Today's Law As Amended


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AB-2303 Resource conservation districts.(2019-2020)



As Amends the Law Today


SECTION 1.

 Section 23010 of the Government Code is amended to read:

23010.
 (a) Pursuant to a resolution adopted by its board of supervisors, a county may lend any of its available funds to any community services district, county waterworks district, mosquito abatement district, pest abatement district, fire protection district, flood control and water conservation district, recreation and park district, resource conservation district, regional park district, regional park and open-space district, regional open-space district, resort improvement district, or public cemetery district located wholly within the county, if its funds are or when available will be in the custody of the county or any officer of the county, in order to enable the district to perform its functions and meet its obligations. The loan shall not exceed 85 percent of the district’s anticipated revenue for the fiscal year in which it is made or for the next ensuing fiscal year, and shall be repaid out of that revenue before  prior to  the payment of any other obligation of the district.
(b) (1) Pursuant to a resolution adopted by its board of supervisors, a county may loan any of its available funds to a special district, in order to enable the district to perform its functions and meet its obligations. The loan shall not exceed 85 percent of the special district’s anticipated property tax revenue projected to be generated for the fiscal year in which it is made or for the next ensuing fiscal year within that portion of the district’s territory that which  is located within the county. The loan shall be repaid out of any available revenue of the special district before  prior to  the payment of any other obligation of the district.
(2) For purposes of this subdivision, “special district” means a special district, as defined in Section 54775, that which  is located in more than one county.
(c) (1) The board of supervisors may borrow funds from the county or from other garbage disposal districts, not to exceed 85 percent of the district’s anticipated revenue for the fiscal year in which they are borrowed or for the next ensuing fiscal year. In levying taxes or prescribing and collecting fees or charges as authorized by this division, the board of supervisors may raise sufficient revenues to repay the loans.
(2) The board of supervisors may lend available district funds to another garbage disposal district, subject to the terms and conditions set forth in this section.
(3) Nothing contained in this section shall prohibit the board of supervisors from borrowing funds from banks or other financial institutions when the best interests of the district are served thereby.
(d) Notwithstanding any other law, funds, when borrowed by a garbage disposal district pursuant to subdivision (c), shall forthwith increase the appropriations of the district for which they are needed. The governing body of the entity from which the funds are borrowed may specify the date and manner in which the funds shall be repaid. The loan shall not exceed 85 percent of the district’s anticipated revenue for the fiscal year in which it is made or for the next ensuing fiscal year, and shall be repaid out of that revenue before  prior to  the payment of any other obligation of the district.
(e) The district shall pay interest on all funds borrowed from the county at the same rate that the county applies to funds of the district on deposit with the county.

SEC. 2.

 Section 51283 of the Government Code is amended to read:

51283.
 (a) Prior to any  Before an  action by the board or council giving tentative approval to the cancellation of any contract, the county assessor of the county in which the land is located shall determine the current fair market value of the land as though it were free of the contractual restriction. The assessor shall certify to the board or council the cancellation valuation of the land for the purpose of determining the cancellation fee. At the same time, the assessor shall send a notice to the landowner and the Department of Conservation  indicating the current fair market value of the land as though it were free of the contractual restriction and advise the parties, that upon their request, the assessor shall provide all information relevant to the valuation, excluding third-party information. If any information is confidential or otherwise protected from release, the department and the landowner shall hold it as confidential and return or destroy any protected information upon termination of all actions relating to valuation or cancellation of the contract on the property. The notice shall also advise the landowner and the department of the opportunity to request formal review from the assessor.
(b) Prior to  Before  giving tentative approval to the cancellation of any contract, the board or council shall determine and certify to the county auditor the amount of the cancellation fee that the landowner shall pay the county treasurer upon cancellation. That fee shall be an amount equal to 121/2 percent of the cancellation valuation of the property.
(c) If it finds that it is in the public interest to do so, the board or council may waive any payment or any portion of a payment by the landowner, or may extend the time for making the payment or a portion of the payment contingent upon the future use made of the land and its economic return to the landowner for a period of time not to exceed the unexpired period of the contract, had it not been canceled, if all of the following occur:
(1) The cancellation is caused by an involuntary transfer or change in the use which that  may be made of the land and the land is not immediately suitable, nor will be immediately used, for a purpose which that  produces a greater economic return to the owner.
(2) The board or council has determined that it is in the best interests of the program to conserve agricultural land use that the payment be either deferred or is not required.
(3) The waiver or extension of time is approved by the Secretary of the Natural Resources Agency. The secretary shall approve a waiver or extension of time if the secretary finds that the granting of the waiver or extension of time by the board or council is consistent with the policies of this chapter and that the board or council complied with this article. In evaluating a request for a waiver or extension of time, the secretary shall review the findings of the board or council, the evidence in the record of the board or council, and any other evidence the secretary may receive concerning the cancellation, waiver, or extension of time.
(d) The first five million dollars ($5,000,000) of revenue paid to the Controller pursuant to subdivision (e) in the 2004–05 fiscal year, and any other amount as approved in the final Budget Act for each fiscal year thereafter, shall be deposited in the Soil Conservation Fund, which is continued in existence. The money in the fund is available, when appropriated by the Legislature, for the support of all of the following:
(1) The cost of the farmlands mapping and monitoring program of the Department of Conservation pursuant to Section 65570.
(2) The soil conservation program identified in  Program support costs to administer  Section 614 of the Public Resources Code.
(3) Program support costs of this chapter as administered by the Department of Conservation.
(4) Program support costs incurred by the Department of Conservation in administering the open-space subvention program (Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 16140) of Part 1 of Division 4 of Title 2).
(5) The costs to the Department of Conservation for administering Section 51250.
(6) (5)  When available, after funding the duties of the Department of Conservation pursuant to paragraphs (1) through (5), (4),  inclusive, program support costs incurred by the department in carrying out the duties of the department pursuant to Sections 65565 and 66565.1. Section 65565. 
(e) When cancellation fees required by this section are collected, they shall be transmitted by the county treasurer to the Controller and deposited in the General Fund, except as provided in subdivision (d) of this section and subdivision (b) of Section 51283.1. 51203.  The funds collected by the county treasurer with respect to each cancellation of a contract shall be transmitted to the Controller within 30 days of the execution of a certificate of cancellation of contract by the board or council, as specified in subdivision (b) of Section 51283.4.
(f) It is the intent of the Legislature that fees paid to cancel a contract do not constitute taxes but are payments that, when made, provide a private benefit that tends to increase the value of the property.

