Amended in Senate April 29, 2015

Amended in Senate April 20, 2015

Amended in Senate April 15, 2015

Amended in Senate March 24, 2015

Senate Bill No. 236

Introduced by Senator Beall

February 17, 2015

An act to add and repeal Section 8334.6 of the Streets and Highways Code, relating to highways.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 236, as amended, Beall. Public streets, highways, and public service easements.

The Public Streets, Highways, and Service Easements Vacation Law establishes procedures for the vacation of public streets, highways, and service easements. Under existing law, the legislative body of a local agency may summarily vacate a street or highway that has been impassable for vehicular travel for 5 years and no public money has been expended for maintenance of the street or highway during that period. Existing law provides that an easement may be reserved and excepted from a vacation of a street, highway, or public service easement, as specified.

This bill would authorize the legislative body of the City of San Jose to summarily vacate a street, highway, or public service easement begin insert located between Casselino Drive and Mullinix Way in the City of San Jose end insert that is impassable for vehicular travel, if the legislative body finds that the vacation will protect the public safety or serve the public interest and convenience. The bill would authorize the legislative body of the City of San Jose to reserve and except from begin delete the end delete begin insert that end insert vacation an easement and right to construct, maintain, operate, replace, remove, and renew a nonvehicular pathway for use by the public in, upon, over, and across the street, highway, or public service easement proposed to be vacated. The bill would repeal these provisions as of January 1, 2018.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity for a special law.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

Section 8334.6 is added to the Streets and
Highways Code, to read:

8334.6.  

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,
the legislative body of the City of San Jose may summarily vacate
a street, highway, or public service easement begin insert located between
Casselino Drive and Mullinix Way in the City of San Jose end insert that is
impassable for vehicular travel, if the legislative body finds that
the vacation will protect the public safety or otherwise serve the
public interest and convenience.

(b) In addition to Section 8340, the legislative body of the City
of San Jose may reserve and except from the vacation begin insert authorized
by subdivision (a) end insert an easement and right to construct, maintain,
operate, replace, remove, and renew a nonvehicular pathway for
use by the public in, upon, over, and across the street, highway,
or public service easement proposed to be vacated.

(c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2018,
and as of that date is repealed.

SEC. 2.  

The Legislature finds and declares that a special law
is necessary and that a general law cannot be made applicable
within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California
Constitution because of the unique circumstances facing the City
of San Jose with respect to the vacation of begin delete streets, highways, and end delete
begin insert a street, highway, or end insert public service begin delete easements end delete begin insert easement located
between Casselino Drive and Mullinix Way in the City of San Jose end insert
that begin delete are end delete begin insert is end insert impassable for vehicular travel.