Environmental Impact Statement
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How does TRPA ensure that changes to the Regional Plan continue to protect Lake Tahoe?
TRPA ensures that changes to the Regional Plan continue to protect Lake Tahoe through formal findings. These findings require that anyone proposing a change to the Regional Plan demonstrates that those changes comply with TRPA’s fundamental mandates—to promote the environmental health of the region. TRPA requires that any change to the Regional Plan undergoes environmental review.
Depending on the scope and potential impacts of a proposal, one of three levels of environmental analysis is conducted:
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Initial Environmental Checklist (IEC)—Used to screen proposals for potential environmental impacts. An IEC may find that there are no potential environmental impacts and no further environmental analysis is needed, or it may find that further analysis is needed.
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Environmental Assessment (EA)—Used when an IEC is insufficient to determine whether an action will have significant environmental effects.
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Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)—The most detailed and comprehensive environmental analysis. Used when deciding whether to approve an action that may have significant environmental effect. An EIS includes alternative options to the project, including a no action alternative, and mitigations for environmental impacts.
TRPA will be preparing an EIS for the Cultivating Community, Conserving the Basin phase of the Tahoe Living Initiative.
How does the public influence what is studied?
TRPA conducted a multi-year public engagement process to craft a policy proposal that reflects the needs of our community and environment. Since the launch of Cultivating Community, Conserving the Basin in August 2024, TRPA has engaged with numerous stakeholders.
Here is a breakdown of our community engagement outreach efforts:
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3 rounds of public workshops (North and South Shore) with 238 community members in attendance,
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5 Community Partner meetings with our Community Partner organizations (list of organizations can be found here).
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5 Tahoe Living Working Group meetings (list of organizations and representatives can be found here).
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Launched and collected data from nearly 1300 community members through the Housing Needs Survey in partnership with Truckee Tahoe Community Foundation.
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Conducted one-on-one group meetings with 7 local organizations totaling to 137 community members in attendance. Community organizations include St. Francis of Assisi, North Tahoe Community Alliance, United for Action, Vista Rise Collective, Family Resource Center, Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation, and Sierra Community House.
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Total direct outreach ~3,000 people considering indirect outreach (social media views, newspaper and radio ads, press releases, etc.)
There will be a six-week public scoping period starting in late-January or early-February 2026. During this time, members of the public will have the opportunity to comment on what environmental impacts should be analyzed in the scope of the EIS and how they should be studied. The public will have more opportunities to influence the content of the final policy proposal when a draft EIS is ready for public comment later in 2026.
How can I voice my ideas in the process?
You can submit a written public comment or make spoken comment at the January 28 Governing Board meeting or the February 11 Advisory Planning Commission meeting. You can submit comment on the EIS scope to publiccomment@trpa.gov. We will hold more meetings on the EIS and policy proposal when the draft EIS is complete later in 2026.
When can I get involved?
TRPA plans to initiate an EIS in late-January or early-February 2026. There will be a public scoping period lasting at least 30 days where we will collect input on how we should analyze environmental impacts. Next, TRPA will release a summary of input along with an EIS scope. We plan to work on a draft EIS through the spring and release a public draft in the summer. Community members will have an opportunity to comment on the public draft during the summer, and TRPA will prepare a final draft through Fall 2026 for consideration in early 2027.
Where are we in the process?
TRPA ensures that changes to the Regional Plan continue to protect Lake Tahoe through formal findings. These findings require that anyone proposing a change to the Regional Plan demonstrates that those changes comply with TRPA’s fundamental mandates—to promote the environmental health of the region. TRPA requires that any change to the Regional Plan undergoes environmental review.
Depending on the scope and potential impacts of a proposal, one of three levels of environmental analysis is conducted:
-
An Initial Environmental Checklist, or IEC, which is a screening tool to identify potential environmental impacts. If the IEC shows that a proposed action will have no significant environmental effects, no further analysis is needed.
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When the IEC isn’t enough to rule out the possibility of significant environment effects, an Environmental Assessment, or EA, is a higher level of analysis to further assess that possibility.
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Lastly, the Environmental Impact Statement, or EIS, is used to study the potential effects of a proposed action where those effects are or are likely to be significant. An EIS evaluates the project and any alternatives, including a “no action” alternative, and identifies ways to avoid, minimize, or mitigate environmental impacts.
The agency’s environmental review provides a transparent, science-based way for the public and decision makers to understand potential impacts, options, and ways to handle changes from proposed policies. TRPA will be preparing an EIS for the Cultivating Community, Conserving the Basin phase of the Tahoe Living Initiative. The Notice of Preparation can be found here.
How does TRPA ensure that changes to the Regional Plan continue to protect Lake Tahoe?
TRPA conducted a multi-year public engagement process to craft a policy proposal that reflects the needs of our community and environment. Since the launch of Cultivating Community, Conserving the Basin in August 2024, TRPA has engaged with numerous stakeholders.
Here is a breakdown of our community engagement outreach efforts:
-
3 rounds of public workshops (North and South Shore) with 238 community members in attendance,
-
5 Community Partner meetings with our Community Partner organizations (list of organizations can be found here).
-
5 Tahoe Living Working Group meetings (list of organizations and representatives can be found here).
-
Launched and collected data from nearly 1300 community members through the Housing Needs Survey in partnership with Truckee Tahoe Community Foundation.
-
Conducted one-on-one group meetings with 20 local organizations totaling to over 150 community members in attendance. Community organizations include St. Francis of Assisi, North Tahoe Community Alliance, United for Action, Vista Rise Collective, South Lake Family Resource Center, Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation, Sierra Community House, Tahoe Housing Hub, Gateway Mountain Center, Incline Village Crystal Bay Business Association, California Tahoe Conservancy, UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center, League to Save Lake Tahoe, Mountain Area Preservation, Sierra Club, Generation Green, The Tahoe Fund, Boys and Girls Club, Friends of the West Shore, and The Labor Lodge Coalition.
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Total direct outreach ~3,000 people considering indirect outreach (social media views, newspaper and radio ads, press releases, etc.)
How does the public influence what is studied?
How can I voice my ideas in the process?
TRPA has initiated an environmental impact statement for the proposed policies to improve housing affordability, water quality, and environmental conditions in the Tahoe Basin. The Notice of Preparation can be found here. The agency is seeking feedback during a six-week public comment period on what environmental issues should be analyzed in the document. The housing initiative focuses on aligning land-use regulations to better support housing needs at Lake Tahoe while protecting the environment.
You can submit a written public comment on the EIS scope to housing@trpa.gov or make spoken comment at the February 11 Advisory Planning Commission meeting. TRPA will hold more meetings and public workshops on the EIS and policy proposal when the draft EIS is complete later in 2026.
This public scoping period will remain open through March 16, 2026. Please submit written comments to housing@trpa.gov on the scope of the environmental analysis including any impacts that should be considered in the study. Next, TRPA will release a summary of input along with an EIS scope. We plan to work on a draft EIS through the spring and release a public draft in the summer. Community members will have an opportunity to comment on the public draft during the summer, and TRPA will prepare a final draft through Fall 2026 for consideration in early 2027.
When can I get involved?
Project Factsheets
*Click on images below to see English and Spanish factsheets (Haga clic en la imagen de arriba para ver las hojas informativas en inglés y español)
Reduce Costs and Barriers for Smaller Housing Types (Reducir costos y barreras para los tipos de vivienda de menor tamaño)
Water Quality and Housing Go Together (Integrar mejoras en la calidad del agua y viviendas para trabajadores)
