BILL NUMBER: ACA 3 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Campos
JANUARY 22, 2013
A resolution to propose to the people of the State of California
an amendment to the Constitution of the State, by amending Sections 1
and 4 of Article XIII A thereof, by amending Section 2 of Article
XIII C thereof, by amending Section 3 of Article XIII D thereof, and
by amending Section 18 of Article XVI thereof, relating to local
government finance.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
ACA 3, as introduced, Campos. Local government financing: public
safety services: voter approval.
(1) The California Constitution prohibits the general ad valorem
tax rate on real property from exceeding 1% of the full cash value of
the property, subject to certain exceptions.
This measure would create an additional exception to the 1% limit
for a rate imposed by a city, county, or special district to service
bonded indebtedness incurred to fund certain fire, emergency
response, police, or sheriff buildings or facilities, and equipment,
that is approved by 55% of the voters of the city, county, or special
district, as applicable.
(2) The California Constitution conditions the imposition of a
special tax by a city, county, or special district upon the approval
of 2/3 of the voters of the city, county, or special district voting
on that tax, and prohibits these entities from imposing an ad valorem
tax on real property or a transactions or sales tax on the sale of
real property.
This measure would authorize the imposition, extension, or
increase of a special tax by a city, county, or special district for
the purpose of providing supplemental funding fire, emergency
response, police, or sheriff services, upon the approval of 55% of
the voters voting on the proposition, and would prohibit the revenues
derived from such a tax from being expended to supplant any other
funding source for the provision of these services. This measure
would also make conforming changes to related provisions.
(3) The California Constitution prohibits specified local
government agencies from incurring any indebtedness exceeding in any
year the income and revenue provided in that year, without the assent
of 2/3 of the voters and subject to other conditions. In the case of
a school district, community college district, or county office of
education, the California Constitution permits a proposition for the
incurrence of indebtedness in the form of general obligation bonds
for the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or replacement
of school facilities, including the furnishing and equipping of
school facilities, or the acquisition or lease of real property for
school facilities, to be adopted upon the approval of 55% of the
voters of the district or county, as appropriate, voting on the
proposition at an election.
This measure would similarly lower to 55% the voter-approval
threshold for a city or county to incur bonded indebtedness,
exceeding in any year the income and revenue provided in that year,
that is in the form of general obligation bonds issued to fund
certain fire, emergency response, police, or sheriff buildings or
facilities, and equipment.
Vote: 2/3. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no. State-mandated
local program: no.
Resolved by the Assembly, the Senate concurring, That the
Legislature of the State of California at its 2013-14 Regular Session
commencing on the third day of December 2012, two-thirds of the
membership of each house concurring, hereby proposes to the people of
the State of California, that the Constitution of the State be
amended as follows:
First-- That Section 1 of Article XIII A thereof is amended to
read:
SECTION 1. (a) The maximum amount of any ad valorem tax on
real property shall not exceed One 1
percent (1%) of the full cash value of
such that property. The one
1 percent (1%) tax to
shall be collected by the counties and
apportioned according to law to the districts within the counties.
(b) The limitation provided for in subdivision (a) shall not apply
to ad valorem taxes or special assessments to pay the interest and
redemption charges on any of the following:
(1) Indebtedness approved by the voters prior to July 1, 1978.
(2) Bonded indebtedness for the acquisition or improvement of real
property approved on or after July 1, 1978, by two-thirds of the
votes cast by the voters voting on the proposition.
(3) Bonded indebtedness incurred by a school district, community
college district, or county office of education for
to fund the construction, reconstruction,
rehabilitation, or replacement of school facilities, including the
furnishing and equipping of school facilities, or the acquisition or
lease of real property for school facilities, approved by 55 percent
of the voters of the district or county, as appropriate, voting on
the proposition on or after the effective date of the
measure adding this paragraph November 8, 2000 .
This paragraph shall apply only if the proposition approved by the
voters and resulting in the bonded indebtedness includes all of the
following accountability requirements:
(A) A requirement that the proceeds from the sale of the bonds be
used only for the purposes specified in Article XIII
A, Section 1(b)(3),
this paragraph and not for any other purpose, including
teacher and administrator salaries and other school operating
expenses.
