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Mariposa County staff to return with VMT policy after informational briefing on CEQA changes
Summary
County transportation and planning staff and consultants briefed the board and the Local Transportation Commission on vehicle miles traveled (VMT) as the state-recommended CEQA metric under SB 743; staff will return with a draft local policy and screening maps in November.
Mariposa County received an informational briefing on vehicle miles traveled, or VMT, on Sept. 9 as the Board of Supervisors convened also as the Local Transportation Commission.
The briefing explained that Senate Bill 743 and subsequent state guidance moved California agencies away from the level-of-service metric toward VMT to better account for greenhouse gases, air pollution and active-transportation goals. Jeanne Morbay Clayton of Public Works summarized the required shift and introduced consultants from Fehr & Peers who presented methodological options and next steps.
The consultants said VMT is conceptually simple — trips multiplied by length — but complex in practice because jurisdictions must decide which VMT metrics (total, per-capita, home-based, work-based or visitor-based), what methods to use and what thresholds will count as a significant CEQA impact. They recommended a context-sensitive approach for Mariposa County, including qualitative screening for many smaller projects and developing screening maps for planning areas.
Public comments ranged from technical questions to broader objections to the state requirement. Several speakers asked whether VMT analyses would block small housing projects; staff and the consultants said screening criteria and locally set thresholds are intended to reduce unnecessary analyses. Steve Being, Planning Director, said a locally adopted VMT policy would help applicants and staff by clarifying when a VMT analysis is required and when projects can be screened out.
County staff and consultants told the commission they will return in November with recommended metrics, a qualitative methodology appropriate to a rural county, proposed thresholds, screening maps for town planning areas and a menu of mitigation measures consistent with CAPCOA guidance (for example, site design, transportation demand management and infrastructure investments).
The Local Transportation Commission received the presentation; no action was taken at the Sept. 9 meeting. Commissioners asked for follow-up on baseline data sources (traffic counts, Caltrans counters and anonymized mobile-device data), the policy’s likely cost and how frequently the county could expect projects to require VMT review. Consultants said much of the policy development will be funded through regional planning assistance and that the county can adopt a “business as usual” threshold so many projects are screened out.
Staff said the November return will include draft screening maps and a proposed policy for adoption so project applicants and the public have a clearer, locally calibrated process for CEQA transportation analysis.
Sources: Presentation to the Local Transportation Commission and board by Jeanne Morbay Clayton, Public Works Transportation Planning, and consultants from Fehr & Peers; Planning Director Steve Being’s remarks.
