SCH -- Activities and Services

GENERAL ACTIVITIES AND SERVICES

Although coordinating state agency review of environmental documents and grants is the primary function of the State Clearinghouse, the office also has other responsibilities, and provides services that can be useful to those involved in the land use field. These services include posting of certain notices, publication of a bi-monthly newsletter, and providing a computer database search service. These activities are discussed below.

Filing Environmental Notices

As of January 1, 1985, the process for filing environmental notices under CEQA was changed in order to centralize and simplify the process. Notices of Completion, Exemption, and Determination that previously were filed with the Resources Agency are now filed with the Governor's Office of Planning and Research (at SCH).

Notice of Completion
(Public Resources Code, Section 21161)

CEQA requires that a Notice of Completion be filed at SCH by a public agency whenever a Draft EIR is completed. SCH requests that Lead Agencies also submit a NOC for Negative Declarations and NOPs. The Notice of Completion Form contained in the appendices to this Handbook satisfies this requirement.

Notice of Availability
(Public Resources Code, Section 21092)

Public notice of the availability of a Draft EIR or a Negative Declaration must be provided by the Lead Agency to enable public agencies and individuals to review and comment on the document.

Minimum Contents of Public Notice of Availability:

1) description of proposed project;

2) location of proposed project;

3) specific period during which comments on proposed project will be accepted;

4) date, time, and place of any public meetings on proposed project;

5) address where copies of Draft EIR or Negative Declaration are available for review; and

6) environmental effects of the project, if any.

The notice must be provided to all organizations and individuals who previously requested notice. At least one of the following notification methods must be used:

1) Publication by the Lead Agency in a newspaper of general circulation in the area affected by the proposed project.

2) Posting of the notice by the Lead Agency on- and off-site in the area where the project is to be located.

3) Direct mailing to the owners and occupants of contiguous property shown on the latest equalized assessment roll.

A Notice of Availability does not need to be filed with SCH. However, the Lead Agency may submit this notice together with its Draft EIR or Negative Declaration to provide additional information to state agencies.

Notice of Determination
(CEQA Guidelines, Sections 15075 and 15094)

A Notice of Determination (NOD) is a document filed by a public agency within 5 days after it approves or determines to carry out a project that is subject to the requirements of CEQA.

Filing the NOD starts a 30-calendar-day statute of limitations on court challenges to the project approval under CEQA. (See Form C for an example of a NOD form.) If a NOD is not filed, the statute of limitations is 180 days.

Filing requirements for state and local agencies differ as follows:

Local Lead Agency: If a local Lead Agency is acting on the project, it must file the NOD with the county clerk of the county or counties where the project will be located within 5 working days of approving the project. In addition, if the project requires discretionary approval from any state agency, the local Lead Agency also must file a copy of the NOD with SCH.
State Lead Agency: When a state agency is the Lead Agency, the NOD must be filed with SCH.

Minimum Contents of a Notice of Determination:

For a Negative Declaration:
(CEQA Guidelines, Section 15075)

1) identification of the project, including its common name or title, if possible;

2) location of the project;

3) brief description of the project;

4) date the agency approved the project;

5) the determination by the approving agency that the project in its approved form will not have a significant effect on the environment;

6) statement that a Negative Declaration was prepared pursuant to the provisions of CEQA; and

7) address where a copy of the environmental document and record of project approval can be examined.

For an Environmental Impact Report (EIR):
(CEQA Guidelines, Section 15094)

1) identification of the project, including its common name or title, if possible;

2) location of the project;

3) brief description of the project;

4) date the agency approved the project;

5) determination by the approving agency whether the project in its approved form will have a significant effect on the environment;

6) statement that an EIR was prepared pursuant to the provisions of CEQA;

7) whether mitigation measures were made a condition of the approval of the project;

8) whether a statement of overriding considerations was adopted for the project;

9) whether findings were made pursuant to Section 15091 of the CEQA Guidelines; and

10) address where a copy of the final EIR and record of project approval may be examined.

Additionally, the notice shall be mailed to any person who has filed a written request for such notice.

Notice of Exemption
(CEQA Guidelines, Section 15062):

A Notice of Exemption (NOE) is a brief notice that can (but is not required to) be filed after a public agency has decided to carry out or approve a project it has determined is exempt from CEQA.

If a NOE is filed, it should be filed with the county clerk or SCH after the project has been approved. When a public agency approves an applicant's project, either the agency or the applicant may file a Notice of Exemption.

