The Board is receiving an update on Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) mitigation, including a Transit Opportunity Area assessment and options for a local VMT Mitigation Exchange Program, in response to SB 743 requirements and evolving case law. Most General Plan-consistent projects can now use CEQA Guidelines Section 15183 streamlining and avoid detailed VMT mitigation, but projects requiring Major Use Permits or General Plan amendments still need VMT analysis and mitigation options. Staff recommends continuing to work with SANDAG on a Regional VMT Mitigation Program, pursuing grant funding (with a B‑29 waiver) for a pilot, and incorporating Transit Opportunity Areas and land use changes into the forthcoming Sustainable Land Use Framework. The Board may also direct development of a near-term local VMT Mitigation Exchange Program that would identify eligible VMT-reducing improvements and define how project proponents can use them as mitigation. This creates an early-stage opportunity for planning, transportation, environmental, and legal consultants to help design frameworks, mitigation catalogs, program administration tools, and potential linkages to affordable housing funding.

Funding for VMT mitigation program and Sustainable Land Use Framework is from prior-year General Fun...