California Environmental Quality Act: exempt surplus land

The law exempts qualifying Concord base land from standard surplus-land disposal rules and lets projects that follow the approved reuse plan rely on existing environmental review. It also creates expedited procedures for legal challenges.

What the law does ​

• Classifies qualifying Concord Naval Weapons Station land as exempt surplus land when the project is expected to include at least 10,000 homes and mixed uses.
• Requires a disposition and development agreement reserving at least 25% of permitted homes for lower-income households for at least 55 years for rentals and 45 years for ownership homes.
• Requires notice to the Department of Housing and Community Development at least 30 days before disposal, a project labor agreement, recorded affordability restrictions, and annual reporting on housing development and affordability.
• Treats the approved Concord reuse-plan environmental impact report and addendum as satisfying CEQA for projects that match the plan’s land uses, locations, and overall development limits.
• Limits CEQA review for projects that move otherwise allowed land uses to different locations to those location changes.
• Requires applicants to fund court-related challenge costs and directs expedited court rules aiming to resolve challenges within 270 days after the administrative record is filed.

Who it affects ​

• The City of Concord, any local reuse authority, and developers of the Concord Naval Weapons Station.
• Lower-income households eligible for the required affordable homes.
• Project applicants, local lead agencies, and parties challenging project approvals.

Context ​

The law took effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Breakdown ​

Exempt Surplus Land Changes ​

SB 328 broadens and clarifies which public land can be treated as exempt surplus land, meaning it can be disposed of without the usual surplus-land notice process. It replaces the term “buyers” with “persons or entities” for certain multi-parcel land dispositions. It also creates an exemption for qualifying portions of the former Concord Naval Weapons Station, subject to affordable-housing, reporting, enforcement, and challenge procedures.

Key takeaways

• The bill allows certain combined parcels of 10 or more acres to be disposed of to one or more persons or entities, rather than referring only to buyers.
• The bill adds qualifying land at the former Concord Naval Weapons Station to the types of land that may be treated as exempt surplus land.
• To qualify, the former military base land must have an aggregate area of more than 5 acres and meet other specified requirements.
• Before disposing of qualifying Concord land, the local agency or local reuse authority must enter into a development agreement requiring at least 25% of permitted residential units to be affordable to lower-income households.
• The affordability restrictions must last at least 55 years for rental homes and 45 years for owner-occupied homes.
• The bill establishes rules for legal challenges and penalties related to these dispositions and requires annual reporting on residential development at the former military base.

CEQA Rules for Concord Reuse Project ​

The bill allows certain existing environmental review documents to satisfy CEQA for qualifying projects in the Concord Community Reuse Project area at the former Concord Naval Weapons Station. To qualify, a project must match the area plan’s allowed land uses and their mapped locations, and must not exceed the plan’s overall development limit. Projects that place otherwise allowed uses in different locations receive a narrower CEQA review focused on those location changes, while legal challenges to projects are subject to expedited court procedures.

Key takeaways

• Qualifying projects within the Concord Community Reuse Project plan area can rely on specified existing environmental documents instead of undergoing a separate full CEQA review.
• A project qualifies only if its land uses and their locations match the area plan diagram and the total development stays within the area plan’s maximum limit.
• A project that uses allowed land-use types in locations not shown in the area plan diagram remains subject to CEQA review limited to those location differences.
• Applicants challenging projects must pay the courts’ additional costs for hearing those cases.
• Lead agencies must file the certified administrative record with the superior court within 10 calendar days after receiving a lawsuit or petition.
• The Judicial Council must adopt court rules by July 1, 2027, aiming to resolve project-approval and environmental-review challenges, including appeals, within 270 days after the record is filed.

Special Rule for Concord ​

The bill makes formal findings that a special law is needed for the City of Concord. These findings support applying this legislation specifically to Concord rather than using a rule that applies statewide.

Key takeaways

• The bill declares that a special statute is necessary for the City of Concord.
• The findings justify treating Concord differently from cities under a general statewide law.
• This part does not state any additional operational requirements or procedures for the city.

No State Reimbursement ​

The bill states that the state does not have to reimburse local agencies or school districts for costs created by this act. It relies on a specified reason stated elsewhere in the bill or applicable law.

Key takeaways

• California generally must reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain state-required costs.
• This bill provides that no state reimbursement is required for costs resulting from the act.
• The no-reimbursement provision applies for a specified reason.