Five Years In The Making: California Is One Step Closer To A Comprehensive Update To The CEQA Guidelines

The Governor's Office of Planning and Research ("OPR") has spent five years drafting a comprehensive update to 30 sections of the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") Guidelines.¹ The updated text² ("Final Text") ensures the Guidelines are consistent with recent court decisions, implements legislative changes, clarifies rules governing the CEQA process, and eliminates duplicative analysis. Several changes to the Guidelines address two hot button topics: global climate change and statewide affordable housing shortages. During the deliberative process, the Agency also released its "Final Statement of Reasons for the Regulatory Action Amendment to the State Guidelines" to give more history and context to each change to the Final Text.³