2023-051 - Adopting Local CEQA Guidelines

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Local Guidelines for Implementing the California Environmental Ouality Act (2023) NEGATIVE DECLARATION The City must also post the Notice of Determination on its website. Such electronic notice is in addition to the posting requirements of the State CEQA Guidelines and the Public Resources Code. The Clerk must post the Notice of Determination within twenty-four (24) hours of receipt. The Notice must be posted in the office of the Cleric for a minimum of thirty (30) days. Thereafter, the Cleric shall return the notice to the City with a notation of the period it was posted. The City shall retain the notice for not less than twelve (12) months. If the project requires discretionary approval from any State agency, the Notice of Determination shall also be filed with OPR within five (5) working days of project approval along with proof of payment of the DFW fee or a no effect determination form from the DFW (see Local Guidelines Section 6.24). Simultaneously with the filing of the Notice of Determination with the Clerk, Staff shall cause a copy of the Notice of Determination to be posted at City Offices. If a written request has been made for a copy of the Notice of Determination prior to the date on which the City adopts the Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration, the copy must be mailed, first class postage prepaid, within five (5) days of the City's determination. If such a request is made following the City's determination, then the copy should be mailed in the same manner as soon as possible. The recipients of such documents may be charged a fee reasonably related to the cost of providing the service. For projects with more than one phase, Staff shall file a Notice of Determination for each phase requiring a discretionary approval. The filing and posting of the Notice of Determination with the County Cleric, and, if necessary, with OPR, usually starts a thirty (30) day statute of limitations on court challenges to the approval under CEQA. When separate notices are filed for successive phases of the same overall project, the thirty (30) day statute of limitations to challenge the subsequent phase begins to run when the second notice is filed. Failure to file the Notice may result in a one hundred eighty (180) day statute of limitations. (Reference: State CEQA Guidelines, § 15075.) 6.21 ADDENDUM TO NEGATIVE DECLARATION OR MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION. The City may prepare an addendum to an adopted Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration if only minor technical changes or additions are necessary. The City may also prepare an addendum to an adopted Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration when none of the conditions calling for a subsequent Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration have occurred. (See Local Guidelines Section 6.22 below.) An addendum need not be circulated for public review but can be attached to the adopted Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration. The City shall consider the addendum with the adopted Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration prior to project approval. (Reference: State CEQA Guidelines, § 15164.) 6.22 SUBSEQUENT NEGATIVE DECLARATION OR MITIGATED NEGATIVE DECLARATION. When a Negative Declaration or Mitigated Negative Declaration has been adopted for a project, or when an FIR has been certified, no subsequent Negative Declaration, Mitigated 2023 City of Santa Ana Local Guidelines 6-17 OBest Best & Krieger LLP