SEC. 3.

 Section 614 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

614.
 The department may do any of the following:
(a) Advise a city, county, city and county, special district, including a resource conservation district, state agency, federal agency, tribal agency, and the general public on issues of conservation importance, including, but not limited to, planning activities and documents.
(b) Review and provide comments to documents prepared in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000)).
(c) Administer local assistance programs, including grants and contracts.
(d) Serve as a state-level liaison with resource conservation districts.
(e) Provide assistance to resource conservation districts, including, but not limited to, equipment, technology, training, education, technical assistance, financial assistance, assistance to support or improve the district’s organization or capacity, and any other goods or services.
(f) Cooperate with and promote coordination of the activities of any federal, state, local, or tribal agency, including cities, counties, special districts, including resource conservation districts, and California Native American tribes on issues of conservation importance.

SEC. 4.

 Section 614 is added to the Public Resources Code, to read:

614.
 The director shall do all of the following:
(a) Advise a city, county, city and county, special district, including a resource conservation district, state agency, federal agency, tribal agency, and the general public on issues of conservation importance, including, but not limited to, planning activities and documents.
(b) Review and provide comments to documents prepared in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (Division 13 (commencing with Section 21000)).
(c) Administer local assistance programs, including grants and contracts.
(d) Serve as a state level liaison with resource conservation districts.
(e) Provide assistance to resource conservation districts, including, but not limited to, equipment, technology, training, education, and technical assistance.
(f) Provide financial assistance, through grants or direct contracts and agreements, to resource conservation districts who have been certified pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 9045 to support or improve the resource conservation district’s organization or capacity.
(g) Cooperate with and promote coordination of the activities of any federal, state, local, or tribal agency, including cities, counties, special districts, including resource conservation districts, and California Native American tribes, on issues of conservation importance.
(h) Establish a conservation service center for resource conservation districts and other conservation organizations to develop and implement projects and build conservation capacity.

SEC. 5.

 Section 616 is added to the Public Resources Code, immediately following Section 615, to read:

616.
 On or before December 31 of each year, the department shall post on its internet website a list of resource conservation districts that are certified pursuant to Section 9045.

SEC. 6.

 Section 617 is added to the Public Resources Code, immediately following Section 616, to read:

617.
 (a) Upon an appropriation by the Legislature, the department may provide grants and other forms of local assistance to resource conservation districts.
(b) The director may authorize advance payments from a grant awarded pursuant to this section. The advance payment shall not exceed 25 percent of the total grant award.

SEC. 7.

 Section 9016 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

9016.
 “Commission” means the State Resource Conservation Commission.

SEC. 8.

 Section 9018 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

9018.
 “Director” means the Director of Conservation.

SEC. 9.

 Section 9019 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

9019.
 “Division” means the Division of Resource Conservation of the department.

SEC. 10.

 Section 9020 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

9020.
 “Chief” means the Chief of the Division of Resource Conservation.

SEC. 11.

