BILL ANALYSIS
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Tom Torlakson, Chairman
1358 (Leno)
Hearing Date: 8/30/07 Amended: 7/18/07
Consultant: Mark McKenzie Policy Vote: L.G. 3-2
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BILL SUMMARY: AB 1358 would enact the California Complete
Streets Act of 2007, which would:
Require the Governor's Office of Planning and Research
(OPR), by January 1, 2009, to prepare or amend general plan
guidelines to advise local governments on accommodating
specified users of streets, roads, and highways.
Require local governments, upon any revision of a
circulation element beginning January 1, 2010, to account
for specified users of streets, roads, and highways.
Define "users of streets, roads, and highways" as
bicyclists, children, persons with disabilities, motorists,
movers of commercial goods, pedestrians, public
transportation, and seniors.
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Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
Major Provisions 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 Fund
OPR guideline update minor costs, approximately $70 in
2012-13General
Local mandate non-reimbursable mandate, no state
costsLocal
(circulation element update) (local fee disclaimer)
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STAFF COMMENTS: SUSPENSE FILE. AS PROPOSED TO BE AMENDED.
This bill is intended to ensure that local agencies plan for the
safe accommodation of the various multi-modal users of public
roadways in a manner that is suitable to the rural, suburban, or
urban context of the general plan. Existing law requires cities
and counties to adopt a general plan that contains seven
required elements: land use, circulation, housing, conservation,
open space, noise, and safety. The circulation element consists
of the general location and extent of existing and proposed
major thoroughfares, transportation routes, terminals, any
military airports and ports, and other local public utilities
and facilities, all correlated with the land use element of the
general plan. With the exception of the housing element, which
must be updated every five years, cities and counties are not
required to regularly update the general plan. Existing law
also requires OPR to adopt and periodically revise guidelines
for the preparation and content of local general plans.
AB 1358 would require OPR to update the circulation element of
its General Plan Guidelines by January 1, 2009. The most recent
version of the General Plan Guidelines was published in October
2003, but OPR has recently issued a draft update for public
comment, and a final edition is expected by the end of this
year. This bill would require OPR to revise the General Plan
Guidelines immediately following publication of a
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AB 1358 (Leno)
substantial update. By authorizing consultation with various
multi-modal transportation experts, the bill implies that OPR
would need to convene a series of meetings during the 2008
calendar year in order to reach a consensus on how to guide
local planners in the appropriate accommodation of specified
users of roadways in the circulation element. In developing the
revised guidelines, OPR would be required to consider how
accommodating different populations varies depending on the
urban, suburban, and rural land use context. Staff notes that
OPR costs associated with the development and publication of a
revised General Plan Guidelines would be approximately $70,000
during the 2008 calendar year.
AB 1358 would require any city or county revising the
circulation element of a general plan on or after January 1,
2010 to include details on how local governments would account
for the safe and convenient travel of specified populations in
the transportation network in a manner that is suitable to the
rural, suburban, or urban context of the general plan. By
requiring the inclusion of such information in the circulation
plan, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
Costs to local governments would be reimbursable if the
Commission on State Mandates determines the bill contains costs
mandated by the state. Costs to update a circulation element to
comply with the provisions of this bill are unknown, and would
vary significantly by jurisdiction depending on the population
size, geography, demographics, and transportation infrastructure
of that entity. Staff notes that OPR recently identified 304
cities and 39 counties that have not comprehensively revised
their general plans in the last 10 years. If 5 percent of these
local governments were to update a circulation element each year
at an average cost of $10,000, the average annual reimbursable
costs would be over $170,000. However, cost for a single large
metropolitan area could approach this range.
Staff notes that existing law authorizes local governments to
charge fees to cover planning expenses, including developer fees
and charges for permit processing that may be used to revise
general plans. Existing law provides an exception to
requirements for state reimbursement of mandated costs in
certain circumstances, including the authority of a local agency
to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay
for the mandated activities. AB 1358 does not include the
standard "local fee disclaimer" language indicating a mandate is
not reimbursable due to local fee authority, so it is unclear to
staff how the Commission on State Mandates would view the
mandate imposed by this bill.
Proposed author's amendments would:
Allow OPR to revise the guidelines upon the next scheduled
revision, rather than by January 1, 2009.
Add the "local fee disclaimer" language, relative to the
mandate provision.