By Jorge Casuso
March 17, 2026 -- A lawsuit claiming the City violated State law when it allowed a charter air carrier to operate at Santa Monica Airport without conducting an environmental review could be dismissed before it goes to trial.
On May 12, Superior Court Judge Curtis A. Kin is scheduled to consider the demurrer filed by the City and JSX that challenges the assertions made in a lawsuit.
The motion filed on February 11 argues that the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) is preempted by Federal law and that the charter flights that began in December do not represent an expansion of airport use.
"Plaintiffs have not alleged, and cannot allege, a cognizable claim under CEQA, including because current operations at the airport -- even with JSX’s new services -- are 60 percent below the established baseline," the defendants wrote.
"(A)ny discretion that the City may have regarding the Project is limited and cannot be used to reduce or avoid the alleged impacts, therefore the City’s approval is treated as exempt from CEQA.
Both the City's 2017 Consent Decree with the FAA and federal aviation law require the City to conduct the federally approved public charter operations, according to the motion.
"Plaintiffs’ purported concerns are related to federally permitted aircraft operation at SMO, which the City has no authority to regulate," the motion states.
The lawsuit filed on November 13 argues that the City violated CEQA by claiming it is exempt from the State-mandated environmental review required before issuing a permit or signing a lease.
A CEQA review, they contend, is required because JSX's "heavier aircraft represents a fundamental shift from general aviation to commercial air service" at Santa Monica Airport.
"Our attorneys will argue that the City still had discretionary decisions to make about activities on City-owned land, and that those decisions require environmental review under (CEQA)," said Alan Levenson, a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
"At this stage of litigation, courts do not yet evaluate evidence," Levenson said. "Instead, they first decide whether the case is legally allowed to proceed. That is the question currently before the court."
The plaintiff's attorneys must file a response to the demurrer by April 29.
The lawsuit was filed by Levenson, Friends of Sunset Park leader Zina Josephs and Measure LC Defense, an unincorporated association, some two weeks before the City entered into a three-year lease agreement with JSX.
The lease and accompanying Commercial Operations Permit (COP) allow JSX to operate through November 30, 2028, one month before City officials can close the century old airport under the Consent Decree.
The documents were finalized after "a rigorous technical and legal review" that included a "multi-disciplinary assessment covering safety, environmental, traffic, and policy considerations," City officials said.