Bill Text: CA AB474 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Contractual assessments: water efficiency improvements.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Passed) 2009-10-11 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 444, Statutes of 2009. [AB474 Detail]

Download: California-2009-AB474-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 474	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 18, 2009
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 27, 2009
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 14, 2009

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Blumenfield
    (   Coauthor:   Assembly Member  
Bill Berryhill   ) 

                        FEBRUARY 24, 2009

   An act to amend Sections 5898.12, 5898.14, 5898.20, 5898.21,
5898.22, 5898.24, 5898.28, and 5898.30 of the Streets and Highways
Code,   relating to contractual assessments, and declaring
the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.  
relating to contractual assessments. 



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 474, as amended, Blumenfield. Contractual assessments: water
efficiency improvements.
   Existing law authorizes the legislative body of any city, defined
as a city, county, or city and county, to determine that it would be
convenient and advantageous to designate an area within which
authorized city officials and free and willing property owners may
enter into contractual assessments and make arrangements to finance
public improvements to specified lots or parcels or to finance the
installation of distributed generation renewable energy sources or
energy efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real
property, as specified. Existing law requires the legislative body to
make these determinations by adopting a resolution indicating its
intention to do so and requires the resolution to include certain
specified information.
   This bill would expand these provisions to authorize the
legislative body of any public agency, as defined, to determine that
it would be in the public interest to designate an area within which
authorized city officials and free and willing property owners may
enter into contractual assessments to finance the installation of
water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real
property, as specified. The bill would also, with respect to all of
its provisions, modify the definitions of "city" and "legislative
body" and require a legislative body to provide written notice of a
hearing to any entity that provides energy or water within the
boundaries of the area within which contractual assessments may be
entered into. The bill would declare the intent of the Legislature in
this regard. This bill would make technical, nonsubstantive changes
to these provisions. 
   This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as
an urgency statute. 
   Vote:  2/3   majority  . Appropriation:
no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 5898.12 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.12.  (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that this
chapter should be used to finance public improvements to lots or
parcels which are developed and where the costs and time delays
involved in creating an assessment district pursuant to other
provisions of this division or any other law would be prohibitively
large relative to the cost of the public improvements to be financed.

   (b) It is also the intent of the Legislature that this chapter
should be used to finance the installation of distributed generation
renewable energy sources or energy efficiency improvements that are
permanently fixed to residential, commercial, industrial,
agricultural, or other real property.
   (c) It is also the intent of the Legislature to address chronic
water needs throughout California by permitting voluntary individual
efforts to improve water efficiency. The Legislature further intends
that this chapter should be used to finance the installation of water
efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to residential,
commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other real property,
including, but not limited to, recycled water connections, synthetic
turf, cisterns for stormwater recovery, and water-porous concrete.
   (d) This chapter shall not be used to finance facilities for
parcels which are undergoing development.
   (e) This chapter shall not be used to finance the purchase or
installation of appliances that are not permanently fixed to
residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other real
property.
   (f) Assessments may be levied pursuant to this chapter only with
the free and willing consent of the owner of each lot or parcel on
which an assessment is levied at the time the assessment is levied.
   (g) A water district, as included in the definition of "public
agency" in Section 5898.20, is authorized to use this chapter only
for water efficiency improvements, and shall not use this chapter for
any other improvements, including, but not limited to, energy
efficiency improvements.
  SEC. 2.  Section 5898.14 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.14.  (a) The Legislature finds all of the following:
   (1) Energy and water conservation efforts, including the promotion
of energy efficiency improvements to residential, commercial,
industrial, agricultural, or other real property are necessary to
address the issue of global climate change.
   (2) The upfront cost of making residential, commercial,
industrial, or other real property more energy and water efficient
prevents many property owners from making those improvements. To make
those improvements more affordable and to promote the installation
of those improvements, it is necessary to authorize an alternative
procedure for authorizing assessments to finance the cost of energy
and water efficiency improvements.
   (b) The Legislature declares that a public purpose will be served
by a contractual assessment program that provides the legislative
body of any public agency with the authority to finance the
installation of distributed generation renewable energy sources and
energy or water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to
residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other real
property.
  SEC. 3.  Section 5898.20 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.20.  (a) (1) The legislative body of any public agency may
determine that it would be convenient and advantageous to designate
an area within the public agency, which may encompass the entire
public agency or a lesser portion, within which authorized public
agency officials and property owners may enter into contractual
assessments for public improvements and to make financing
arrangements pursuant to this chapter.
   (2) The legislative body of any public agency may also determine
that it would be convenient, advantageous, and in the public interest
to designate an area within the public agency, which may encompass
the entire public agency or a lesser portion, within which authorized
public agency officials and property owners may enter into
contractual assessments to finance the installation of distributed
generation renewable energy sources or energy or water efficiency
improvements that are permanently fixed to real property pursuant to
this chapter.
   (b) The legislative body shall make these determinations by
adopting a resolution indicating its intention to do so. The
resolution of intention shall include a statement that the public
agency proposes to make contractual assessment financing available to
property owners, shall identify the kinds of public works,
distributed generation renewable energy sources, or energy or water
efficiency improvements that may be financed, shall describe the
boundaries of the area within which contractual assessments may be
entered into, and shall briefly describe the proposed arrangements
for financing the program, including a brief description of criteria
for determining the creditworthiness of a property owner. The
resolution of intention shall state that it is in the public interest
to finance the installation of distributed generation renewable
energy sources or energy or water efficiency improvements, or both,
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), if applicable. The
resolution shall state that a public hearing should be held at which
interested persons may object to or inquire about the proposed
program or any of its particulars, and shall state the time and place
of the hearing. The resolution shall direct an appropriate public
agency official to prepare a report pursuant to Section 5898.22 and
to enter into consultations with the county auditor's office or
county controller's office in order to reach agreement on what
additional fees, if any, will be charged to the city or county for
incorporating the proposed contractual assessments into the
assessments of the general taxes of the city or county on real
property.
   (c) (1) As used in this chapter, each of the following terms shall
have the following meaning:
   (A) "Efficiency improvements" means permanent improvements fixed
to residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, or other real
property.
   (B) "Legislative body" means the governing body of a public
agency.
   (C) "Public agency" means a city, county, city and county,
municipal utility district, community services district, or water
district, as defined in Section 20200 of the Water Code.
   (2) The definitions of "city" in Section 5005 and "legislative
body" in Section 5006 shall not apply to this chapter.
  SEC. 4.  Section 5898.21 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.21.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,
upon the written consent of an authorized public agency official, the
proposed arrangements for financing the program pertaining to the
installation of distributed generation renewable energy sources or
energy or water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to
real property may authorize the property owner to purchase directly
the related equipment and materials for the installation of
distributed generation renewable energy sources or energy or water
efficiency improvements and to contract directly for the installation
of distributed generation renewable energy sources or energy or
water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to the
property owner's residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural,
or other real property.
  SEC. 5.  Section 5898.22 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.22.  The report shall contain all of the following:
   (a) A map showing the boundaries of the territory within which
contractual assessments are proposed to be offered.
   (b) A draft contract specifying the terms and conditions that
would be agreed to by a property owner within the contractual
assessment area and the public agency.
   (c) A statement of public agency policies concerning contractual
assessments including all of the following:
   (1) Identification of types of facilities, distributed generation
renewable energy sources, or energy or water efficiency improvements
that may be financed through the use of contractual assessments.
   (2) Identification of a public agency official authorized to enter
into contractual assessments on behalf of the public agency.
   (3) A maximum aggregate dollar amount of contractual assessments.
   (4) A method for setting requests from property owners for
financing through contractual assessments in priority order in the
event that requests appear likely to exceed the authorization amount.

