(a) A certified local coastal program and all local implementing ordinances, regulations, and other actions may be amended by the appropriate local government, but no such amendment shall take effect until it has been certified by the commission.
(b) Any proposed amendments to a certified local coastal program shall be submitted to, and processed by, the commission in accordance with the applicable procedures and time limits specified in Sections 30512 and 30513, except that the commission shall make no determination as to whether a proposed amendment raises a substantial issue as to conformity with the policies of Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 30200) as would otherwise be required by Section 30512. In no event shall there be more than three of these submittals of proposed amendments in any calendar year. However, there are no limitations on the number of amendments included in each of the three submittals.
(c) The commission, by regulation, shall establish a procedure whereby proposed amendments to a certified local coastal program may be reviewed and designated by the executive director of the commission as being minor in nature or as requiring rapid and expeditious action. That procedure shall include provisions authorizing local governments to propose amendments to the executive director for that review and designation. Proposed amendments that are designated as being minor in nature or as requiring rapid and expeditious action shall not be subject to subdivision (b) or Sections 30512 and 30513 and shall take effect on the 10th working day after designation. Amendments that allow changes in uses shall not be so designated.
(d) (1) The executive director may determine that a proposed local coastal program amendment is de minimis if the executive director determines that a proposed amendment would have no impact, either individually or cumulatively, on coastal resources, is consistent with the policies of Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 30200), and meets the following criteria:
(A) The local government, at least 21 days prior to the date of submitting the proposed amendment to the executive director, has provided public notice, and provided a copy to the commission, that specifies the dates and places where comments will be accepted on the proposed amendment, contains a brief description of the proposed amendment, and states the address where copies of the proposed amendment are available for public review, by one of the following procedures:
(i) Publication, not fewer times than required by Section 6061 of the Government Code, in a newspaper of general circulation in the area affected by the proposed amendment. If more than one area will be affected, the notice shall be published in the newspaper of largest circulation from among the newspapers of general circulation in those areas.
(ii) Posting of the notice by the local government both onsite and offsite in the area affected by the proposed amendment.
(iii) Direct mailing to the owners and occupants of contiguous property shown on the latest equalized assessment roll.
(B) The proposed amendment does not propose any change in land use or water uses or any change in the allowable use of property.
(2) At the time that the local government submits the proposed amendment to the executive director, the local government shall also submit to the executive director any public comments that were received during the comment period provided pursuant to subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1).
(3) (A) The executive director shall make a determination as to whether the proposed amendment is de minimis within 10 working days of the date of submittal by the local government. If the proposed amendment is determined to be de minimis, the proposed amendment shall be noticed in the agenda of the next regularly scheduled meeting of the commission, in accordance with Section 11125 of the Government Code, and any public comments forwarded by the local government shall be made available to the members of the commission.
(B) If three members of the commission object to the executive director’s determination that the proposed amendment is de minimis, the proposed amendment shall be set for public hearing in accordance with the procedures specified in subdivision (b), or as specified in subdivision (c) if applicable, as determined by the executive director, or, at the request of the local government, returned to the local government. If set for public hearing under subdivision (b), the time requirements set by Sections 30512 and 30513 shall commence from the date on which the objection to the de minimis designation was made.
(C) If three or more members of the commission do not object to the de minimis determination, the de minimis local coastal program amendment shall become part of the certified local coastal program 10 days after the date of the commission meeting.
(4) The commission, after a noticed public hearing, may adopt guidelines to implement this subdivision, which shall be exempt from review by the Office of Administrative Law and from Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. The commission shall file any guidelines adopted pursuant to this paragraph with the Office of Administrative Law.
(e) For purposes of this section, “amendment of a certified local coastal program” includes, but is not limited to, any action by a local government that authorizes the use of a parcel of land other than a use that is designated in the certified local coastal program as a permitted use of the parcel.
(Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 124, Sec. 89. Effective January 1, 1997.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018