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California Land Use Law & Policy Reporter

January 2021

Volume 30, Number 4 January 2021

FEATURE ARTICLE

Environmental Justice in General Plans: Strategic Considerations for Planning and Land Use Professionals by Michele A. Staples, Esq., Jackson Tidus, A Law Corporation, Irvine, California101

REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Issues Final EIS for Changes to Migratory Bird Treaty Act107

RECENT FEDERAL DECISIONS

Circuit Court of Appeals:

Ninth Circuit Holds that San Francisco Taxi Ordinance Is Not a ‘Project’ for CEQA Purposes109

San Francisco Taxi Coalition v. City and County of San Francisco, 979 F.3d 1220 (9th Cir. 2020).

RECENT CALIFORNIA DECISIONS

District Court of Appeal:

Third District Court Finds School District Was Not Required to Determine Whether Dormitory Would Generate New Students to Justify School Impact Fees111

AMCAL Chico LLC v. Chico Unified School District, 57 Cal.App.5th 122 (3rd Dist. 2020).

First District Court Finds Public Resources Code Section 22531 Unconstitutionally Limits Judicial Review of Energy Commission Licensing Decis-

ions112

Communities for a Better Environment et al. v. Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission, 57 Cal.App.5th 786 (1st Dist. 2020).

Third District Court Finds Building Permit Conditions Requiring Maintenance and Replacement of Existing Vegetation Are Not an Exaction under Takings

Law114

Erickson v. County of Nevada, ___Cal.App.5th___, Case No. C082927 (3rd Dist. Nov. 30, 2020).

Fourth District Court Addresses an EIR Which Did Not Rely on California’s Cap-and-Trade Program for its Greenhouse Gas Impacts Analysis118

Paulek v. City of Moreno Valley (HF Properties), ___Cal.App.5th___, Case No. E071194 (4th Dist. Nov. 24, 2020).

Sixth District Court Affirms Residents to Rent Control Petition Are ‘Necessary’ Parties, but Remands to Determine if They Are ‘Indispensable’120

Pinto Lake MHP LLC v. County of Santa Cruz, 56 Cal.App.5th 1006 (6th Dist. 2020).

Third District Court Holds an Eminent Domain Defendant Need Not Be ‘Physically Dispossessed’ of Property to Qualify for Damages122

San Joaquin Regional Transportation Authority v. Superior, Unpub., Case No. C084755 (3rd Dist. Dec. 1, 2020).

In Split with Other Courts of Appeal, Fifth District Again Holds that CEQA Does not Allow Partial EIR Decertification123

Sierra Club v. County of Fresno, ___Cal.App.5th___, Case No. F079904 (5th Dist. Nov. 24, 2020).

Fourth District Court Finds Group Lacked Standing to Seek Fines Against Coastal Commissioners126

Spotlight on Coastal Corruption v. Kinsey, 57 Cal.App.5th 874 (4th Dist. 2020).