BILL ANALYSIS AB 2554 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 2554 (Brownley) As Amended August 5, 2010 Majority vote ---------------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |48-28|(June 1, 2010) |SENATE: |22-10|(August 19, 2010) | | | | | | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ |COMMITTEE VOTE: |6-3 |(August 25, 2010) |RECOMMENDATION: |Concur | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Original Committee Reference: L. GOV. SUMMARY : Authorizes the Los Angeles County Flood Control District (District) to impose a fee, in Los Angeles County (County), to pay the cost and expenses of carrying out projects and providing services authorized under existing law. The Senate amendments : 1)Expand the application of the fee authorization to the entire County, thereby authorizing the District to impose a fee, in the County, in compliance with Proposition 218, to pay the costs and expenses of carrying out projects and providing services to improve water quality and reduce stormwater and urban runoff pollution in the District. 2)Require the District to allocate the revenues as follows: a) 10% to the District to implement and administer water quality programs and to pay the District's costs for levying and collecting the fee and distributing revenues; b) 40% to Los Angeles County and to the cities within the District, divided proportionally among each jurisdiction, to be expended for water quality improvement programs; and, c) 50% to nine watershed authority groups that the District must authorize by ordinance, divided proportionally among AB 2554 Page 2 each watershed, to implement collaborative water quality improvement plans or programs in the watersheds. 3)Require nine watershed authority groups to be established under the Joint Exercise of Powers Act for the following watersheds: Ballona Creek, Dominguez Channel, Upper Los Angeles River, Lower Los Angeles River, Rio Hondo, Upper San Gabriel River, Lower San Gabriel River, Santa Clara River, and Santa Monica Bay. 4)Specify that implementation of a watershed authority group's collaborative water quality plan or program requires the consent of any member agency whose jurisdiction comprises more than 40% of the total land area in a watershed. 5)Require the District's governing board to adopt an ordinance to implement its fee authority. 6)Make other technical amendments to the District's authorizing statutes. EXISTING LAW : 1)Establishes the District to provide for the control and conservation of flood, storm and other waste waters. 2)Authorizes the District to levy taxes or assessments on all taxable property within the District, after a vote of property owners. AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill: 1)Authorized the District to impose a fee, in the unincorporated area of the County, in compliance with Proposition 218, to pay the costs and expenses of carrying out projects and providing services authorized under the District's Act. 2)Required any fee that is imposed to be levied and collected together with, and not separately from, taxes for county purposes. FISCAL EFFECT : None COMMENTS : Article XIII D of the California Constitution [Proposition 218] distinguishes among taxes, assessments and fees AB 2554 Page 3 for property-related revenues, and requires certain actions before such revenues may be collected. Counties and other local agencies with police powers may impose any one of these options on property owners, after completing the Proposition 218 process. Special districts created by statute, however, must have specific authority for each of these revenue sources. The District's authorizing statute (Los Angeles County Flood Control Act, Chapter 755 of the Statutes of 1915) authorizes the District to impose only taxes or assessments, not fees. The District, which is governed by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, would like to have the same authority for imposing fees as its governing County. This bill expands the District's authorization to add the levying of property-related fees to its current authorization for levying of taxes or assessments. The County includes six major watersheds, significant amounts of coastline and multiple lakes and rivers. Consequently, the County and the 85 cities within the District are subject to numerous Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) requirements under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA), which necessitate a regional approach to TMDL mitigation that is coordinated with and supportive of individual cities' water quality improvement efforts. According to the author's office, this bill would authorize the District to put a fee on the local ballot, asking voters to raise revenue to fund clean water projects and carry out the essential duties of the District. According to the sponsors, the County faces critical and very costly stormwater and urban runoff pollution challenges as mandated by the CWA. Runoff containing trash and bacteria not only negatively impacts water quality, but is harmful to the public health and economic vitality of all communities in the region. Increased funding for necessary environmental projects will help keep waters clean and spur green job creation. The May 7, 2009, version of AB 139 (Brownley), which was never heard by a policy committee, would have a) authorized the District to impose a fee to pay the cost and expenses of carrying out projects and providing services to improve water quality and reduce stormwater and urban runoff in the District; and, b) provided for a division of those fees collected between the District and other jurisdictions within the boundaries of the District. AB 554 (Nava), Chapter 510, Statutes of 2005, authorized the Ventura County Watershed Protection District to levy a fee on taxable real AB 2554 Page 4 property both district-wide and by zone. Support arguments: Supporters argue that this bill gives the District another tool in the tool box in order to help combat urban stormwater runoff and its environmental impacts. It is costly to maintain TMDL requirements and any additional revenues that can help assist in this effort would greatly help the District. Opposition arguments: Opposition might argue that Los Angeles County is not the only area that have to manage stormwater runoff and that any effort to solve this issue should be done state-wide. Opposition, also argues that this measure expands a fee authority only currently authorized for one other flood control district. Analysis Prepared by : Katie Kolitsos / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958 FN: 0006778