There are different filing requirements for state agencies, local agencies, and project applicants, as follows:

State Lead Agency: If a state agency, board, or commission determines that a project is not subject to CEQA, it may file a NOE with SCH after the project has been approved.
Local Lead Agency: When a local agency files this notice, it must be filed with the county clerk of the county or counties where the project is to be located.
Applicant: When an applicant files a NOE, the notice must be filed in the same place as if it were filed by the Lead Agency. Additionally, the notice shall be accompanied by a certified document issued by the public Lead Agency stating that the agency has found the project to be exempt.

Additionally, the notice must be mailed to any person who has filed a written request for such notice.

This filing begins a 35-day statute of limitations on legal challenges to the Lead Agency's decision that the project is exempt from CEQA. If a NOE is not filed, a 180-day statute of limitations applies. (See sample NOE form in the appendices to this Handbook.)

Minimum Contents of a Notice of Exemption:

1) brief description of the project;

2) a finding that the project is exempt, including a citation that references the CEQA Guidelines or statutory section under which it is found to be exempt; and

3) brief statement of reasons to support the finding.

Computer Database

Environmental Documents

CEQAnet is the online searchable environmental database of the State Clearinghouse. CEQAnet is accessible to the general public and provides key information from all CEQA documents and notices filed with the SCH since 1990. The database provides summaries of EIRs, Negative Declarations, Environmental Impact Statements, and other types of CEQA and NEPA documents submitted for state level review. At this time, CEQAnet does not provide the full text of any environmental documents. The database contains the following information on each document:

A. title of the project;

B. project's SCH number;

C. name and address of the Lead Agency;

D. name and telephone number of a contact person;

E. type of local action, e.g., specific plan, rezone, etc.;

F. location of the project;

G.description of the project;

H.type of document submitted for review;

I. issues discussed in the document;

J. the state agencies reviewing the document; and

K.the state review period.

This database can be a useful source of information for planners, consultants, and project applicants who are preparing new environmental documents. The purpose of the database is to streamline the environmental document preparation process by allowing reuse of relevant information from prior documents for similar projects or issues, and for research.

The SCH charges $22.00 per hour for custom database searches and related printouts, with time billed for each complete quarter-hour (i.e., the charge for a 15-minute search would be $5.50). There is no fee for searches that take less than 15 minutes.

Notices

The SCH also maintains in its computer database a record of all Notices of Exemption and Determination received since January 1, 1985. When a NOE or NOD is received, all pertinent data from the form is entered into the computer. It is then possible to verify that a notice has been received by searching under the SCH number (if applicable), the Lead Agency name, project title, or project location. This system has made it easier for the Lead and Responsible agencies, attorneys, and interested parties to confirm the date that a notice was filed at SCH. Copies of all NODs and NOEs received by SCH are kept on file for a period of five years. All records older than five years are removed to archives or destroyed.

The SCH Newsletter is published twice per month. It contains general information regarding SCH, a listing of all federal notices received, a brief listing of all environmental documents received (including NOPs, NOCs, NODs, NOEs, Final EIRs, etc.), and a copy of all Form 424s for federal grant applications received during the preceding two weeks. The newsletter is mailed to approximately 140 agencies and individuals, including state and local agencies, all areawide clearinghouses, some city and county planning departments, depository libraries, and other agencies and individuals upon request.

Faxing

With the increased use of and reliance upon facsimile machines, SCH has developed the following policies regarding faxed information.

In all instances, the faxed document should be addressed to the proper staff person and the fax must be followed up with a mailed copy of the document that expressly mentions the date and time that the fax was sent.

State Agency Comments: The faxing of state agency comments on environmental documents is permitted.

Environmental Documents: The SCH will not accept Negative Declarations or Draft EIRs by fax. After pre-arrangement with the appropriate SCH staff analyst, NOPs may be accepted by fax.

Environmental Notices: NODs and NOEs may be accepted by fax. If the Lead Agency follows up with a duplicate mailed copy of the NOD or NOE, the Lead Agency must indicate to SCH that a prior copy was sent by fax. This is necessary to avoid duplication of posting and data entry by SCH staff.

Federal Grant Form 424: Federal Form 424 will be accepted by fax. It is the express responsibility of the grant applicant to ensure Clearinghouse receipt of the fax.

State Clearinghouse Fax Number:
(916) 323-3018

Useful Web Sites

The following web site addresses may prove useful to persons seeking information about how to comply with CEQA and the CEQA Guidelines.

http://ceres.ca.gov/ceqa
View and download CEQA, the CEQA Guidelines and conduct searches.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/ceq
Select NEPA Net from content bar. View and download NEPA, NEPA Regulations and related guidance.

http://www.opr.ca.gov
View and download information about OPR, including SCH, local planning assistance, and OPR publications.

http://www.opr.ca.gov/clearinghouse.html
View and download information about SCH, including publications, grant process, and the list of CFDA numbers.

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