G. 
Any action concerning the environmental documents that may affect the City and that are prepared by an agency other than the City;
H. 
Consultant contracts for the preparation of EIRs or other environmental documents;
I. 
Action upon any project for which an EIR has been required.
(Ord. 96-10 § 1, 1996)
The City shall conduct its environmental review of projects in accordance with the time limits specified in Article 8 of the State CEQA Guidelines. The subsequent parts of this section are intended to be a summary of the CEQA time limits. These time limits are also referenced in subsequent chapters and sections of this title.
A. 
Review of Applications for Completeness. The City shall review private project permit applications and determine whether or not they are complete for processing within 30 days.
B. 
Initial Study. The City shall prepare an initial study within 30 days of the date an application is accepted as complete for processing.
C. 
Notice of Determination. The City shall determine whether a project is exempt, a negative declaration should be prepared, or an EIR should be prepared within 30 days of the date that the application has been accepted for processing. This 30 day period may be extended 15 days upon mutual consent of the City and the project applicant.
D. 
Notice of Preparation. When the City determines that an EIR should be prepared, the notice of preparation shall be issued as soon as possible after the project applicant deposits funds with the City for EIR preparation.
E. 
Response to Notice of Preparation. Outside agencies shall provide a response to a notice of preparation to the City within 30 days after receipt of the notice of preparation. If a responsible agency fails to reply within 30 days, the City may assume that it has no response to make and may ignore a late response.
F. 
Scoping Meeting. The City shall convene a meeting with outside agency representatives to discuss the scope and content of the environmental information to be addressed in an EIR upon its own initiative or no later than 30 days after receiving a request for such meeting from the project applicant or a responsible or trustee agency.
G. 
Negative Declaration. With a private project, a negative declaration must be completed and ready for approval within 105 days of the date when the project's application was accepted as complete for processing. The negative declaration may be approved at a later time when the permit or entitlement is approved.
H. 
Public Review of Negative Declaration. The public review period for a negative declaration shall be a reasonable period of time sufficient to allow members of the public to respond to the proposed finding before the negative declaration is approved. This time limit shall be no less than 30 days when one or more State agencies are a responsible or trustee agency or when State Clearinghouse review is required, unless a shorter review period has been approved by the State Clearinghouse.
I. 
Environmental Impact Report. With a private project the City shall complete and certify a final EIR within one year after the date when the project application was accepted as complete for processing. This time period may be extended once for a period not to exceed more than 90 days upon mutual written consent between the City and the project applicant. Because the City usually prepares its EIRs under a consultant contract, the City has adopted additional time limits concerning deposit of funds for such contracts and the contracting process. These are found within Section 18.05.070 of this title.
J. 
Public Review of Draft EIR. The public review period for a draft EIR shall not be less than 30 days nor longer than 90 days except under unusual circumstances. The City generally requires a 45 day public review period. The State Clearinghouse, likewise, normally requires a 45 day review period, however, a shorter review period may be authorized due to exceptional circumstance.
K. 
Suspension of Time Periods. Any unreasonable delay by a project applicant in meeting requests of the City for information necessary to complete a negative declaration or an EIR shall suspend the running of the time periods described in subsections G and I of this section above for the period of time of the unreasonable delay. Failure of a project applicant to pay deposits necessary for EIR consultant contracts according to time limits specified in Section 18.05.070(C) of this title shall also be cause for the City to suspend time limits pursuant to this section and Section 15109 of State CEQA Guidelines.
L. 
Denial of Project for Applicant Delays. The City may disapprove a project application where there is a documented unreasonable delay by the applicant in meeting a written request for the environmental information necessary to prepare a negative declaration or an EIR. The City may allow a renewed application to start at the same point in time in the process where the application was when it was disapproved due to applicant's delay in providing necessary environmental information.
M. 
Special Provisions for Longer or Shorter Time Limits. State CEQA Guidelines Sections 15110 and 15111 contain special provisions addressing projects which may require longer or shorter time limits than those specified above or elsewhere in this title.
(Ord. 96-10 § 1, 1996)