AB 66: California Environmental Quality Act: exemption: egress route projects: fire safety.

Official summary

Legislative Counsel’s Digest (official, as of the latest version). Written by nonpartisan legislative staff; reproduced verbatim.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) requires a lead agency, as defined, to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and certify the completion of an environmental impact report on a project that it proposes to carry out or approve that may have a significant effect on the environment or to adopt a negative declaration if it finds that the project will not have that effect. CEQA also requires a lead agency to prepare a mitigated negative declaration for a project that may have a significant effect on the environment if revisions in the project would avoid or mitigate that effect and there is no substantial evidence that the project, as revised, would have a significant effect on the environment.

This bill would, until January 1, 2032, exempt from CEQA egress route projects undertaken by a public agency to improve emergency access to and evacuation from a subdivision without a secondary egress route if the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection has recommended the creation of a secondary access to the subdivision and certain conditions are met. The bill would require the lead agency to hold a noticed public meeting to hear and respond to public comments before determining that a project is exempt. The bill would require the lead agency, if it determines that a project is not subject to CEQA and approves or carries out that project, to file a notice of exemption with the Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation and with the clerk of the county in which the project will be located.

Sponsors

Sponsors by party (alphabetical): Republican 1

“Support” is shown only as formal sponsorship recorded by the legislature. Roll-call votes are available on the official bill page.

Recent official actions

1. July 16, 2025In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
2. July 3, 2025Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on N.R. & W.
3. July 2, 2025From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on N.R. & W. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (July 2).
4. June 18, 2025Referred to Coms. on E.Q. and N.R. & W.
5. June 9, 2025In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
6. June 5, 2025Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 58. Noes 1. Page 2115.)
7. May 27, 2025Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
8. May 23, 2025From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 14. Noes 0.) (May 23).
9. April 9, 2025In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
10. March 25, 2025From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (March 24). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
11. February 25, 2025Re-referred to Com. on NAT. RES.
12. February 24, 2025From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on NAT. RES. Read second time and amended.