BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 1352
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:  September 8, 2011

                       ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT
                                Cameron Smyth, Chair
                    AB 1352 (Logue) - As Amended:  August 30, 2011
           
          SUBJECT  :  Taxation: vehicle license fees.
           
          SUMMARY :  Provides that specified vehicle license fee (VLF) 
          revenues deposited into the Local Revenue Fund of 2011 for local 
          law enforcement realignment purposes would not be subject to 
          expenditure requirements of a local ordinance in Nevada County.

           The Senate amendments  delete the Assembly version of this bill, 
          and instead:

          1)State that designated VLF revenues shall not, for purposes of 
            an ordinance of the County of Nevada, be deemed VLF revenues 
            as defined in the California Constitution.

          2)Define, for purposes of the bill, the term "designated vehicle 
            license fee revenues" to mean vehicle license revenues that 
            are collected and required to be deposited into the Local Law 
            Enforcement Services Account in the Local Revenue Fund 2011.

          3)Declare that a special law is necessary because of the unique 
            circumstances related to a local ordinance governing the 
            expenditure of VLF funds received by Nevada County.

          4)Provide that no reimbursement is required by the provisions of 
            the bill.

           EXISTING LAW  :  

          1)Provides for the imposition of an annual VLF for any vehicle 
            subject to registration in California.

          2)Directs that specified VLF revenues collected after July 1, 
            2011, be distributed to the Local Law Enforcement Services 
            Account in the Local Revenue Fund 2011 for allocation to 
            cities, counties and cities and counties for local public 
            safety

           AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY  , this bill granted the State Board of 
          Equalization, meeting as a public body, discretion to relieve 








                                                                  AB 1352
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          interest under specified circumstances.
           
           FISCAL EFFECT  :   According to the Senate Appropriations 
          Committee, there are no state costs as a result of the Nevada 
          County VLF provisions.

           COMMENTS  :  In March of 1996, Nevada County voters approved 
          Measure F, an initiative that required that all funds received 
          from the State of California from VLF funds, as defined in the 
          State Constitution and in statute, must be segregated into a 
          separate accounting fund.  The initiative required that Nevada 
          County spend at least half of those funds in each fiscal year 
          only for public roads, ways, and highways for maintenance 
          repair, circulation enhancement, general road safety, and fire 
          access in the unincorporated portion of the county.
          Nevada County officials, as a result of additional VLF revenues 
          contained in the February 2009 budget agreement, believed that 
          Measure F would require them to make a general fund expenditure 
          on roads in an amount equal to half of the amount of additional 
          VLF revenues allocated to the for law enforcement purposes.  SB 
          636 (Ashburn), Chapter 605, Statutes of 2009, was enacted to 
          ensure that the increased VLF revenues dedicated for local law 
          enforcement purposes would not be subject to the requirements of 
          Measure F.  

          This bill would enact similar provisions to ensure that VLF 
          revenues dedicated to local law enforcement as part of the 
          realignment package, as specified in SB 89 (Committee on Budget 
          and Fiscal Review), Chapter 35, Statutes of 2011, are not 
          subject to the requirements of Nevada County's local ordinance.

          Support arguments:  In the years since Measure F was enacted, 
          two state budgets, in 2009 and 2011, have funded local public 
          safety programs via a portion of the VLF.  This bill ensures 
          that the additional VLF revenues are not subject to the 
          requirements of Nevada County's local ordinance.

          Opposition arguments:  Instead of seeking a legislative remedy, 
          Nevada County officials may want to consider revising Measure F 
          to narrow the application of the ordinance to a specified 
          portion of VLF funds that is not required by law to be used for 
          law enforcement purposes.

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   









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           Support 
           
          Nevada County Board of Supervisors ÝSPONSOR]
          California State Sheriffs' Association
          Nevada County Office of the District Attorney
          Nevada County Probation Department
          Nevada County Sheriff's Office
          Regional Council of Rural Counties

           Opposition 
           
          None on file

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Debbie Michel / L. GOV. / (916) 
          319-3958