People of State of Cal. v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 84-2869
| Decision Date | 17 June 1986 |
| Docket Number | No. 84-2869,84-2869 |
| Citation | 792 F.2d 775 |
| Parties | , 16 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,909 PEOPLE OF the STATE OF CALIFORNIA; John Van De Kamp, Attorney General of California, Plaintiffs-Appellees, v. The TAHOE REGIONAL PLANNING AGENCY, Defendant. Incline Village General Improvement District, Applicant for Intervention-Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Ninth Circuit |
John K. Van de Kamp, Atty. Gen., N. Gregory Taylor, Asst. Atty. Gen., Richard M. Skinner, Dist. Atty. Gen., Sacramento, Cal., E. Clement Shute, Jr., Anita E. Ruud, Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger, San Francisco, Cal., for plaintiffs-appellees.
Richard P. Shanahan, Kronick, Moskovitz, Tiedemann & Girard, Sacramento, Cal., for applicant for intervention-appellant.
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California.
Before SCHROEDER, CANBY and BOOCHEVER, Circuit Judges.
Incline Village General Improvement District (IVGID) appeals the order of the district court denying its motion to intervene in a suit between California and the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency. IVGID challenges the district court's conclusion that its interests were adequately represented by the existing parties.
In 1980 Congress amended the California-Nevada Tahoe Regional Planning Compact (Compact), Pub.L. No. 96-551, 94 Stat. 3233, at Cal.Govt.Code Sec. 66801, to require the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) to amend its regional plan in order to achieve specified environmental goals. In 1984, TRPA amended its plan. The California Attorney General immediately filed suit in district court challenging the adequacy of TRPA's new plan. The League to Save Lake Tahoe filed a similar suit, which was consolidated with the California action. Subsequently, the district court permitted the Tahoe-Truckee Sanitation Agency (TTSA), the Tahoe Shorezone Representation, and the State of Nevada to intervene in the action. The plaintiffs challenged the adequacy of TRPA's amended plan, contending that it did not comply with the Compact's requirements. They also sought to enjoin TRPA from approving any projects under the amended plan.
On August 9, 1984, the district court granted a preliminary injunction, enjoining TRPA from approving any project development or construction in the Lake Tahoe Basin pending trial. We upheld this preliminary injunction in People of California v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 766 F.2d 1308 (9th Cir.1985). We also refused to modify the preliminary injunction as requested by two intervenors, the Tahoe-Truckee Sanitation Agency (People of California v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 766 F.2d 1316 (9th Cir.1985)) and Tahoe Shorezone Representation (People of California v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 766 F.2d 1319 (9th Cir.1985)). Settlement negotiations are now taking place.
Appellant IVGID, an applicant to intervene in this action, is a special public district located in Washoe County, Nevada, in the Lake Tahoe Basin. It is responsible for the financing, construction, and operation of roads, and sewer, water, and recreational facilities in its region. Washoe County itself provides only limited services, and there is no city government in the area. Therefore, IVGID is an important unit of local government. IVGID conducted a study of the impact of the preliminary injunction on its district, and concluded that by virtue of the injunction its revenues would decrease and land values would decline.
In addition to expressing its fiscal concerns, IVGID seeks in this litigation to promote a flexible interpretation of TRPA's land coverage regulations plan, known as the "Bailey Report." That plan attempts to reduce land erosion and the resulting lake sediment by classifying land and limiting the type and density of construction permissible on each class. For discussion of the Bailey Report, see People of California v. Tahoe Regional Planning Agency, 766 F.2d at 1315.
IVGID moved to intervene on August 2, 1984. After a hearing, on December 4, 1984, the district court denied IVGID's motion to intervene either as of right pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 24(a)(2), or permissibly, pursuant to Rule 24(b)(2). The district court concluded that IVGID's interests are adequately represented by existing parties, specifically TRPA, the State of Nevada, and the Tahoe-Truckee Sanitation Agency, which is an agency made up of utility districts
similar to IVGID. Furthermore, it concluded that IVGID's motion for permissive intervention should be denied because IVGID's participation would be redundant and would impair the efficient administration of justice in this case. However, the district court invited IVGID to participate as amicus curiae. We affirm.
We review a district court order denying intervention as of right de novo. United States v. Stringfellow, 783 F.2d 821, 825-26 (9th Cir.1986), cert. granted on other grounds, --- U.S. ----, 106 S.Ct. 2273, 89 L.Ed.2d ---- (U.S.1986). Our standard for reviewing a district court's denial of a motion for permissive intervention is whether the district court abused its discretion. Hawaii-Pacific Venture Capital Corp. v. Rothbard, 564 F.2d 1343, 1346 (9th Cir.1977).
IVGID seeks to intervene pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 24(a)(2) or, alternatively, Rule 24(b)(2). Fed.R.Civ.P. Rule 24 provides:
(a) Intervention of Right. Upon timely application anyone shall be permitted to intervene in an action: ... (2) when the applicant claims an interest relating to the property or transaction which is the subject of the action and he is so situated that the disposition of the action may as a practical matter impair or impede his ability to protect that interest, unless the applicant's interest is adequately represented by existing parties.
(b) Permissive Intervention. Upon timely application anyone may be permitted to intervene in an action: ... (2) when an applicant's claim or defense and the main action have a question of law or fact in common.... In exercising its discretion the court shall consider whether the intervention will unduly delay or prejudice the adjudication of the rights of the original parties.
We apply a four-part test in evaluating claims for intervention as of right under Rule 24(a)(2). The applicant's motion must be timely; the applicant must assert an interest relating to the property or transaction which is the subject of the action; the applicant must be so situated that without intervention the disposition of the action may, as a practical matter, impair or impede his ability to protect that interest; and the applicant's interest must be inadequately represented by the other parties. Stringfellow, 783 F.2d at 826; Sagebrush Rebellion, Inc. v. Watt, 713 F.2d 525, 527 (9th Cir.1983).
The district court concluded...
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