BILL ANALYSIS Ó SB 171 Page 1 SENATE THIRD READING SB 171 (Hueso) As Amended April 8, 2013 Majority vote SENATE VOTE :29-8 LOCAL GOVERNMENT 8-1 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Ayes:|Achadjian, Levine, Alejo, | | | | |Bradford, Gordon, Mullin, | | | | |Rendon, Waldron | | | | | | | | |-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------| |Nays:|Melendez | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY : Authorizes the Coachella Valley County Water District (District) to impose a fee in compliance with Proposition 218. Specifically, this bill : 1)Authorizes the District to impose a fee, in compliance with Proposition 218, to pay the costs and expenses of carrying out projects and providing services authorized under existing law. 2)Clarifies that existing law that implements Proposition 218 applies to the District's current authority to levy benefit assessments. EXISTING LAW : 1)Establishes the District to carry on the construction, operation, and maintenance of works, improvements and functions authorized by the Storm Water District Act of 1909. 2)Authorizes the District to raise funds by special assessment on benefited land in proportion to the benefits derived by benefited lands. FISCAL EFFECT : None COMMENTS : Article XIII D of the California Constitution SB 171 Page 2 [Proposition 218, 1996] distinguishes among taxes, assessments and fees 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 was formed in 1918 to provide irrigation and drinking water, collect and recycle wastewater, provide storm water protection, replenish the groundwater basin, and promote water conservation. The District now provides services to over 107,000 homes and businesses across 1,000 square miles mostly within the Coachella Valley (Riverside County). The District's enabling statute authorizes the District to impose assessments, not fees. This bill expands the District's authorization to add the levying of property-related fees to its current authorization for levying assessments. This bill is sponsored by the District. This bill requires the District to comply with the provisions of Proposition 218 which require a local government to identify the parcels, calculate the fee for each parcel, and conduct a majority protest proceeding 45 days after mailing notice of a new fee to all fee payers. Additionally, Article XIII D, Section 6 subdivision (c) of the California Constitution, provides, "Except for fees or charges for sewer, water, and refuse collection services, no property related fee or charge shall be imposed or increased unless and until that fee or charge is submitted and approved by a majority vote of the property owners of the property subject to the fee or charge or, at the option of the agency, by a two-thirds vote of the electorate residing in the affected area." According to the author "There is one drainage system in the Lower Coachella Valley which handles stormwater, agricultural drainage, and now urban drainage. Operation and maintenance costs of the system are currently paid by the farmers in the Lower Valley, but as farm areas are urbanized, the number of farmers has decreased while urban drainage has driven the costs up. This bill would provide a mechanism for the District to seek to charge urban development an equitable share of the operation and maintenance costs of the drainage system through SB 171 Page 3 the use of fees and charges, as an alternative to the use of assessment districts, the formation and implementation of which are cumbersome and costly." The Legislature has previously granted the authority to impose a fee consistent with Proposition 218. AB 2554 (Brownley), Chapter 602, Statutes of 2010, authorized the Los Angeles County Flood Control District to impose a fee consistent with Proposition 218. Additionally, AB 554 (Nava), Chapter 510, Statutes of 2005, authorized the Ventura County Watershed Protection District to levy a fee on taxable real property both district-wide and by zone. The title of this bill is currently "The California Seed Law" which reflects the contents of a prior version of the bill. The Assembly Local Government Committee staff is aware that Legislative Counsel is updating the bill title to reflect the current version of the bill. Support arguments: Supporters argue that this bill "provides a mechanism to collect equitable fees and other charges to fund the continued operation and maintenance of the drainage system with respect to urban users in the Lower Valley." Opposition arguments: None. Analysis Prepared by : Misa Yokoi-Shelton / L. GOV. / (916) 319-3958 FN: 0001150