Mitigation Fee Act: fees for improvements: reports and audits.

Existing law, the Mitigation Fee Act, imposes certain requirements on a local agency that imposes a fee as a condition of approval of a development project that is imposed to provide for an improvement to be constructed to serve the development project, or a fee for public improvements, as specified. In this regard, the Mitigation Fee Act requires the local agency to deposit the fee in a separate capital facilities account or fund, and to make certain information about the account or fund public annually, as specified. The Mitigation Fee Act requires that information to include an identification of an approximate date by which the construction of the public improvement will commence if the local agency determines that sufficient funds have been collected to complete financing on an incomplete public improvement, as specified. The Mitigation Fee Act also requires that information to include the amount of refunds made to the owners of the lots or units of the development project, as specified. This bill would require the report to include an identification of each public improvement identified in a previous report, whether construction began on the approximate date noted in the previous report, the reason for the delay, if any, and a revised approximate date that the local agency will commence construction, if applicable. The bill would also require the report to include the number of persons or entities identified to receive refunds. The Mitigation Fee Act authorizes a person to request an audit to determine whether a fee or charge levied by a local agency exceeds the amount reasonably necessary to cover the cost of a product, public facility, as defined, or service provided by the local agency. Existing law prohibits a local agency from imposing water or sewer connection fees or capacity charges that exceed the estimated reasonable cost of providing the service for which the fee or charge is imposed, unless voter approval is obtained, as specified. This bill, except with respect to the above-described connection fees and capacity charges, would expand the purposes of the audit to include a determination of when the revenue generated by a fee or charge is scheduled to be expended and when the public improvement is scheduled to be completed. The bill would require a local agency to inform a person paying a fee imposed as a condition of approval of a development project, as described above, of their right to request the audit described above and their right to file a written request for mailed notice of the local agency's meeting to review the fee account or fund information made public, as described above. The bill would also require the local agency to provide the person with a link to the page on the local agency's website where the fee account or fund information made public, as described above, is available for review. By imposing new duties on local agencies, the 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.