{"id":3445,"date":"2026-10-12T20:15:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-13T00:15:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/?p=3445"},"modified":"2026-10-12T20:28:41","modified_gmt":"2026-10-13T00:28:41","slug":"substantial-evidence-and-significance-determinations-considering-the-values-underlying-the-california-environmental-quality-acts-fair-argument-standard","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/2026\/10\/12\/substantial-evidence-and-significance-determinations-considering-the-values-underlying-the-california-environmental-quality-acts-fair-argument-standard\/","title":{"rendered":"Substantial Evidence and Significance Determinations: Considering the Values Underlying the California Environmental Quality Act\u2019s Fair Argument Standard"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>By Andrew Sandahl<\/p>\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\">Abstract<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>The California Environmental Quality Act (\u201cCEQA\u201d) is as contentious as it is consequential. Standing as California\u2019s most prominent and influential environmental law, CEQA is responsible for producing far more environmental review reports proportionally than its national predecessor, the National Environmental Policy Act (\u201cNEPA\u201d). CEQA\u2019s controversial reputation for generating paperwork stems in major part from its seemingly ambiguous statutory language and inherently precautionary approach to environmental protection. The fair argument standard, which dictates when an Environmental Impact Report (\u201cEIR\u201d) is required, exemplifies both ambiguity and precaution, making it a prime subject for exploring the deeper values operating within CEQA. Although sometimes criticized for setting a generally low threshold for EIR production, the fair argument standard is moderated by two seemingly substantive terms\u2014<\/em>substantial evidence <em>and<\/em> significance determinations<em>. This Article examines how these two terms have been interpreted, through regulatory language and case law, to ultimately reinforce CEQA\u2019s precautionary nature through various underlying values (i.e., constitutive and contextual values). By illuminating the underlying values shaping the fair argument standard, this Article provides a framework for refining CEQA policy discussions, reconciling conflicting perspectives, and reducing the attitude polarization that CEQA often engenders. Upon considering these values, regulatory agencies and courts seeking to decrease CEQA litigation and improve policy clarity may find the fair argument standard a productive focal point for reform. At a minimum, acknowledging the value-laden nature of CEQA\u2019s fair argument standard has the potential to foster more constructive discussions\u2014encouraging thoughtful consideration of how, through redefining terms such as<\/em> substantial <em>and<\/em> significant<em>, CEQA has tilted the regulatory scale once more towards precautionary environmental protection.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons alignfull is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-3e41869c wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/79\/2026\/10\/Sandahl_Final-1.pdf\">Download PDF<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Andrew Sandahl Abstract The California Environmental Quality Act (\u201cCEQA\u201d) is as contentious as it is consequential. Standing as California\u2019s [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":204,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-helr-online"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/peZkUb-Tz","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/204"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3445"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3453,"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3445\/revisions\/3453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/journals.law.harvard.edu\/elr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}