September 2013

Can a city protect itself from discriminatory zoning claims by adopting a facially neutral ordinance that treats similarly situated land uses the same? Apparently not, said the Ninth Circuit in Pacific Shores Properties v. City of Newport Beach (Case No. 11-55460), decided on September 20. In a challenge brought against a City of Newport Beach zoning ordinance imposing restrictions on group homes, the court ruled that the plaintiffs could prevail merely by showing that the City acted with discriminatory animus.
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Clarifies Standards For Housing Discrimination Claims

On September 17, 2013, the Environmental Protection Agency announced the release of a draft scientific report that is widely seen as a prelude to upcoming regulations that would significantly expand federal permitting jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act. See our update for more information about the draft report, which is titled “Connectivity of Streams and Wetlands to Downstream Waters: A Review and Synthesis of the Scientific Evidence.”
Continue Reading EPA Publishes Draft Scientific Report To Support Significant Expansion of Clean Water Act Jurisdiction

Many CEQA and NEPA analyses of greenhouse gas impacts assume implementation of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard adopted by the California Air Resources Board. In a boost to the credibility of these analyses, the Ninth Circuit has dissolved a pending injunction and rejected multiple challenges to the Low Carbon Fuel Standard. Rocky Mountain Farmers Union v. Corey, No. 12-15131 (9th Cir., Sept. 18, 2013).
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Moves Low Carbon Fuel Regulations Closer to Validation

 The California Supreme Court has granted a petition by the California Building Industry Association for review of an appellate court’s  decision upholding a San Jose affordable housing ordinance.  The court of appeal found the ordinance to be a valid exercise of the City’s police powers, reversing a lower court ruling that the city had not

In a case the court described as pitting “an oyster farm, oyster lovers and well-known ‘foodies’ against environmentalists,” the Ninth Circuit has upheld denial of a preliminary injunction against the Interior Secretary’s decision not to extend a permit for commercial oyster farming at Point Reyes National Seashore.  Drakes Bay Oyster Company v. Jewell, No.