Beaumont Municipal Code Art. IV Time Limits

The City which is the lead agency for a development project shall after review and certification of an EIR, completion of a Negative Declaration, or other means of compliance with CEQA through City Resolution No. 1980-45, or such other subsequently adopted ordinance or resolution, approve or disapprove such project within one year from the date on which an application requesting approval of such project has been received and accepted as complete by the City. All time limits specified by the lead agency are maximum time limits for approving or disapproving development projects. All City public agencies shall, if possible, approve or disapprove development projects in shorter periods of time.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

A. Any other public agency which is a responsible agency for a development project shall approve or disapprove such project within whichever of the following periods of time results in a later deadline date:

1. Within 180 days from the date on which the lead agency has approved or disapproved such project; or

2. Within 180 days of the date on which a completed application for such project has been received and accepted as complete by the responsible agency. This 180-day period begins for each agency when the application has been accepted as complete by that agency, regardless of the status of applications for the same development project with other responsible agencies.

B. The applicant should provide the responsible agency with written documentation of the date of the lead agency's approval or disapproval of the project immediately upon such agency's action.

C. All time limits specified for responsible agencies are maximum time limits for approving or disapproving development projects. All responsible agencies shall, if possible, approve or disapprove development projects in shorter periods of time.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

In the event that a combined environmental impact report-environmental impact statement is being prepared on a development project pursuant to Section 21083.6 of the Public Resources Code, the City may waive the time limits required by this chapter. To waive these time limits, the City must first find that a combined EIR/EIS would be shorter than to prepare each document separately. The lead agency then shall approve or disapprove such project within 60 days after the combined environmental impact report-environmental impact statement has been completed and adopted.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

The time limits specified by this chapter shall not apply in the event that federal statutes or regulations require time schedules which exceed such time limits, or to applications to appropriate water where such applications have been protested pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 1330) of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Water Code, or to petitions for changes pursuant to Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 1700) of Part 2 of Division 2 of the Water Code.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

The time limits specified in this chapter may be extended once for a period not to exceed 90 days upon consent of the City and the applicant. The City shall not require the applicant to waive time limits specified in the Permit Streamlining Act or consent to an extension of time as part of the initial permit application.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

A moratorium on approving development projects that is adopted by the City does not automatically waive or extend the time limits specified by this chapter. Instead, a moratorium can provide the basis for the City to refuse in writing to accept an application as complete or to formally deny a development project application, within the time limits specified in this chapter.

(Ord. 560 56 (part), 1983)

The time limits specified in this chapter shall be suspended in the event of an administrative appeal.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

In the event that the City or responsible agency fails to act to approve or to disapprove a completed application for a development project within the time limits specified in this chapter, such failure to act shall deem the application automatically approved.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

The City may establish reasonable standard conditions which would automatically be applicable to any development project deemed approved pursuant to this chapter. Such standard conditions shall be consistent with conditions attached to other projects of a similar type and in a similar location when previously approved by the City.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

A. In the event that information needed for the reasons shown in subdivisions 1 through 4 of this subsection is not provided by the applicant or cannot be developed by the City within the time limits specified by this chapter, the City may deny a permit for a development project to allow time to obtain the needed information. Information whose absence would constitute a reason for such a denial are:

1. Information which is to be supplied by the applicant and is necessary to prepare a legally adequate environmental document;

2. The results of year-long studies conducted by or prepared under contract for the City, when such results are necessary to prepare a legally adequate environmental document;

3. Information necessary to prepare a supplemental Environmental Impact Report in compliance with Public Resources Code Section 21166; or

4. Information without which the City's decision to approve would not be supported by substantial evidence.

B. Denials for these reasons may be deemed by the City to be a denial without prejudice to the applicant's right to reapply for the same permit. If a reapplication is made, it should be handled expeditiously by the City.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

The City is required to complete and certify for private projects an environmental impact report within one year, or complete a negative declaration within 105 days. These time limits shall begin and run concurrently, and not consecutively, with the one-year time limit for the City to approve or disapprove a development project according, to this chapter except as provided by this section.

A. Subject to the one-year maximum time limit plus extension as described in Section 15.40.160, when existing statutes require the City to approve or deny a permit application within a period of time of less than six months or else the permit application will be approved by operation of law, such time period shall not begin to run until the environmental documentation required by the California Environmental Quality Act is completed and certified by the lead agency. Such permits would be, but are not limited to:

1. Action on a tentative subdivision map by a local government, pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 66452) of Chapter 3; Division 2, Title 2 of the Government Code;

2. Action on a zoning variance permit;

3. Action on a special (conditional) use permit;

4. Action on a permit issued by a design review commission;

5. Action on a sign permit; and

6. Action on other discretionary permit(s) subject to subsection A of this Section.

B. In such case, the environmental document shall be completed or certified and the decision on the application shall be made by the City within one year from the date on which an application requesting approval of such project has been received and accepted as complete by such agency pursuant to the Permit Streamlining Act. This one-year time limit may be extended once for a period not to exceed ninety days upon consent of the City and the applicant.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)

A. In the event that a development project requires more than one approval by the City, the agency may establish time limits:

1. For submitting the information required in connection with each separate request for approval; and

2. For acting upon each such request; provided, however, that the time period for acting on all such requests shall not, in aggregate, exceed those limits specified in this chapter.

B. The City should require the applicant to either submit a series of permit applications according to an established schedule, or require the applicant to file all applications simultaneously using a combined single unified application form.

C. The City may, however, allow an applicant to apply for each request for approval individually without adhering to a schedule, in which case each application will be processed and decided separately according to the time limits specified in this chapter.

(Ord. 560 §6 (part), 1983)