Legal Hurdles - California Climate and Energy Collaborative

Barrier 4: Legal Hurdles

Barrier Statement

Local governments are discouraged from developing or implementing CAPs due to potential lawsuits, litigation, and compliance enforcement of CEQA mitigation measures in an EIR.

Filterable Database

How communities are experiencing this barrier

View the details on what communities have shared with SLECC from across the state.

Key challenge discussed in - San Diego

Ongoing costs of defensibility: Once adopted, CEQA-qualified CAPs require continuous monitoring and updating to remain legally defensible. Smaller jurisdictions cannot afford the long-term costs of keeping CAPs defensible against legal scrutiny.

Key challenge discussed in - San Diego

Inconsistent and duplicative requirements: Multiple jurisdictions and agencies require different CAP references, slowing permitting and increasing legal vulnerability

Key challenge discussed in - San Diego

Cities are discouraged from pursuing CEQA-qualified Climate Action Plans (CAPs) because of the threat of litigation from developers, community groups, or other stakeholders who may sue over inadequacies in Environmental Impact Reports (EIRs). Smaller jurisdictions are especially vulnerable since they lack legal staff and budgets to defend against litigation.

Key challenge discussed in - San Diego

Compliance enforcement burdens: Tracking and enforcing CEQA mitigation measures requires expertise many local governments lack. Compliance is ongoing, not a one-time effort, which strains already limited staff.

Key challenge discussed in - Statewide

Participants raised legal risks and uncertainty associated with tiering projects off of CEQA qualified CAPs, which is one of the primary benefits of taking the CAP through a CEQA process. Participants from smaller jurisdictions noted the lack of in-house legal counsel in smaller jurisdictions as an additional hurdle.

Local Solution Opportunities

SLECC stakeholders have brainstormed the following solution opportunities that can be taken by local leaders. Existing examples of progress or pathways to make further progress are highlighted if known.

Local Solution

Regional/shared staffing – Small jurisdictions could pool legal and technical staff to manage CEQA compliance and defensibility collectively

Existing Examples of Progress:

Further Progress Pathways

Region(s): San Diego

Local Solution

Regional governance coordination – Stronger coordination tables between local, regional, and state entities would help ensure local CAPs aren’t blindsided by CPUC or state-level decisions that introduce legal vulnerabilities

Existing Examples of Progress:

Further Progress Pathways

Region(s): San Diego

Local Solution

Proposal of regulatory review panels (developers, labor, environmental reps) for CAP requirements to audit rules and identify redundancies, helping reduce duplication

Existing Examples of Progress:

Further Progress Pathways

Region(s): San Diego

State Solution Opportunities

SLECC stakeholders have brainstormed the following solution opportunities that can be taken by state leaders. Existing examples of progress or pathways to make further progress are highlighted if known.

State Solution

Reform CEQA defensibility requirements – Consider state-level indemnification or legal defense funding for jurisdictions adopting CEQA-qualified CAPs, reducing fear of lawsuits

Existing Examples of Progress:

Further Progress Pathways

Region(s): San Diego

State Solution

Standardize CAP requirements – State agencies (e.g., CARB, OPR) should simplify and standardize CAP guidance so local governments can adopt legally defensible CAPs without costly reinvention

Existing Examples of Progress:

Further Progress Pathways

Region(s): San Diego

State Solution

Standardized CEQA guidance to reduce litigation risk.

Existing Examples of Progress:

Further Progress Pathways

Region(s): San Diego

Solution Spotlight

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Additional Resources

CARB’s Local Actions for Climate Change webpage
UC Berkeley: The Status of Local Climate Action in California
City Scale et al: State of Local Climate Planning
UCLA paper describes problems with 15/15 rule and data masking
Governor’s Office of Landuse and Climate Innovation’s Annual Planning Survey

Please share any additional resources you would like to include by emailing eecoordinator@civicwell.org.