(B) A list of the specific school facilities projects to be funded
and certification that the school district board, community college
board, or county office of education has evaluated safety, class size
reduction, and information technology needs in developing that list.
(C) A requirement that the school district board, community
college board, or county office of education conduct an annual,
independent performance audit to ensure that the funds have been
expended only on the specific projects listed.
(D) A requirement that the school district board, community
college board, or county office of education conduct an annual,
independent financial audit of the proceeds from the sale of the
bonds until all of those proceeds have been expended for the school
facilities projects.
(4) Bonded indebtedness, approved by 55 percent of the voters of a
city, county, or special district, as applicable, voting on the
proposition on or after the effective date of the measure adding this
paragraph, incurred by the city, county, or special district to fund
any or all of the following:
(A) The construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or
replacement of buildings or facilities for direct and exclusive use
by fire, emergency response, police, or sheriff personnel employed by
the city, county, or special district to provide fire, emergency
response, police, or sheriff services to the public; or to fund the
acquisition or lease of real property for those buildings or
facilities.
(B) The purchase, lease, rent, maintenance, or repair of fire
suppression or emergency response equipment or of interoperable
communications equipment for direct and exclusive use by fire or
emergency response personnel employed by the city, county, or special
district.
(C) The purchase, lease, rent, maintenance, or repair of
interoperable communications equipment for direct and exclusive use
by police or sheriff personnel employed by the city, county, or
special district.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law or of this
Constitution, a school districts, community
college districts, and county offices of education
district, community college district, county office of education,
city, county, or special district may levy a 55 percent vote ad
valorem tax pursuant to subdivision (b).
Second-- That Section 4 of Article XIII A thereof is amended to
read:
Section 4. Cities, Counties and special districts,
Except as otherwise provided by Section 2 of Article
XIII C, a city, county, or special district,
by a two-thirds vote of the qualified electors of such
district its voters voting on the proposition ,
may impose special taxes on such district a
special tax within that city, county, or special district ,
except an ad valorem taxes tax
on real property or a transaction
transactions tax or sales tax on the sale of real property
within such City, County that city, county,
or special district.
Third-- That Section 2 of Article XIII C thereof is amended to
read:
SEC. 2. Local Government Tax Limitation.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this
Constitution:
(a) All taxes A ny
tax imposed by any local government shall be deemed to
be is either a general
taxes tax or a special taxes
tax . Special purpose districts
A special district or agencies
agency , including a school
districts district , shall have
has no power authority
to levy a general taxes tax
.
(b) No A local government
may shall not impose, extend, or increase any
general tax unless and until that tax is submitted to the electorate
and approved by a majority vote. A general tax shall
is not be deemed to have been
increased if it is imposed at a rate not higher than the maximum
rate so approved. The election required by this subdivision shall be
consolidated with a regularly scheduled general election for members
of the governing body of the local government, except in cases of
emergency declared by a unanimous vote of the governing body.
(c) Any general tax imposed, extended, or increased, without voter
approval, by any local government on or after January 1, 1995, and
prior to the effective date of this article, shall continue to be
imposed only if that general tax is approved by a majority
vote of the voters voting in an election on the issue of the
imposition, which election shall be held within two years of
the effective date of this article no later than
November 6, 1998, and in compliance with subdivision (b).
(d) No (1) Except as
otherwise provided in paragraph (2), a local government
may shall not impose, extend, or
increase any special tax unless and until that tax is submitted to
the electorate and approved by a two-thirds
vote of the voters voting on the proposition
. A special tax shall is not
be deemed to have been increased if it is imposed
at a rate not higher than the maximum rate so approved.
(2) The imposition, extension, or increase of a special tax by a
local government, as may otherwise be authorized by law, for the
purpose of providing supplemental funding for fire, emergency
response, police, or sheriff services, requires the approval of 55
percent of the voters voting on the proposition. A special tax for
the purpose of providing funding for fire, emergency response,
police, or sheriff services is not deemed to have been increased if
it is imposed at a rate not higher than the maximum rate previously
approved in the manner required by law. The revenues derived from the
imposition, extension, or increase of a special tax pursuant to this
paragraph shall not be expended to supplant any other funding source
for fire, emergency response, police, or sheriff services.
