Transportation: bond-funded projects: letter of no prejudice.

(1) Existing law, the Highway Safety, Traffic Reduction, Air Quality, and Port Security Bond Act of 2006, authorizes the issuance of $19.925 billion of general obligation bonds for various transportation purposes. Existing law designates the state agency responsible for programming bond funds under the act as the administrative agency for those purposes. Existing law authorizes a regional or local agency that is a lead agency for a project for which bond funding has been programmed, approved, or otherwise targeted to be available, as specified, to apply to an administrative agency for a letter of no prejudice that would make the regional or local agency eligible for reimbursement from bond funds for expenditures of funds for the project or project component, as specified. Existing law excepts specified projects regarding grade separation and railroad crossing safety improvements from the authorization to apply for a letter of no prejudice. This bill would permit a regional or local agency to apply for a letter of no prejudice for specified projects regarding grade separation and railroad crossing safety improvements, which are currently prohibited from making that application, as described above. (2) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.