ACA 8, as amended, Blumenfield. Local government financing: voter approval.
(1) The California Constitution prohibits the ad valorem tax rate on real property from exceeding 1% of the full cash value of the property, subject to certain exceptions.
This measure would create an additional exception to the 1% limit for a rate imposed by a city, county, city and county, or special district, as defined, to service bonded indebtedness incurred to fund specified public improvements and facilities, or buildings used primarily to provide sheriff, police, or fire protection services, that is approved by 55% of the voters of the city, county, city and county, or special district, as applicable.
(2) The California Constitution prohibits specified local government agencies from incurring any indebtedness exceeding in any year the income and revenue provided in that year, without the assent of 2⁄3 of the voters and subject to other conditions. In the case of a school district, community college district, or county office of education, the California Constitution permits a proposition for the incurrence of indebtedness in the form of general obligation bonds for the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or replacement of school facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of school facilities, or the acquisition or lease of real property for school facilities, to be adopted upon the approval of 55% of the voters of the district or county, as appropriate, voting on the proposition at an election.
This measure would similarly lower to 55% the voter-approval threshold for a city, county, or city and county to incur bonded indebtedness, exceeding in any year the income and revenue provided in that year, that is in the form of general obligation bonds to fund specified public improvements and facilities, or buildings used primarily to provide sheriff, police, or fire protection services.
Vote: 2⁄3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.
P2 1Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the
2Legislature of the State of California at its 2013-14 Regular
3Session commencing on the third day of December 2012,
4two-thirds of the membership of each house concurring, hereby
5proposes to the people of the State of California, that the
6Constitution of the State be amended as follows:
That Section 1 of Article XIII A thereof is amended to
8read:
(a) The maximum amount of any ad valorem
10tax on real property shall not exceed 1 percent of the full cash
11value of that property. The 1 percent tax shall be collected by the
12counties and apportioned according to law to the districts within
13the counties.
14(b) The limitation provided for in subdivision (a) shall not apply
15to ad valorem taxes or special assessments to pay the interest and
16redemption charges on any of the following:
17(1) Indebtedness approved by the voters prior to July 1, 1978.
18(2) Bonded indebtedness for the
acquisition or improvement of
19real property approved on or after July 1, 1978, by two-thirds of
20the votes cast by the voters voting on the proposition.
21(3) Bonded indebtedness incurred by a school district,
22community college district, or county office of education to fund
P3 1the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or replacement of
2school facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of school
3facilities, or the acquisition or lease of real property for school
4facilities, approved by 55 percent of the voters of the district or
5county, as appropriate, voting on the proposition on or after
6November 8, 2000. This paragraph shall apply only if the
7proposition approved by the voters and resulting in the bonded
8indebtedness includes all of the following accountability
9requirements:
10(A) A requirement that the proceeds from the sale of the bonds
11be used only for the purposes specified in
this paragraph and not
12for any other purpose, including teacher and administrator salaries
13and other school operating expenses.
14(B) A list of the specific school facilities projects to be funded
15and certification that the school district board, community college
16board, or county office of education has evaluated safety, class
17size reduction, and information technology needs in developing
18that list.
19(C) A requirement that the school district board, community
20college board, or county office of education conduct an annual,
21independent performance audit to ensure that the funds have been
22expended only on the specific projects listed.
23(D) A requirement that the school district board, community
24college
board, or county office of education conduct an annual,
25independent financial audit of the proceeds from the sale of the
26bonds until all of those proceeds have been expended for the school
27facilities projects.
28(4) (A) Bonded indebtedness, approved by 55 percent of the
29voters of a city, county, city and county, or special district, as
30applicable, voting on the proposition on or after the effective date
31of the measure adding this paragraph, incurred by the city, county,
32city and county, or special district to fund the construction,
33reconstruction, rehabilitation, maintenance, replacement, or
34earthquake repair or seismic retrofit of any of the following:
35(i) Public improvements, including, but not limited to,
36improvements to transportation infrastructures, streets and
roads,
37sidewalks, transit systems, highways, freeways, sewer systems,
38water systems, wastewater systems, storm drain systems, and park
39and recreation facilities.
P4 1(ii) Facilities or buildings used primarily to provide sheriff,
2police, or fire protection services to the public, including the
3furnishing and equipping of those facilities or buildings.
4(B) “Special district,” for purposes of this paragraph, has the
5same meaning as that term is used in subdivision (c) of Section 1
6of Article XIII C,begin insert and includes a transit district,end insert but does not
7include a school district or a redevelopment agency.
8(c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law or of this
9Constitution, a school
district, community college district, county
10office of education, city, county, city and county, or special districtbegin insert,
11including a transit district,end insert may levy a 55 percent vote ad valorem
12tax pursuant to subdivision (b).
That Section 18 of Article XVI thereof is amended to
14read:
(a) No county, city, town, township, board of
16education, or school district, shall incur any indebtedness or
17liability in any manner or for any purpose exceeding in any year
18the income and revenue provided for that year, without the assent
19of two-thirds of the voters of the public entity voting at an election
20to be held for that purpose, except that with respect to any such
21public entity that is authorized to incur indebtedness for public
22school purposes, any proposition for the incurrence of indebtedness
23in the form of general obligation bonds for the purpose of repairing,
24reconstructing, or replacing public school buildings determined,
25in the manner prescribed by law, to be structurally unsafe for
school
26use, shall be adopted upon the approval of a majority of the voters
27of the public entity voting on the proposition at that election; nor
28unless before or at the time of incurring the indebtedness, provision
29shall be made for the collection of an annual tax sufficient to pay
30the interest on the indebtedness as it falls due, and to provide for
31a sinking fund for the payment of the principal thereof, on or before
32maturity, which shall not exceed forty years from the time of
33contracting the indebtedness.
34(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), on or after November 8,
352000, in the case of any school district, community college district,
36or county office of education, any proposition for the incurrence
37of indebtedness in the form of general obligation bonds for the
38construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or replacement of
39school
facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of school
40facilities, or the acquisition or lease of real property for school
P5 1facilities, shall be adopted upon the approval of 55 percent of the
2voters of the district or county, as appropriate, voting on the
3proposition at an election. This subdivision shall apply only to a
4proposition for the incurrence of indebtedness in the form of
5general obligation bonds for the purposes specified in this
6subdivision if the proposition meets all of the accountability
7requirements of paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 1 of
8Article XIII A.
9(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), on or after the effective
10date of the measure adding this subdivision, in the case of any city,
11county, or city and county, any proposition to incur indebtedness
12in the form of general obligation bonds
shall be adopted by 55
13percent of the voters of the city, county, or city and county, as
14applicable, voting on the proposition at an election, where the
15general obligation bonds would fund the construction,
16reconstruction, rehabilitation, maintenance, replacement, or
17earthquake repair or seismic retrofit of any of the following:
18(1) Public improvements, including, but not limited to,
19improvements to transportation infrastructures, streets and roads,
20sidewalks, transit systems, highways, freeways, sewer systems,
21water systems, wastewater systems, storm drain systems, and park
22and recreation facilities.
23(2) Facilities or buildings used primarily to provide sheriff,
24police, or fire protection services to the public, including the
25furnishings and equipping of those facilities or
buildings.
26(d) When two or more propositions for incurring any
27indebtedness or liability are submitted at the same election, the
28votes cast for and against each proposition shall be counted
29separately, and when two-thirds or a majority or 55 percent of the
30voters, as the case may be, voting on any one of those propositions,
31vote in favor thereof, the proposition shall be deemed adopted.
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