Except as otherwise provided, this chapter shall apply to discretionary
projects proposed to be carried out or approved by the county. A project
is defined as:
A. The
whole of an action, which has a potential for resulting in a physical
change in the environment, directly or ultimately, and that is any
of the following:
1. An
activity directly undertaken by any public agency including but not
limited to public works construction and related activities, clearing
or grading of land, improvements to existing public structures, enactment
and amendment of zoning ordinances, and the adoption and amendment
of local general plans or elements thereof pursuant to Government
Code Sections 65100—65700.
2. An
activity undertaken by a person which is supported in whole or in
part through public agency contracts, grants, subsidies, loans, or
other forms of assistance from one or more public agencies.
3. An
activity involving the issuance to a person of a lease, permit, license,
certificate, or other entitlement for use by one or more public agencies.
B. Project
does not include:
1. Continuing
administrative or maintenance activities, such as purchases for supplies,
personnel-related actions, emergency repairs to public service facilities,
general policy and procedure making (except as they are applied to
specific instances covered above);
2. The
submittal of proposals to a vote of the people of the state or of
a particular community;
3. The
creation of government funding mechanisms or other government fiscal
activities which either:
a. Do not involve a probably commitment to any specific project which
may result in a potentially significant physical impact on the environment;
or
b. Will be used for capital projects but those projects have not yet
reached the stage in planning which will permit meaningful analysis
and adequate information for environmental assessment.
4. Organizational
or administrative activities of governments which are political or
which do not result in physical changes in the environment.
C. The
term "project" refers to the activity which is being approved and
which may be subject to several discretionary approvals by governmental
agencies. The term "project" does not mean each separate governmental
approval.
(Ord. 5119-B, 2001)
Possible exemptions from environmental review include:
A. The
activity is not a project;
B. Statutory. The project is statutorily exempt. Statutory exemptions are listed in Section
18.36.010, entitled "Statutory exemptions." Statutory exemptions are set forth in CEQA and the State CEQA Guidelines. (See
Public Resources Code Sections 21080, subd. (b), 21080.01—21080.08, 21080.7—21080.33; see also CEQA Guidelines Sections 15260—15285, and 15378(b).) If a project is statutorily exempt, no further environmental review is required.
C. Categorical.
The project is categorically exempt:
1. Project classes listed in Section
18.36.020, entitled "Categorical exemptions" are categorically exempt because they have been determined to generally not cause significant effects. (See
Public Resources Code Sections 21084— 21086; see also 14 California Code Regulatory Sections 15300—15332.)
2. Exemption
Verification. If project falls within a categorical exemption category,
the lead department shall make an additional inquiry as to whether
the categorical exemption is inapplicable, because of the existence
of any of the following factors:
a. There are unusual circumstances creating the reasonable possibility
of significant effects (e.g., an otherwise exempt project located
in a wetland, stream, shore zone or riparian corridor);
b. The project and successive projects of the same type in the same
place will result in cumulative impacts;
c. For classes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 11, 28, 30 and 31 the project may affect
an environmental resource of hazardous or critical concern officially
adopted pursuant to law (e.g., an otherwise exempt project that would
impact habitat of an endangered species);
d. Historical Resources. A categorical exemption shall not be used for
a project which may cause a substantial adverse change in the significance
of a historical resource.
3. If
any of these factors cause the categorical exemption to be inapplicable,
the applicant will be required to submit an EQ, IPA, and proceed with
further environmental review.
D. Common
Sense Exemptions. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is
no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant
effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to environmental
review. In such cases, the activity is covered by the general rule
that CEQA applies only to projects which have the potential for causing
a significant effect on the environment. (See CEQA Guidelines Section
15061(b)(3)).
E. Notice
of Exemption.
1. The
Lead Department shall initially determine if a project may be exempt.
If such a determination is approved by the approving authority and
the county approves or decides to carry out the project, the lead
department may file a notice of exemption (NOE) after approval of
the project.
2. The
NOE shall include a brief description of the project, findings of
exemption, including citation to the State CEQA Guidelines section
under which it is found exempt, and reasons supporting those findings.
For private projects, the notice shall include a certification that
the county has independently reviewed information submitted by the
project applicant which supports the exemption; such verification
shall include site visits when appropriate.
3. If
filed, the notice shall be filed with the county clerk, and with the
office of planning and research (OPR) if state resources could be
affected. Copies of all such notices shall be available for public
inspection.
(Ord. 5119-B, 2001; Ord. 5373-B, 2005; Ord.
6042-B § 1, 2020)
A private project requiring an exemption or negative declaration
shall be approved or denied within 60 days after the date of exemption
determination or adoption of the negative declaration.
(Ord. 5119-B, 2001)
A. If an applicant unreasonable delays (as defined in Section
18.04.030) meeting lead department requests for additional information necessary to complete the environmental review process, or misses any time period contained herein, the lead department may:
1. Suspend
the running of the time periods and allow the application to "reenter"
the environmental review process after all necessary information has
been submitted;
2. Grant
a reasonable extension of the required time frames where compelling
circumstances justify additional time and the county and project applicant
both consent thereto;
3. Schedule
the project for hearing and recommend that the project be disapproved
without prejudice.
B. If
requested information is not provided within 30 days from the date
an unreasonable delay is first identified, the application shall be
deemed withdrawn by operation of this section and all processing fees
forfeited.
C. A new
EQ fee is required to reactivate a project that has been deemed withdrawn,
unless an EIR has been required prior to such date wherein only the
EIR fee is required. If a project has been deemed withdrawn within
one year of the initial application, a minor EQ fee shall be required
to reactivate the project. If more than one year has passed, a full
EQ fee shall be required.
(Ord. 5119-B, 2001; Ord. 5250-B (Exh. 1), 2003; Ord. 5373-B, 2005)