On December 12, 2024, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) released its draft Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan (Draft Conservation Plan) to the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission), as...more
On December 10, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) proposed to list the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). A proposed critical habitat designation...more
SB 684, which took effect on July 1 of this year, provides for streamlined, ministerial processing of certain residential projects in multifamily zoning districts consisting of no more than 10 single-family homes. The law...more
At its October 10 meeting, the California Fish and Game Commission (the Commission) unanimously found that a petition to list the western burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) as an endangered or threatened species in...more
On June 27, 2024, the California First District Court of Appeal affirmed the denial of a writ petition challenging the City of Lafayette’s (City) determination that a 12-unit residential condominium building qualified for the...more
On June 28, 2024, the United States Supreme Court upended decades of precedent by overturning the Chevron doctrine in the combined cases of Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce...more
7/1/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Chevron v NRDC ,
Government Agencies ,
Judicial Authority ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA) ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Relentless Inc v US Department of Commerce ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Vessels
As detailed in our previous Legal Alert, six conservation groups filed a petition with the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) on March 5, 2024 to request the implementation of legal protections for five...more
On May 3, 2024, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW or Department) published a Notice of Proposed Action (Proposed Rule) to update its regulations for Lake or Streambed Alteration Agreements (LSAAs). As...more
On March 5, 2024, six conservation groups filed a petition with the California Fish and Game Commission (the Commission) to request the implementation of legal protections for five populations of the western burrowing owl...more
On April 12, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States issued its much-anticipated ruling in Sheetz v. County of El Dorado, U.S. No. 22-1074 (petition for certiorari granted 9/29/23) (Sheetz). The case concerned the...more
4/16/2024
/ Building Permits ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Construction Project ,
Fifth Amendment ,
George Sheetz v County of El Dorado ,
Impact Fees ,
Popular ,
Property Owners ,
Real Estate Development ,
SCOTUS ,
Supreme Court Justices ,
Takings Clause ,
Traffic Impact Assessments
On April 12, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (USFWS) new regulations for eagle take permitting under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act will go into effect. The regulations, issued on February 12, 2024,...more