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8 <br /> <br />4.2 State Regulatory Setting <br />4.2.1 Plants and Wildlife <br />Property permitting and approval requires compliance with California Environmental Quality <br />Act (CEQA), the 1984 California Endangered Species Act (CESA), and the 1977 Native Plant <br />Protection Act (NPPA). The CESA and NPPA authorize the California Fish and Game <br />Commission to designate Endangered, Threatened and Rare species and to regulate the taking of <br />these species (§§2050-2098, Fish & Game Code). The California Code of Regulations (Title 14, <br />§670.5) lists animal species considered Endangered or Threatened by the State. <br />The Natural Heritage Division of the CDFW administers the state rare species program. The <br />CDFW maintains lists of designated Endangered, Threatened, and Rare plant and animal species <br />(CDFW 2022a and 2022b). Listed species either were designated under the NPPA or designated <br />by the Fish and Game Commission. In addition to recognizing three levels of endangerment, the <br />CDFW can afford interim protection to candidate species while they are being reviewed by the <br />Fish and Game Commission. <br />The CDFW also maintains a list of animal species of special concern (CDFW 2022b), most of <br />which are species whose breeding populations in California may face extirpation. Although these <br />species have no legal status, the CDFW recommends considering them during analysis of <br />proposed property impacts to protect declining populations and avoid the need to list them as <br />endangered in the future. <br />The California Fish & Game Code §3503, 3503.5, and 3513 cover native bird protection. <br />Mitigation for avoidance of impacts to nesting birds are typically necessary to comply with these <br />Sections of the Fish and Game Code in CEQA and other permitting documents. <br />Under provisions of §15380(d) of the CEQA Guidelines, the CEQA lead agency and CDFW, in <br />making a determination of significance, must treat non-listed plant and animal species as <br />equivalent to listed species if such species satisfy the minimum biological criteria for listing. In <br />general, the CDFW considers plant species on List 1A (Plants Presumed Extinct in California), <br />List 1B (Plants Rare, Threatened, or Endangered in California and elsewhere), or List 2 (Plants <br />Rare, Threatened, or Endangered in California, But More Common Elsewhere) of the CNPS <br />Inventory of Rare and Endangered Vascular Plants of California (Skinner and Pavlik 1994) as <br />qualifying for legal protection under §15380(d). Species on CNPS Lists 3 or 4 may, but <br />generally do not, qualify for protection under this provision.