BILL ANALYSIS
------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 671|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|1020 N Street, Suite 524 | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 671
Author: Runner (R)
Amended: 5/7/09
Vote: 21
SENATE LOCAL GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE : 5-0, 4/15/09
AYES: Wiggins, Cox, Aanestad, Kehoe, Wolk
SENATE APPROPRIATION COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Agricultural land: valuation
SOURCE : California Assessors Association
DIGEST : This bill requires a landowner applicant who
challenges a county assessor's appraisal value of land
utilizing the conservation provisions of the Williamson Act
to provide a deposit for the purposes of having the county
assessor reevaluate the cancellation value and provide
support for the assessor's value.
ANALYSIS : Under the Williamson Act, landowners can sign
contracts with counties and cities, enforceably restricting
their land to agriculture, open space, and compatible uses
for the next 10 years. Williamson Act contracts
automatically renew each year. In return, county assessors
must lower the property's assessed valuation to reflect its
use value instead of its market value. The State
Department of Conservation (Department) monitors how
counties and cities use the Williamson Act.
CONTINUED
SB 671
Page
2
The normal way to end a Williamson Act contract is
"nonrenewal," allowing the contract to run down over the
next 10 years. Alternatively, local officials can
immediately cancel a contract if the landowner proposes a
development project and the officials make extraordinary
findings. The landowner must pay a cancellation fee that
is equal to 12.5 percent of the property's unrestricted
fair market value. The cancellation fees go into the State
Soil Conservation Fund to help pay for the state's
agricultural land conservation programs.
This bill requires that if a cancellation applicant
landowner were to challenge the assessor's appraisal value
then the applicant will provide a deposit, in an amount
estimated by the assessor, to cover the county's costs for
the challenge. The deposit amount may be adjusted by the
assessor and paid in installments as requested by the
assessor. The deposit covers the contingency that the
payment of a cancellation fee will not cover all the costs
associated with the challenge and the contingency that the
cancellation occur and the fee collected.
Comments
The county assessor determines the property's unrestricted
fair market value. Both the Department and the landowner
may give information to the county assessor. If the
parties disagree with the assessor's cancellation
valuation, they can agree on their own cancellation
valuation, or either party can ask the assessor to conduct
a formal review. The assessor can recover the reasonable
costs of the formal review from the party that requested
the review. Counties can deduct these costs from the
landowner's cancellation fee.
The assessor notifies the parties that they have 30 days to
submit information to the assessor and the other party.
Each party has 30 days to respond. If a party responds
with new information, the other party has 20 more days to
respond. The assessor must avoid ex parte contacts and
must report any contacts to the Department and the
landowner. The assessor has 120 days to complete the
formal review. The county assessor can either revise the
SB 671
Page
3
cancellation valuation or determine that the original
cancellation valuation is accurate. The assessor must
provide a brief narrative that describes the considerations
for the revision or the basis for the denial (SB 1820,
[Machado], Chapter 794, Statutes of 2004 and SB 49,
[Machado], Chapter 245, Statutes of 2005).
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/12/09)
California Assessors' Association (source)
Resource Landowners Coalition
AGB:do 5/12/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
**** END ****