Californians for Alternatives to Toxics v. California Department of Pesticide Regulation

Defendant California Department of Pesticide Regulation (Department) regulates the manufacture, distribution, sale, and use of pesticides in California. The Department issues pesticide registration for eligible products, renews registrations annually, and reevaluates registrations. Plaintiff Californians for Alternatives to Toxics (Alternatives), a nonprofit corporation, challenged the Department’s decision to renew a number of pesticide registrations for the 2002 calendar year. Alternatives filed a petition for writ of mandate and complaint for declaratory relief.

In its mandamus claims, Alternatives argued the Department abused its discretion and violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) in renewing without reevaluating pesticide registrations in 2002. Alternatives’s declaratory relief claims challenged the Department’s procedure of renewing pesticide registrations prior to completing the process of inviting, considering, and responding to public comments regarding the impact of continued registration.

The trial court sustained the Department’s demurrers to the mandamus claims challenging the 2002 renewals, finding the claims moot and untimely. As to…