BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2613
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2613 (Beall)
As Amended June 30, 2010
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |44-30|(May 13, 2010) |SENATE: |21-11|(August 20, |
| | | | | |2010) |
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Original Committee Reference: L. GOV.
SUMMARY : Authorizes a city or county after notice and public
hearing, to order unpaid fines or penalties related to ordinance
violations on real property to be specially assessed against the
parcel.
The Senate amendments :
1)Provide that the assessment does not constitute a lien until a
notice of lien is recorded pursuant to the provisions of this
bill.
2)Provide that the notice of lien shall identify the Assessor's
Parcel Number.
3)Insert a cross-reference to local governments' existing
authority to appoint hearing officers to hear and decide
issues regarding ordinance violations and the imposition of
administrative fines and penalties.
4)Insert a cross-reference to cities' authority to adopt
administrative procedures for nuisance abatement.
5)Clarify that a special assessment levied pursuant to the
provisions of this bill does not automatically become a tax
lien on the real property.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Permits the legislative body of a city, county, school
district, municipal corporation, district, political
subdivision, or any board, commission, or agency thereof, or
other local public agency to make any violation of any
ordinance enacted by the legislative body subject to an
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administrative fine or penalty.
2)Permits cities and counties to establish by ordinance a
procedure to collect nuisance abatement costs and related
administrative costs by a nuisance abatement lien or a special
assessment.
3)Allows a county board of supervisors to delegate its powers
and duties to establish a nuisance abatement procedure to a
hearing officer pursuant to statutory provisions governing
hearing officers.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Authorized a city or county after notice and public hearing to
specially assess and record a lien for any fines or penalties
resulting from an ordinance violation on the real property
that the fines or penalties are being assessed or recorded on
if the owner of the real property fails to pay those fines or
penalties after demand by the city or county.
2)Provided the assessment imposed by a city or county may be
collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary
county taxes are collected.
3)Required the assessment imposed by a city or county be subject
to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case
of delinquency as are provided for ordinary county taxes.
4)Required the special assessment to not result in a lien
against the real property but instead to be transferred to the
unsecured roll for collection when a city or county specially
assesses a real property and does not record a notice of lien
prior to a date on which the first installment of county taxes
would become delinquent and the real property has been
transferred or conveyed to a bona fide purchaser of value or a
lien on a bona fide encumbrancer for value has been created
and attaches to that real property.
5)Authorized a city or county through an ordinance to combine
the administrative procedures adopted for the imposition,
enforcement, collection, and administrative review for
administrative fines or penalties related to the violation of
any ordinance with nuisance abatement procedures that are
adopted through ordinance.
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6)Authorized a city, county, school district, municipal
corporation, district, political subdivision, or any board,
commission, or agency thereof, or other local public agency to
appoint one or more hearing officers to hear and decide issues
regarding ordinance violations and the imposition of fines and
penalties.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : SB 814 (Alquist, Kopp), Chapter 898, Statutes of
1995, which added Government Code (GC) Section 53069.4, was
intended to facilitate the implementation of the Administrative
Citation Ordinance as an efficient code enforcement methodology
that would avoid the necessity of a criminal prosecution.
Specifically, GC Section 53069.4 was written to allow
administrative citations to closely mirror the parking citation
program. Subsequent amendments to that code section dealt with
accommodating changes in the municipal and superior courts.
Under existing law, cities and counties are authorized to
establish by ordinance a procedure to collect nuisance abatement
costs and related administrative costs by a nuisance abatement
lien or a special assessment. At one point, there was a concern
that special assessments for the purpose of collecting the costs
of nuisance abatement were too slow a process for cities and
counties and were frustrating for private lenders.
Alternatively, abatement liens were seen as a viable way to
speed up cost recovery and relieve lenders' worries because,
unlike special assessments, which are "superliens" and jump to
the front of the line when collection comes due, abatement liens
assume a sequential priority with respect to other financial
claims against the real property.
According to the author, this bill is intended to allow local
governments to make their code enforcement processes more
efficient and effective by authorizing them to make unpaid fine
and penalties for property-related code violations by a special
assessment against the property, allowing them to streamline
their code enforcement processes by combining their fine and
penalties and nuisance abatement processes. This bill also will
allow for a more streamlined process for hearing officers for
these administrative procedures.
AB 2317 (Saldana), a similar bill, authorizes cities and
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counties to collect fines related to nuisance abatement using a
nuisance abatement lien or a special assessment.
Support arguments: Supporters, County of Santa Clara, say,
unfortunately, not all property owners are responsive to notices
that the condition of their property endangers public safety or
is a public nuisance. By allowing local agencies to make unpaid
fines and penalties a special assessment against the property,
local agencies would have an alternative to expensive and
time-consuming civil litigation. Also being able to use hearing
officers to administer these processes will streamline code
enforcement activities.
Opposition arguments: Opposition, Cal-Tax, says liens are a
powerful tool that should only be used in the most limited
circumstances. Expanding the liabilities for which a lien may
be imposed to fines could incentivize local governments to
increase fines and set a precedent for further expanding special
assessments and liens. Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
argues elected officials should have the final say on fines
collected by a municipality and should not be allowed to
delegate this authority to county hearing officers.
Analysis Prepared by : Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916)
319-3958
FN: 0005198