Fourth-- That Section 3 of Article XIII D thereof is amended to
read:
SEC. 3. Property Taxes, Assessments, Fees and Charges
Limited. (a) No An agency shall
not assess a tax, assessment, fee, or charge shall be
assessed by any agency upon any parcel of property or upon
any person as an incident of property ownership except:
(1) The ad valorem property tax imposed pursuant to Article XIII
and Article XIII A.
(2) Any special tax receiving a two-thirds vote pursuant to
Section 4 of Article XIII A and paragraph (1) of subdivision (d)
of Section 2 of Article XIII C or, as applicable, a 55-percent vote
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Secti on 2
of Article XIII C .
(3) Assessments as provided by this article.
(4) Fees or charges for property related
property-related services as provided by this article.
(b) For purposes of this article, fees for the provision of
electrical or gas service shall are not
be deemed charges or fees imposed as an incident
of property ownership.
Fifth-- That Section 18 of Article XVI thereof is amended to read:
SEC. 18. (a) No A county, city,
town, township, board of education, or school district, shall
not incur any indebtedness or liability in any manner or for
any purpose exceeding in any year the income and revenue provided for
such that year, without the assent of
two-thirds of the voters of the public entity voting at an election
to be held for that purpose, except that with respect to any
such public entity which that
is authorized to incur indebtedness for public school purposes,
any proposition for the incurrence of indebtedness in the form of
general obligation bonds for the purpose of repairing, reconstructing
, or replacing public school buildings determined, in the
manner prescribed by law, to be structurally unsafe for school use,
shall be adopted upon the approval of a majority of the voters of the
public entity voting on the proposition at such
that election; nor unless before or at the time of
incurring such the indebtedness ,
provision shall be made for the collection of an annual tax
sufficient to pay the interest on such that
indebtedness as it falls due, and to provide for a sinking fund
for the payment of the principal thereof, on or before maturity
, which that shall not exceed forty
years from the time of contracting the indebtedness.
(b) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), on or after the
effective date of the measure adding this subdivision,
November 8, 2000, in the case of any school district,
community college district, or county office of education, any
proposition for the incurrence of indebtedness in the form of general
obligation bonds for the construction, reconstruction,
rehabilitation, or replacement of school facilities, including the
furnishing and equipping of school facilities, or the acquisition or
lease of real property for school facilities, shall be adopted upon
the approval of 55 percent of the voters of the district or county,
as appropriate, voting on the proposition at an election. This
subdivision shall apply only to a proposition for the incurrence of
indebtedness in the form of general obligation bonds for the purposes
specified in this subdivision if the proposition meets all of the
accountability requirements of paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of
Section 1 of Article XIII A.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), on or after the effective
date of the measure adding this subdivision, in the case of any city
or county, any proposition to incur indebtedness in the form of
general obligation bonds shall be adopted by 55 percent of the voters
of the city or county, as applicable, voting on the proposition at
an election, if the general obligation bonds would fund any or all of
the following:
(1) The construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, or
replacement of buildings or facilities for direct and exclusive use
by fire, emergency response, police, or sheriff personnel employed by
the city or county to provide fire, emergency response, police, or
sheriff services to the public, or to fund the acquisition or lease
of real property for those buildings or facilities.
(2) The purchase, lease, rent, maintenance, or repair of fire
suppression or emergency response equipment or of interoperable
communications equipment for direct and exclusive use by fire or
emergency response personnel employed by the city or county.
(3) The purchase, lease, rent, maintenance, or repair of
interoperable communications equipment for direct and exclusive use
by police or sheriff personnel employed by the city or county.
(c)
(d) When two or more propositions for incurring any
indebtedness or liability are submitted at the same election, the
votes cast for and against each proposition shall be counted
separately, and when two-thirds or a majority or
55 percent or a majority of the voters, as the case may
be, voting on any one of those propositions, vote in favor thereof,
the proposition shall be deemed adopted.
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