Introduction to the State Clearinghouse

Established in 1973, the State Clearinghouse (SCH), a division of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research (OPR), coordinates the State-level review of Environmental Documents prepared pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

The SCH is at the center of State agency involvement in the CEQA environmental review process. It is responsible for reviewing and distributing Environmental Documents to State agencies for review, advising and assisting government agencies and the public on the environmental review process, and maintaining records of all Environmental Documents and notices that it receives for public access. The CEQA Guidelines govern the operation of the SCH and define its roles and responsibilities (California Code of Regulations, Title 14, Sections 15000-15387).

The CEQA Guidelines are updated annually – always make sure to refer to the most recently updated version.

Evolution of State Clearinghouse Processes

Federal Grants

Additionally, the SCH functions as the “State Single Point of Contact” (SPOC) for coordinating State and local review of applications for federal grants or loans under select State programs (as governed by the Presidential Executive Order (E.O.) 12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs). With the signing of Assembly Bill 1348 (Irwin, 2016), the SCH is responsible for reporting on all federal grants applied for and received in California, regardless of whether they fall under E.O. 12372. The SCH also coordinates the review of federal National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) documents. The purpose of the process is to afford state and local participation in federal activities occurring within California. The Executive Order does not replace public participation, comment, or review requirements of other federal laws, such as NEPA, but gives the state an additional mechanism to ensure federal agency responsiveness to state and local concerns.

Visit OPR’s Federal Assistance page for more information and resources.

Hours of Operation

The State Clearinghouse (SCH) operates Monday through Friday, 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., and closes on all State Holidays.

Paying CDFW Fees

You can pay the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) fee by mail or in-person appointment, and you must pay the fee by check payable to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.

We strongly encourage that you deliver the check or put it in the mail within a week of filing a Notice of Determination online.  If the State Clearinghouse receives the check before you have filed a Notice of Determination online, the State Clearinghouse will hold the check for a maximum of 14 days before returning it if you have still not filed the Notice of Determination.

In Person

The State Clearinghouse accepts in-person drop-offs of California Department of Fish and Wildlife filing fees by appointment only.  Schedule a drop-off appointment by emailing state.clearinghouse@opr.ca.gov or calling the State Clearinghouse at (916) 445-0613 between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. (Monday – Friday, excluding holidays).

Mail

You can mail California Department of Fish and Wildlife fees to the State Clearinghouse. To avoid misdirection of checks and delays in posting Notices of Determination, clearly identify the purpose of the check on the check itself or on an enclosed transmittal note. If the check and/or enclosed transmittal note does not include the information below, the materials including the check will be returned immediately.

The check and/or enclosed transmittal note must include:

  • State Clearinghouse Number (SCH#)
  • Project title
  • Project contact person’s name and number and/or email address

You can mail the check to the State Clearinghouse at the address below:

State Clearinghouse
1400 Tenth Street
Sacramento, CA 95814

Note: Do not use the prior P.O. Box 3044, as it is no longer valid.

Accessing Published CEQA Documents

The State Clearinghouse (SCH) keeps records of all CEQA Documents it receives on the CEQAnet database. CEQAnet provides summaries of Environmental Impact Reports (EIRs), Negative Declarations, Environmental Impact Statements, and other types of CEQA and NEPA documents. The summaries include the project title, project location, lead agency name, contact information, and project description. The search functions allow you to browse documents by year, regional project location, end review periods, and a new custom search powered by Google.

As of March 2019, CEQAnet provides copies of all full text Environmental Documents and notices. CEQAnet will not have copies of original documents published prior to March 2019. Individuals looking for copies of documents published prior to March 2019 should contact the lead agency.

CEQAnet is not a comprehensive database of all CEQA and NEPA documents in California because not all Environmental Documents and notices are submitted to the SCH.

Please note that the documents on CEQAnet are posted in the manner they were received. OPR does not control the content of external, third party documents submitted to us. If you need assistance accessing content in an alternate format, please email us at state.clearinghouse@opr.ca.gov. You may also contact us via phone at 916-445-0613.