 Article 4 (commencing with Section 9045) is added to Chapter 1 of Division 9 of the Public Resources Code, to read:

Article  4. State Funding
9045.
 (a) To be eligible for any funding that may be available pursuant to Section 614, a resource conservation district shall be certified by the department as having met all of the following criteria:
(1) An adopted annual work plan and an adopted long-range work plan and prepared an annual district report pursuant to Section 9413.
(2) Compliance with Section 9528.
(3) An adopted annual budget on or before June 30 of the calendar year for the next fiscal year.
(4) Compliance with the requirements of the Ralph M. Brown Act pursuant to Chapter 9 (commencing with section 54950) of Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 5 of the Government Code.
(5) Have valid liability insurance.
(b) Upon an appropriation of the Legislature, and consistent with the requirements of Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 11250) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code and the Department of General Service’s State Contracting Manual, a district certified pursuant to subdivision (a) may enter into an interagency agreement with any state agency for services in accordance with this division.
(c) A district that receives funding from a state agency pursuant to an interagency agreement entered into pursuant to subdivision (b) shall regularly report to that state agency, in a frequency and format determined by that state agency, on how the funding was spent in accordance with the purposes and conditions of the funding.
9046.
 All equipment and machinery acquired by a district pursuant to this article is subject to call for emergency use by the federal government, the state, or any county, city, or city and county of this state.

SEC. 12.

 Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 9051) of Division 9 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.

SEC. 13.

 Section 9413 of the Public Resources Code is amended to read:

9413.
 (a) Each district may develop a long-range work plan, annual work plan, and annual district report, report  as provided in this section. These plans and the annual district report shall address the full range of projects and programs pursuant to Section 9151  that protect, conserve, restore, or enhance natural resources, or improve or enhance adaptation or resilience to climate change, or mitigate or sequester carbon emissions on natural lands and working lands  that are found to occur in the district.
(b) If a district develops a long-range work plan pursuant to subdivision (a), the long-range work plan  The long-range work plans  shall be adopted and updated every five years. Districts may amend the long-range plan before the five-year update in order to address substantive changes occurring since the adoption of the most recent long-range work plan. A district that prepares long-range work plans shall provide, either in digital or hard-copy format, for informational for information  purposes only, long-range work plans and updates to these plans to the boards of supervisors and to the boards and councils of other public agencies with jurisdiction over resource conservation and management of  of  every county with land in the district’s jurisdiction. The long-range plans shall serve the following functions:
(1) Identification of resource issues within the district for purposes of local, state, and federal resource conservation planning.
(2) Establishment of long-range district goals.
(3) Provision of a framework for directors to identify priorities for annual district activities.
(4) Provision of information to federal, state, and local governments and the public concerning district programs and goals.
(5) Setting forth a basis for evaluating annual work plan achievements and allocating available funding to the district.
(6) Involvement of other agencies and organizations in the district planning process in order to help ensure support in implementing district plans.
(c) If a district develops an annual work plan pursuant to subdivision (a), the annual work plan  The annual work plans  shall be adopted on or before September June  30 of each year in a format that shall be consistent with the district’s long-range work plan. A district that prepares prepare  annual work plans shall provide on an annual basis, either in digital or hard-copy format, for informational provide, for information  purposes only, annual work plans to the boards of supervisors and to the boards and councils of other public agencies with jurisdiction over resource conservation and management of  of  every county with land in the district’s jurisdiction. The annual work plans shall serve the following functions:
(1) Identification of high priority actions to be undertaken by the district during the year covered by the plan.
(2) Identification of the person or persons responsible for undertaking each planned task, how it will be performed, when it will be completed, what constitutes completion, and the cost.
(3) Demonstration of the relationship of annual tasks to the long-range district goals identified in the long-range work plan.
(4) Provision of assistance to the local field office of the Natural Resources Resource  Conservation Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, and coordination of activities with  the California Conservation Corps, and to the University of California Cooperative Extension, if applicable, in adjusting staff and program priorities to match district goals.
(5) Informing the public of the district’s goals for the year and the anticipated schedule of board of directors’  public meetings.
(6) Involvement of other agencies and organizations in the district planning process in order to help ensure support in implementing district plans.
(7) Provision of a basis for assisting the state in determining district eligibility for state funding under this division.
(d) If a district develops an  The  annual district report pursuant to subdivision (a), the annual district report  shall be completed on or before September June  30 of each year in a format consistent with the long-range and annual plans, so that progress made during the reporting period towards district goals can be readily determined. The annual report shall serve the following functions:
(1) To report on the district’s achievements during the reporting period to the department, the board of supervisors and to the boards and councils of other public agencies with jurisdiction over resource conservation and management of land within the district’s jurisdiction of  of  any county in which the district is located, and any agency that provides financial assistance.
(2) To increase public awareness of district activities.
(3) To compare district accomplishments during the reporting period with annual work plan objectives for that period and to identify potential objectives for the next annual work plan.
(e) For purposes of this section, the terms “natural lands” and “working lands” shall have the same meaning as used in Section 9001.5.

SEC. 14.

 Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 9751) of Division 9 of the Public Resources Code is repealed.