BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 208
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 6, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Norma Torres, Chair
AB 208 (Fuentes) - As Introduced: January 31, 2011
SUBJECT : Land use: subdivision maps: expiration dates.
SUMMARY : Extends by 24 months the expiration date for
specified subdivision maps and any legislative, administrative,
or other approval by any state agency that pertains to a
development project included in a map that is extended.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Extends by 24 months the expiration date of any tentative map,
vesting tentative map, or parcel map for which a tentative map
or tentative vesting map has been approved that has not
expired when the bill becomes effective and that will expire
before January 1, 2014.
2)Extends the expiration date by 24 months for any legislative,
administrative or other approval by a state agency relating to
a development project included in a map that is extended.
3)Provides that the determination on whether or not a
subdivision map expires before January 1, 2014, shall take
into account previous discretionary extensions, but not
include extensions because of litigation stays and development
moratoria.
4)Reduces from five years to three years the time during which a
city, county, or city and county cannot add additional
requirements on a building permit after a final map is
recorded for maps extended pursuant to this measure.
5)Specifies that having an extension pursuant to this measure
does not prohibit a city, county, or city and county from
levying a fee or imposing a condition that requires the
payment of a fee upon the issuance of a building permit,
including fees related to the Mitigation Fee Act.
6)Contains an urgency clause.
EXISTING LAW
AB 208
Page 2
1)Establishes, pursuant to the Subdivision Map Act (Map Act), a
statewide regulatory framework for controlling the subdividing
of land, which generally requires a subdivider to submit, and
have approved by the city, county, or city and county in which
the land is situated, a tentative map (Government Code Section
66410, et seq.).
2)Provides for the expiration of tentative maps after specified
periods of time (Government Code Section 66410, et seq.).
3)Authorizes cities and counties to grant discretionary map
extensions for up to six years (Government Code Section
66463.5).
4)Extends by 24 months the expiration date of any tentative map
or parcel map for which a tentative map has been approved that
had not expired on September 13, 1993 (Government Code Section
66452.11).
5)Extends by 12 months the expiration date of any tentative map
or parcel map for which a tentative map has been approved that
had not expired on May 14, 1996 (Government Code Section
66452.13).
6)Extends by 12 months the expiration date of any tentative map
or parcel map for which a tentative map has been approved that
had not expired on January 1, 2011 (Government Code Section
66452.21).
7)Extends the expiration date by 24 months for specified
subdivision maps that will expire before January 1, 2012
(Government Code Section 66452.22).
8)Prohibits a city, county, or city and county, during the
five-year period following the recordation of the final or
parcel map for the subdivision of single- or multiple-family
residential units, from requiring as a condition to issuance
of any building permit or equivalent permit, conformance with
or the performance of any conditions that the city or county
could have lawfully imposed as a condition to the previously
approved tentative or parcel map (Government Code Section
65961).
AB 208
Page 3
9)Reduces from five years to three years the time during which a
city, county, or city and county cannot add additional
requirements on a building permit after a final map is
recorded, if the map is extended using the provisions of
Government Code Section 66452.22 (Government Code Section
65961).
10)Specifies that having an extension pursuant to Government
Code Section 66452.22 does not prohibit a city, county, or
city and county from levying a fee or imposing a condition
that requires the payment of a fee upon the issuance of a
building permit, including fees related to the Mitigation Fee
Act (Government Code Section 65961).
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
"This measure is very critical to the economic recovery of
California. The housing industry is mired in a deep
recessionary trough. Because of the difficulty of securing
financing, many projects for which maps have already been
approved will soon expire in the next few years, thereby,
requiring developers to go through the entitlement process
again. The housing industry wants to be in a position to take
full advantage of any economic resurgence. This bill would
allow a one-time, 24-month extension of existing maps and not
future subdivision maps."
The above paragraph is not a statement from the author and
supporters of this bill. It is taken from the Senate Floor
Analysis of SB 428 (Thompson), Chapter 407, Statutes of 1993.
At that time, the state was in the midst of a deep recession.
SB 428, one of the many Legislative responses to that crisis,
granted a one-time 24-month extension for tentative and parcel
maps that had not expired as of the enacting legislation's
chaptering date of September 13, 1993. A further response to
the same economic slowdown came with AB 771 (Aguiar), Chapter
46, Statutes of 1996, which created a 12-month extension for
maps that had not expired as of May 14, 1996.
With the state again struggling with a major economic downturn,
the Legislature passed SB 1185 (Lowenthal), Chapter 124,
Statutes of 2008, which granted a one-time 12-month extension
for tentative and parcel maps that had not expired as of the
AB 208
Page 4
enacting legislation's chaptering date of July 15, 2008. In
addition, SB 1185 let local officials grant an additional year,
at their discretion.
In 2009 the Legislature passed AB 333 (Fuentes), Chapter 18,
Statutes of 2009, to allow for an additional two-year extension
on maps that had not expired before July 15, 2009.
Two years later, the housing industry continues to be severely
depressed. Once again real estate developers face the prospect
of having their tentative and parcel maps expire before they can
obtain financing or have their projects make economic sense to
build. Given the continuing economic crisis, the author
believes that it is crucial that the Legislature provide yet
another extension in order to sustain the life of maps, thereby
allowing those projects to be kept alive during these difficult
times. According to the bill's sponsor, the California Building
Industry Association (CBIA), there are an estimated 2,500
tentative tract maps representing approximately 325,750 housing
units that would be affected by the provisions of AB 208. This
measure would allow all of these maps to be extended by 24
months.
CBIA argues that without the provisions of AB 208, "the
construction projects and jobs associated with the active maps
could be lost, stalling the significant economic investments
made to date and forcing the project proponent to begin the
costly entitlement process anew."
Proposed Amendments
On page 5, lines 3 and 6, delete "July 15, 2009" and replace
"the date that the act that added this section became
effective." This amendment is necessary to correct a drafting
error that incorrectly included the date from the previous
extension passed in 2009.
Double-Referred
This bill was also referred to the Committee on Local
Government, where it passed on March 23, 2011, by a vote of 9-0.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Building Industry Association (sponsor)
Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles
AB 208
Page 5
California Mortgage Association
San Diego County Apartment Association
Santa Barbara Rental Property Association
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Anya Lawler / H. & C.D. / (916)
319-2085