Amended  IN  Senate  March 20, 2024

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill
No. 1159

Introduced by Senator Dodd

February 14, 2024

An act to add Section 21084.4 to the Public Resources Code, relating to environmental quality.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 1159, as amended, Dodd. California Environmental Quality Act: roadside wildfire risk reduction projects.
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 on a project that it 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. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment.
CEQA requires the Office of Planning and Research to prepare and develop, and the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency to certify and adopt, guidelines for the implementation of CEQA. CEQA requires the guidelines to include a list of classes of projects that have been determined not to have a significant effect on the environment and are exempt from the requirements of CEQA, commonly known as categorical exemptions.

This bill would require the secretary to consider including roadside projects undertaken solely for the purpose of wildfire risk reduction in the classes of projects subject to a categorical exemption if specified requirements are met.

This bill, on or before January 1, 2026, would require the office to evaluate, and the secretary to consider, the inclusion of roadside projects no more than 5 road miles from a municipality or census designated place that are undertaken solely for the purpose of wildfire risk reduction in the classes of projects subject to a categorical exemption. The bill would require the office to consider appropriate eligibility criteria for these projects, as specified.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 21084.4 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:

21084.4.
 (a) (1) On or before January 1, 2026, the Office of Planning and Research shall evaluate, and the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency shall consider, the inclusion of roadside projects no more than five road miles from a municipality or census designated place that are undertaken solely for the purpose of wildfire risk reduction in the classes of projects determined not to have a significant effect on the environment pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 21084.
(2) The Office of Planning and Research shall consider appropriate eligibility criteria for a roadside project subject to paragraph (1), including, among others, the distance from the edge of an improved road or surface, any disturbance to soil and resultant impacts on sedimentation, protection of natural resources such as trees, and potential impacts to wildlife.
(b) An exemption for projects described in this section shall not limit any other statutory or categorical exemption that may otherwise apply to roadside projects undertaken to reduce wildfire risk.

SECTION 1.Section 21084.4 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:
21084.4.

The Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency shall consider including roadside projects undertaken solely for the purpose of wildfire risk reduction in the classes of projects determined not to have a significant effect on the environment pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 21084 if all of the following requirements are met:

(a)The project does not result in the removal of healthy trees with a diameter at breast height that is greater than 12 inches.

(b)The project does not result in soil disturbance that could lead to sedimentation of surface waters.

(c)The project is within 30 feet of the edge of an improved surface road.

(d)The project is no more than five road miles from a municipality or census designated place.