BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1778
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1778 (Williams)
As Amended May 1, 2012
Majority vote
TRANSPORTATION 9-3
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|Ayes:|Bonnie Lowenthal, | | |
| |Blumenfield, Bonilla, | | |
| |Buchanan, Eng, Carter, | | |
| |Galgiani, Portantino, | | |
| |Solorio | | |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Jeffries, Miller, Norby | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Sets forth use-it-or-lose-it provisions for Local
Transportation Fund (LTF) funds in Ventura County.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Strikes obsolete reporting language.
2)For Ventura County only, provides for the redistribution by
the Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC) of LTF
funds that remain unencumbered for more than one year or
unexpended for more than two years.
3)Provides that funds returned to VCTC are to be redistributed
to transit operators or consolidated transportation service
providers (transit operators) in proportional amounts based on
population if both of the following conditions are met:
a) The transit operator is eligible to receive funding
under existing provisions of the Transportation Development
Act (which directs sales tax funds to local agencies for
public transportation and community transit services); and,
b) The transit operator did not have any funds returned to
VCTC for lack of use during the previous year.
EXISTING LAW :
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1)Earmarks one quarter of one cent of the state sales tax for
transit and directs the revenue to the LTF in each county.
2)Vests regional transportation planning agencies (RTPAs) with
the responsibility to allocate LTF funds, generally to cities,
counties, and transit districts by population.
3)Authorizes the use of LTF funds for a wide variety of
transportation programs, including planning and program
activities, pedestrian and bicycle facilities, community
transit services, public transportation, bus and rail
projects, and farm worker vanpools program.
4)Authorizes rural counties (those with a population under
500,000) to use their LTF funds for purposes other than public
transportation and community transit services, such as local
streets and roads, under certain conditions.
5)Provides that, before funds can be used for local streets and
roads, the RTPA in a rural county must hold public hearings
and make a finding that all reasonable transit needs have been
met.
6)Requires, generally, each county with a population of less
than 500,000 as of the 1970 federal census but more than
500,000 as of the 2000 (or subsequent) federal census to use
its LTF funds for transit.
7)Provides that, for counties that would be impacted by this
change from rural to urban due to population growth since
1970, the requirement to use LTF funds for public
transportation and community transit services will not become
operative until July 1, 2014.
8)Provides for these counties, except Ventura County, that the
requirement to use LTF funds for public transportation and
community transit services applies to urbanized areas of a
county, not necessarily the entire county. LTF funds can be
used in non-urbanized areas in these counties for local
streets and roads, provided that there are no unmet transit
needs in the area.
9)Provides that the VCTC may submit to the legislative policy
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committees a report analyzing options for organizing public
mass transportation services in Ventura County and expending
LTF revenues. VCTC may also submit a legislative proposal to
implement a plan based on recommendations of the report.
10)Provides that, if VCTC does not secure legislation to
implement its proposed plan by the end of the 2011-12 Regular
Session, its LTF revenues would be available solely for public
transportation or community transit services, even in the
county's rural areas, beginning July 1, 2014.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown. This bill is keyed non-fiscal by the
Legislative Counsel.
COMMENTS : In 2009, SB 716 (Wolk), Chapter 609, Statutes of
2009, updated counties' designation as either rural or urban for
purposes of using LTF funds, based on the 2000 (and subsequent)
census rather than the 1970 census. For those counties whose
designation changed, SB 716 provided a sort of hybrid use of the
LTF funds-urban cities within the county would be required to
use LTF funds for public transportation or community transit
services and rural areas of the county could continue to use LTF
funds for other purposes, assuming certain conditions were met.
The operative date of these changes was postponed until July 1,
2014, to give the counties an opportunity to adjust to the new
LTF requirements.
SB 716, however, set forth unique provisions for Ventura County,
one of the counties whose designation changed from rural to
urban. For Ventura County, SB 716 provided an opportunity for
VCTC to submit a plan to the Legislature (and to secure
subsequent legislation) that would set forth an alternative
means of distributing LTF funds throughout the county. VCTC had
until December 31, 2011, to submit the plan and until the end of
the 2011-12 Regular Session to secure subsequent legislation
otherwise all of the county's LTF funds would be directed to
public transportation or community transit service as of July 1,
2014.
There are 10 cities within Ventura County, four of which exceed
a population of 100,000, according to 2010 data. The other six
cities have populations well below 100,000. Under SB 716, all
Ventura's cities, large or small, will be required to use their
LTF funds for public transportation and community transit
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services as of July 1, 2014 (unlike the other counties whose
population grew over 500,000 after 1970, who will have the
option to use LTF funds for purposes other than public
transportation and community transit services in rural areas of
the county).
At least three of Ventura's smaller cities (Moorpark, Port
Hueneme, and Santa Paula) are reportedly planning on using their
LTF funds (totaling approximately $1.2 million cumulatively) for
local street and roads projects in fiscal year 2013-2014.
Additionally, Simi Valley, which uses its local General Funds to
fund its transit activities, typically uses its approximately $3
million annually in LTF funds for streets and roads projects.
Under this bill, these LTF funds will no longer be available for
these other purposes.
The author is concerned that some LTF recipients in Ventura
County have a history of diverting transit funds and do not
spend their LTF funds on public transportation or community
transit services, as they will be required to do beginning July
1, 2014. Consequently, the author has introduced this bill to
ensure that, in the event an LTF recipient in Ventura County
does not use its LTF funds, the funds will not sit idle but
will, instead, be redistributed for their intended purpose-that
is, for public transportation-related services.
Analysis Prepared by : Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0003458