Voluntary Alternative Redevelopment Program.

The Community Redevelopment Law authorizes the establishment of redevelopment agencies in communities to address the effects of blight, as defined, in those communities and requires agencies to prepare, or cause to be prepared, and to approve a redevelopment plan for each project area. This bill would, notwithstanding specified law, upon the enactment of specified legislation concerning redevelopment, establish a voluntary alternative redevelopment program whereby a redevelopment agency would be authorized to continue to exist upon the enactment of an ordinance by the community to comply with the bill's provisions. The bill would require the city or county that created a redevelopment agency to notify the county auditor-controller, the Controller, and the Department of Finance on or before November 1, 2011, that the community will comply with the bill's provisions. The bill would require a participating city or county to make specified remittances to the county auditor-controller, who shall allocate the remittances for deposit into a Special District Allocation Fund, for specified allocation to certain special districts, and into the county Educational Revenue Augmentation Fund, as prescribed. The bill would authorize the city or county to enter into an agreement with the redevelopment agency in that jurisdiction, whereby the redevelopment agency would transfer a portion of its tax increment to the city or county for the purpose of financing certain activities within the redevelopment area, as specified. The bill would impose specified sanctions on a city or county that fails to make the required remittances, as determined by the Director of Finance. This bill would authorize the county auditor-controller to charge a fee that does not exceed the reasonable costs to the county auditor-controller to implement the provisions of this bill. This bill would authorize a community to establish a new redevelopment agency only after the debt obligations of the former redevelopment agency have been retired and the community satisfies the provisions of this bill, as specified. The bill would appropriate $500,000 from the General Fund to the Department of Finance for the costs to comply with the bill. The California Constitution authorizes the Governor to declare a fiscal emergency and to call the Legislature into special session for that purpose. Governor Schwarzenegger issued a proclamation declaring a fiscal emergency, and calling a special session for this purpose, on December 6, 2010. Governor Brown issued a proclamation on January 20, 2011, declaring and reaffirming that a fiscal emergency exists and stating that his proclamation supersedes the earlier proclamation for purposes of that constitutional provision. This bill would state that it addresses the fiscal emergency declared and reaffirmed by the Governor by proclamation issued on January 20, 2011, pursuant to the California Constitution. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.