   (d) A plan for raising a capital amount required to pay for work
performed pursuant to contractual assessments. The plan may include
amounts to be advanced by the public agency through funds available
to it from any source. The plan may include the sale of a bond or
bonds or other financing relationship pursuant to Section 5898.28.
The plan shall include a statement of or method for determining the
interest rate and time period during which contracting property
owners would pay any assessment. The plan shall provide for any
reserve fund or funds. The plan shall provide for the apportionment
of all or any portion of the costs incidental to financing,
administration, and collection of the contractual assessment program
among the consenting property owners and the public agency.
   (e) A report on the results of the consultations with the county
auditor's office or county controller's office concerning the
additional fees, if any, that will be charged to the city or county
for incorporating the proposed contractual assessments into the
assessments of the general taxes of the city or county on real
property, and a plan for financing the payment of those fees.
  SEC. 6.  Section 5898.24 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.24.  (a) A legislative body shall publish notice of a hearing
pursuant to Section 6066 of the Government Code, and the first
publication shall occur not later than 20 days before the date of the
hearing.
   (b) A legislative body shall provide written notice of a hearing
to any entity that provides energy or water within the boundaries of
the area within which contractual assessments may be entered into.
  SEC. 7.  Section 5898.28 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.28.  A public agency may issue bonds pursuant to this
chapter, the principal and interest for which would be repaid by
contractual assessments. A public agency may advance its own funds to
finance work to be repaid through contractual assessments, and may
from time to time sell bonds to reimburse itself for such advances. A
public agency may enter into a relationship with an underwriter or
financial institution that would allow the sequential issuance of a
series of bonds, each bond being issued as the need arose to finance
work to be repaid through contractual assessments. The interest rate
of each bond may be determined by an appropriate index, but shall be
fixed at the time each bond is issued. Bond proceeds may be used to
establish a reserve fund, and to pay for expenses incidental to the
issuance and sale of the bonds. Division 10 (commencing with Section
8500) shall apply to any bonds issued pursuant to this section,
insofar as that division is not in conflict with this chapter.
  SEC. 8.  Section 5898.30 of the Streets and Highways Code is
amended to read:
   5898.30.  Assessments levied pursuant to this chapter, and the
interest and any penalties thereon shall constitute a lien against
the lots and parcels of land on which they are made, until they are
paid. Division 10 (commencing with Section 8500) applies to the levy
and collection of assessments levied pursuant to this chapter,
insofar as those provisions are not in conflict with the provisions
of this chapter, including, but not limited to, the collection of
assessments in the same manner and at the same time as the general
taxes of the city or county on real property are payable and any
penalties and remedies and lien priorities in the event of
delinquency and default. 
   SEC. 9.    This act is an urgency statute
necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health,
or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and
shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity
are:
   In order for legislative bodies of public agencies and free and
willing property owners to enter into contractual assessments to
finance water efficiency improvements and for the state to begin to
experience the effects of these contractual assessments, it is
necessary that this act take effect immediately.