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AB-2428 Mitigation Fee Act: fees for improvements: timeline for expenditure.(2021-2022)

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Date Published: 02/17/2022 09:00 PM
AB2428:v99#DOCUMENT


CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 2428

Introduced by Assembly Member Ramos

February 17, 2022

An act to add Section 66008.1 to the Government Code, relating to development fees.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 2428, as introduced, Ramos. Mitigation Fee Act: fees for improvements: timeline for expenditure.
Existing law, the Mitigation Fee Act, requires a local agency that establishes, increases, or imposes a fee as a condition of approval of a development project to, among other things, determine a reasonable relationship between the fee’s use and the type of development project on which the fee is imposed. The Mitigation Fee Act also imposes additional requirements for fees imposed to provide for an improvement to be constructed to serve a development project, or which is a fee for public improvements, as specified, including that the fees be deposited in a separate capital facilities account or fund.
This bill would require a local agency that requires a qualified applicant, as described, to deposit fees for improvements, as described, into an escrow account as a condition for receiving a conditional use permit or equivalent development permit to expend the fees within 5 years of the deposit. The bill would require any fees not expended within this period to be returned to the qualified applicant. By imposing new duties on local officials, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: YES  

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


SECTION 1.

 Section 66008.1 is added to the Government Code, to read:

66008.1.
 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, a local agency that requires a qualified applicant to deposit fees for improvements into an escrow account as a condition for receiving a conditional use permit or equivalent development permit shall expend the fees within five years of the deposit. Any fees for improvements that are collected and that are not expended within this period shall be returned to the qualified applicant.
(b) For purposes of this section, both of the following definitions apply:
(1) “Fees for improvement” means any fee imposed to provide for an improvement to be constructed to serve a development project, or which is a fee for public improvements within the meaning of subdivision (b) of Section 66000, and that is imposed by the local agency as a condition of approving the development project.
(2) “Qualified applicant” means an applicant for a conditional use permit or equivalent development permit for a business and that employs 25 or fewer employees for that business at the time the fees are deposited into the escrow account.

SEC. 2.

 The Legislature finds and declares that the implementation of uniform and reasonable safeguards on the use of public improvement fees held in escrow is a matter of statewide concern and is not a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, Section 1 of this act adding Section 66008.1 to the Government Code applies to all cities, including charter cities.

SEC. 3.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code.