SB 189

Bill Subjects

Abstract

(1) Existing law, the Fort Ord Reuse Authority Act, establishes the Fort Ord Reuse Authority (the authority) to prepare, adopt, finance, and implement a plan for the use and development of the territory previously occupied by the Fort Ord military base in the County of Monterey. The act provides that the authority is governed by a board comprised of 13 members representing the County of Monterey and specified cities within the county, which the act designates as "member agencies." The act provides that any local agency that does not adopt a resolution favoring establishment of the authority is not required to appoint a voting member to the board. This bill would reduce the size of the board from 13 members to 5 members and eliminate representation for certain cities. The bill would delete the provision regarding a local agency not being required to appoint a voting member to the board. The bill would require the vote of a majority of the total membership of the board to pass or act upon any matter properly before the board. The bill would make these provisions operative on July 1, 2020. (2) Existing law requires the board to prepare, adopt, review, revise, and maintain a plan for the future use and development of the territory occupied by Fort Ord. Existing law requires the plan to include certain elements, including, among others, a 5-year capital improvement program, as provided. This bill, on and after July 1, 2020, would prohibit any additions to the plan, including the capital improvement program. (3) Existing law authorizes representatives of certain entities to serve as ex officio, nonvoting members of the board. This bill, on July 1, 2020, would reduce the number of representatives authorized to serve as ex officio, nonvoting members, as provided, and would additionally authorize a representative designated by the Marina Coast Water District to serve as an ex officio, nonvoting member. (4) Existing law authorizes the board to appoint or remove additional ex officio members at its pleasure. Existing law authorizes the board to appoint advisory committees to provide it with options, critique, analysis, and other information as it finds useful. After adoption of a reuse plan by the board, existing law requires each county or city with territory occupied by Fort Ord to submit its general plan or amended general plan that meets certain requirements, or subsequent amendments to a certified plan, to the board and requires the board, after a noticed public hearing, to certify or refuse to certify the portion of the general plan that applies the territory of Fort Ord, as provided. Existing law similarly provides for the submission and review by the board of the county's or city's zoning ordinances, zoning district maps, and, where necessary, other implementing actions applicable to the territory of Fort Ord. Existing law provides that development review authority, with certain exceptions, is exercised by the applicable county or city, but prohibits a local agency from permitting, approving, or otherwise allowing a development or other change of use within the area of Fort Ord that is not consistent with the reuse plan adopted by the board. Existing law authorizes the board to review actions of each member agency regarding planning, zoning, and the issuance or denial of building permits within the area of Fort Ord, subject to specified limitations. Existing law provides specific procedures regarding the preparation of an environmental impact report on the Fort Ord Reuse Plan that apply in the event that an environmental impact statement on the closure and reuse of Fort Ord has been filed pursuant to the federal National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Existing law authorizes the board to receive contributions from member agencies represented on the board. Existing law requires each member agency and each public agency represented by an ex officio member to contribute specified amounts to the authority. This bill would repeal all of these provisions on July 1, 2020. (5) Existing law authorizes the board to identify basewide public capital facilities described in the Fort Ord Reuse Plan, as provided, and requires the board to plan for and arrange for the provision of those facilities. Existing law requires the board to also identify significant local public capital facilities, but requires these facilities to be the responsibility of the city or county or redevelopment agency, as provided. Existing law prohibits the board from constructing or otherwise acting to improve a local public capital facility without the consent of the city or county with land use authority over the area where the facility is or will be located. Existing law also prohibits, if all or any portion of the Fritzsche Army Air Field is transferred to the City of Marina, or if all or any portion of the 2 Army golf courses within the territory of Seaside are transferred to the City of Seaside, the board from considering those portions of the air field that continue to be used as an airport or those portions of the golf courses that continue in use as a golf course, from being basewide capital facilities. Existing law authorizes the board, among other things, to issue bonds to finance basewide public facilities. This bill, on July 1, 2020, would delete the prohibitions described above, and would eliminate the board's authority to issue bonds to finance basewide public facilities. (6) Under existing law, the Fort Ord Reuse Authority Act becomes inoperative when the board makes a specified determination regarding the development or reuse of the territory of Fort Ord or on June 30, 2020, whichever occurs first. Existing law repeals the act on January 1, 2021. Existing law requires the Monterey County Local Agency Formation Commission to provide for the orderly dissolution of the authority, as provided. This bill would, instead, make the Fort Ord Reuse Authority Act inoperative on June 30, 2022, and repeal the act on January 1, 2023. The bill would require the authority to negotiate and secure successor agencies for all obligations under the transition plan no later than June 30, 2022. The bill would require the Monterey County Local Agency Formation Commission to provide for the orderly dissolution of the authority once an agreement with a successor agency has been finalized. The bill would require the transfer of specified revenues of the authority to the County of Monterey for disbursement to each underlying land use jurisdiction on a pro rata basis. The bill would specify that any financial obligation of the authority to which the County of Monterey succeeds as a result of the disbursement of remaining revenues or the retirement of debt does not constitute a debt or liability of the county, or any other member agency. The bill would make these provisions operative on July 1, 2020. This bill would authorize the authority to take specified actions regarding its dissolution, including implementing the transition plan and collecting and disbursing specified revenues. The bill would authorize an underlying land use jurisdiction to adopt a substitute funding mechanism in lieu of the community facilities district established for the Fort Ord area if the jurisdiction commits to continue funding specified regional needs. The bill would also deem the transition plan to be within the scope of a specified categorical exemption from the California Environmental Quality Act. The bill would make these provisions operative on July 1, 2020. (7) Existing law establishes procedures for the establishment and operation of all redevelopment project areas created within the area previously known as Fort Ord. Existing law, upon dissolution of the authority, requires that amounts allocated under a redevelopment plan that contains a provision for the division of taxes, if any levied upon taxable property within a redevelopment project, continue to be paid to the accounts of the authority insofar as needed to pay principal and interest or other amounts of debt incurred by the authority. This bill, upon dissolution of the authority or retirement of its debt, whichever occurs later, would require that any remaining property tax revenues allocated to the authority be transferred to the auditor-controller of the County of Monterey for appropriate distribution. (8) This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the County of Monterey. (9) By adding to the duties of various local agencies with respect to the dissolution of the Fort Ord Reuse Authority, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. 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, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.