BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



          SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                             Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
                            2015 - 2016  Regular  Session

          SB 184 (Committee on Governance and Finance) - Local government:  
          omnibus bill.
          
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          |Version: April 16, 2015         |Policy Vote: GOV. & F. 6 - 0    |
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          |Urgency: No                     |Mandate: Yes                    |
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          |Hearing Date: May 11, 2015      |Consultant: Mark McKenzie       |
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          This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the  
          Suspense File.




          


          Bill  
          Summary:  SB 184, the Local Government Omnibus Bill of 2014,  
          would make numerous non-controversial changes to the laws  
          governing the powers and duties of local agencies.


          Fiscal  
          Impact:  
           Potential minor reimbursable mandate costs related to  
            provisions that eliminate the sunset on releasing subdivision  
            performance securities.  Staff notes that no mandate claims  
            have been filed in the 10 years that these provisions have  
            been in statute, so it is unlikely that local agencies would  







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            submit a reimbursement claim in the future.

           The remaining provisions of this bill are expected to have  
            negligible fiscal impacts.


          Background:  This bill combines non-controversial changes to seven parts of  
          state law that affect local agencies and land use.  All of the  
          items have been vetted by interested parties and legislative  
          staff prior to inclusion in this omnibus measure, and if  
          opposition arises to any provision at any time, it will be  
          removed.  This can be an efficient approach to enacting numerous  
          minor, technical, and consensus statutory changes in a single  
          policy area.


          Proposed Law:  
            SB 184 would make the following changes to local government  
          laws:
           Make seven changes to statutes governing the activities of  
            county recorders to clean up the codes and to conform state  
            law to current document recording practices.
           Authorize a local legislative body to designate a public  
            officer or employee (rather than the legislative body itself)  
            to release or reduce deposits to pay engineers and surveyors  
            for setting final survey monuments, as specified.
           Repeal the January 1, 2016 sunset date on provisions that  
            require cities and counties to establish uniform procedures  
            regarding the timing and requirements for releasing  
            developers' performance security.  (see staff comments)
           Clarify that the term "auditor" refers to county auditors in  
            statutes related to the collection of sanitation and sewage  
            system service and facility fees and charges.
           Make eight consensus changes to the California Uniform Public  
            Construction Cost Accounting Act to clarify provisions and  
            improve the Act's functionality.
           Authorize California Water Districts' governing boards to  
            delegate the power to sign contracts on the district's behalf  
            to district officers and employees.  Under current law only  
            the district's president and secretary may execute contracts.


          Staff  
          Comments:  Cities and counties often require a developer to  








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          provide specified types of security, such as bonds or other  
          credit instruments, to ensure performance of conditions related  
          to a developer project, such as the installation of street  
          lighting, sidewalks, and sewer lines.  Local governments are  
          required to release a developer's performance security upon  
          final completion and acceptance of the work.  Until 2006, cities  
          and counties followed their own policies and procedures for  
          determining when a project is completed and accepted, whether  
          there should be a partial release of the performance security,  
          and the timing of the release.  AB 1460 (Umberg), Chapter 411 of  
          2005, established uniform procedures and time limits for  
          notification of completion and acceptance of the work, release  
          of performance security, and partial release of security and  
          notification in the case of incomplete or unsatisfactory work.   
          The requirements established by AB 1460 were extended in 2010  
          and are scheduled to sunset on January 1, 2016.
          SB 184 would repeal the sunset date, thereby permanently  
          extending the uniform procedures and requirements that cities  
          and counties must follow related to the release of performance  
          security.

          Staff notes that no mandate reimbursement claims have been filed  
          by local agencies subject to the requirements imposed by AB  
          1460.  It would seem that any costs associated with the  
          establishment of procedures related to release of performance  
          security would have occurred nearly ten years ago, making a  
          future claim for reimbursement highly unlikely.  

          None of the remaining provisions are expected to have state  
          fiscal impacts.




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