A public hearing of California's Joint Legislative Audit Committee examined land acquisition policy and practice in relation to new school construction projects during which the following two areas of concern were identified: (1) acquiring land for new schools in congested urban settings; and (2) managing the conflict that may arise from local, state, and federal environmental regulation. This report focuses on the Los Angeles Unified School District and San Diego City Unified School District's approaches to acquiring urban land for new school construction, the role of the State Allocation Board, and the complexities of asserting Eminent Domain. Also addressed are the collaborative problems and administrative misadventures that contributed to one California school, the Jefferson Middle School, being built on contaminated land. Appendices present witness testimony, environmental reports, and state agency action concerning Jefferson Middle School. (GR)