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California Land Use Law & Policy Reporter

December 2012

Volume 22, Number 3 December 2012

LAND USE NEWS

SB 375 Update: Regional Transportation and Land Use Planning Moves Forward67

LAWSUITS FILED OR PENDING

U.S. Supreme Court Grants Review of Florida Supreme Court Takings Case Involving Project Conditions and Exactions69

RECENT FEDERAL DECISIONS

Circuit Court of Appeals:

Ninth Circuit Finds Biological Opinion for Natural Gas Pipeline Inadequate under the Endangered Species Act71

Center for Biological Diversity v. U.S. Bureau of Land Management, ___F.3d___, Case No. 10-72356 (9th Cir. Oct. 22, 2012).

Ninth Circuit Addresses the Limits of Free Speech and the Legitimate Use of Sign Ordinances to Regulate Billboards in the City of Los Angeles72

Charles v. City of Los Angeles, ___F.3d___, Case No. 10-57028 (9th Cir. Oct. 15, 2012).

District Court:

District Court Denies Motion for Summary Judgment after Finding an Environmental Assessment Prepared by the U.S. Navy Compliant with

NEPA74

San Diego Navy Broadway Complex Coalition v. U.S. Department of Defense, ___F.Supp.2d___, Case No. 3:2011cv00154 (S.D. Cal. Oct. 17, 2012).

RECENT CALIFORNIA DECISIONS

District Court of Appeal:

Second District Limits CEQA Review in the Context of Local Government Ballot Initiatives on Purely Fiscal Matters77

Chung v. City of Monterey Park, ___Cal.App.4th___, Case No.B233859 (2nd Dist. Oct. 23, 2012).

Annexations, Local Taxes, and the Limits of Proposition 218—Fourth District Finds 218’s Voting Requirements Not Applicable to ‘Island’ Annexation78

Citizens Association of Sunset Beach v. Orange County Local Agency Formation Commission, 209 Cal.App.4th 1182 (4th Dist. 2012).

Third District Upholds Regional Water Quality Control Board’s Administrative Civil Liability Order Based on Rapanos Decision80

Garland v. Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, ___Cal.App.4th___, Case No. C067130 (3rd Dist. Oct. 24, 2012).

Third District Resolves Issues Regarding Adequacy of an EIR’s Alternatives Analysis, Water Supply and Other Impacts82

Mount Shasta Bioregional Ecology Center v. County of Siskiyou, ___Cal.App.4th___, Case No. C064930 (3rd Dist. Sept. 26, 2012).

First District Finds Federal Law Preempts a PUC General Order Regulating the Length of Time a Stopped Train May Block a Public Rail Crossing83

People v. Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, 209 Cal.App.4th 1513 (1st Dist. 2012).

Fourth District Finds EIR Failed to Adequately Specify Performance Standards for Mitigation Measures and to Discuss Alternative Water Sources85

Preserve Wild Santee v. City of Santee, ___Cal.App. 4th___, Case Nos. D055215, D061030 (4th Dist. Oct. 19, 2012).

Superior Court:

Los Angeles Superior Court Concludes CEQA Review for Conservation Plans Related to Newhall Ranch Project Inadequate87

Center for Biological Diversity, et al. v. California Department of Fish and Game, Case No. BS131347 (Los Angeles Super. Ct. Oct. 15, 2012).

2012 LEGISLATIVE YEAR-END UPDATE90