These resources are useful for monitoring environmental legislation, with the focus on free sources for California environmental issues and legislation.
Association of Environmental Professionals (AEP) California Page
http://www.califaep.org
“AEP is a non-profit organization of professionals working to improve our skills as environmental practitioners and natural resource managers. AEP is dedicated to the enhancement, maintenance and protection of the natural and human environment.”
AEP - Legislation Page
http://www.califaep.org/content.asp?pid=69
This page includes information and links to AEP's legislative review information including
the AEP Environmental Assessor (which is a summary of recent case law and active legislation), a year-end legislative update, a legislative summary and status report, and AEP's position on pending legislation, among other items.
California Environmental Protection Agency
http://www.calepa.ca.gov
“The mission of the Legislative Affairs Office is to provide the Administration with suggested improvements and reforms to existing environmental law; to provide expert advice to the Administration on policy, program, and fiscal implications of pending legislation; and to provide constituent services to members of the Legislature and Governor’s Office.”
This site has bills of interest to the California Environmental Protection Agency, with links to:
- Master Bills [2006 summary, update]: http://www.calepa.ca.gov/Legislation/2006/BillSummary.pdf
- Federal bills [2006 summary]: http://www.calepa.ca.gov/Legislation/2006/Federal.pdf
California Environmental Resources Evaluation System (CERES): CEQA Web Site
http://ceres.ca.gov/ceqa
The California Environmental Resources Evaluation System (CERES) maintains the “CEQA Web.” This site contains a wealth of information about CEQA.
The following links are useful:
- Notice of Proposed Rulemaking: http://ceres.ca.gov/ceqa/docs/Notice_of_Proposed_Action_-_FINAL-web2.pdf. (This is an overview of recent proposed legislation.)
- CEQA Case Law: http://ceres.ca.gov/topic/env_law/ceqa/cases
Note: This list of current cases is in date order and is not annotated. You will need to check each case link to see if it’s on point. You can search by case name as well.
California League of Conservation Voters
http://www.ecovote.org
The CLCV is the non-partisan political action arm of California's environmental movement.
Their mission is to “protect the environmental quality of the state by increasing public awareness of the environmental performance of all elected officials, working to elect environmentally responsible candidates, and holding them accountable to the environmental agenda once elected.”
This Web site includes a mix of environmental issues from forthcoming legislation, election endorsements, and a California Environmental Scorecard, which rates each member of the California Legislature on key environmental votes of the session.
Communities for a Better Environment (CBE)
http://www.cbecal.org
CBE is an environmental health and justice non-profit organization.
A useful link is found at Campaigns http://www.cbecal.org/campaigns/index.html. This has articles and other information re toxins, power plants, oil refineries, industrial spills, fires, toxic dumping and more.
Environment California
http://www.environmentcalifornia.org
“Environment California is a statewide, citizen-based environmental advocacy organization. Our professional staff combines independent research, practical ideas and tough-minded advocacy to overcome the opposition of powerful special interests and win real results for California's environment.”
Of particular interest is the Current Legislative Agenda:
http://www.environmentcalifornia.org/legislature/legislative-agenda
Alternatively, you can get to the most current legislative agenda by going to the State Legislature link and selecting the most current link:
http://www.environmentcalifornia.org/legislature
Sierra Club
http://www.sierraclubcalifornia.org
“The Sierra Club California promotes the preservation, restoration, and enjoyment of California's environment by enabling members to speak with one voice in California's State Capitol.”
The Legislation link on the left navigation bar provides an overview of priority bills for the current & some past legislation. It also has interesting Status/Location information including if the bill was signed by the Governor, vetoed by the Governor, or is in a senate or house committee. The direct link to the Legislation page is http://www.sierraclubcalifornia.org/legislation.html.
