Mitigation Fee Act: housing developments.

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. Existing law, the Quimby Act, which is within the Subdivision Map Act, authorizes the legislative body of a city or county to require the dedication of land or to impose fees for park or recreational purposes as a condition to the approval of a tentative map or parcel subdivision map if specified requirements are met. The Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982, after a community facilities district has been created and authorized to levy specified special taxes, authorizes the legislative body, by ordinance, to levy the special taxes at the rate and apportion them in the manner specified in the resolution forming the community facilities district. This bill would prohibit a local agency from imposing a housing impact requirement adopted by the local agency on a housing development project, as defined, unless specified requirements are satisfied by the local agency, including that the housing impact requirement be roughly proportional in both nature and extent to the impact created by the housing development project. The bill, for purposes of these provisions, defines "housing impact requirement" as a fee imposed under the Mitigation Fee Act, dedications of parkland or in-lieu fees imposed under the Quimby Act, a construction excise tax, or landowner-approved taxes imposed under the Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982. This bill would prohibit a housing impact requirement from curing deficiencies in a public facility serving existing development, unless the amount of the housing impact requirement is roughly proportional both in nature and extent to the housing development project's impact on the public facility. The bill would prohibit a housing impact requirement from being based on providing a level of service, as defined, that exceeds the existing community's current level of service. This bill would require a local agency to adopt a nexus study that is used to demonstrate compliance with the requirements of these provisions, subject to specified public participation requirements. The bill would require a local agency to make an individualized determination that a housing development project will have the same type and amount of impact projected for a type of development analyzed in the nexus study. Existing law requires fees charged by a local agency for specified purposes, including zoning variances, use permits, building inspections, and the processing of maps, to not exceed the estimated reasonable cost of providing the service for which the fee is charged, unless a question regarding the amount of the fee charged in excess of this cost is submitted to, and approved by, 23 of the electors. Existing law provides that these fees may be challenged within 120 days of the effective date of the ordinance or resolution establishing the fee. This bill would additionally provide that those fees are subject to specified protest procedures upon the payment of the fees. This bill would make findings that ensuring access to affordable housing is a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, applies to all cities, including a charter city and a charter city and county. 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.