Opinion No. (1998)

DANIEL E. LUNGREN Attorney General ANTHONY M. SUMMERS Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE JAMES L. McBRIDE, COUNTY COUNSEL OF THE COUNTY OF VENTURA, has requested an opinion on the following question: Do the regulations adopted by the California Integrated Waste Management Board prohibit a county from claiming a categorical exemption from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act with respect to its adoption of a countywide waste management plan? CONCLUSION The regulations adopted by the California Integrated Waste Management Board do not prohibit a county from claiming a categorical exemption from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act with respect to its adoption of a countywide waste management plan. ANALYSIS The Legislature has adopted a comprehensive statutory scheme, the California Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989 (Pub. Resources Code, §§ 40000 - 49620 ; "Act"), 1 to regulate the disposal of solid waste in California. Under the Act, each county must prepare and submit to the California Integrated Waste Management Board ("Board") a countywide waste management plan. (§ 41750 .) After examining whether the plan…